Sorry @super_ram, but this thread is anti Derby.

Surely this is a Notts phrase not a sheep phrase!!!

Actress Angelina Jolie left some audience members baffled when she greeted Derby actor Jack O'Connell with "ay up me duck" at an awards ceremony.

She spoke in a Derby accent and introduced him with the East Midlands phrase as she presented him with an award at the Hollywood Film Awards.

Some television viewers tweeted in delight while others did not understand why she was talking about a duck.

O'Connell has the lead role in Jolie's upcoming film Unbroken.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-derbyshire-30104871

Again apologies warm, but some things are sacred!!!

Haha!!

The radio have reported this wrong, at least BBC Nottingham have. They said earlier she did it to pay respect to a Nottingham born actor and despite @Joe Jones mentioning this on PoN's HQ/Tower, I have absolutely no interest in this.

So it's goodbye me ducks.

I actually thought it was an Ilkeston phrase, there was a book a few years ago called "Ay Up Miduck" and it was about Ilkeston dialect.

 

My Dad was born and bred in Ilson I remember buying it him for his birthday.

Ha ha, I've just found it on Ebay, it brings back a few memories for me, I've a good mind to get it.

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/381047982206?limghlpsr=true&hlpv=2&ops=true&viphx=1&hlpht=true&lpid=108&chn=ps&device=c&adtype=pla&crdt=0&ff3=1&ff11=ICEP3.0.0-L&ff12=67&ff13=80&ff14=108&ff19=0

 

It's described as Ilkeston and Erewash dialect.

I actually thought it was an Ilkeston phrase, there was a book a few years ago called "Ay Up Miduck" and it was about Ilkeston dialect.

 

My Dad was born and bred in Ilson I remember buying it him for his birthday.

I've got part 2 @tonyhateley.

.The actual accent used to cover the Erewash and Amber valley areas,with slight differences.I come originally from Alfreton but go a few miles in any direction and the accent changes quite considerably.Go north and the accent merges towards Yorkshire.Go west and south and it gets more 'normal'Go east and it turns into a Nottingham accent.Incidently when I started work in Nottingham I used to be teased about my accent especially when I called people 'duck' I think that over the last 50 years,with people mixing more and working and socialising with people from a larger area, that accents  are becoming less localised.I was/am more likely to greet a bloke by saying -Ayup youth,irrespective of age.If it's a female it becomes 'Ay up duck'

http://prideofnottingham.co.uk/community/topic/521-regional-words/

New members may like this from last year.It says a lot about local accents.

People say ay up across much of the Midlands and Yorkshire, I don't know where it's originally from. But only people in Notts and Derbyshire have a thing about ducks.

not many people actually say it much these days, when i was younger the people who frequently said it was in their 50s+.

none of my family do but regardless of where it comes from, its good for the midlands.

I had two separate work colleagues forwarding me on the BBC News article on this   You don't seem to run into many East Midlanders over in Brum I guess.

 

I did it quite amusing, I mean why not be proud of the little quirks that being from a certain region gives you.

I thought it was a midlands phrase myself. Not just Derby.

I've never considered it a Derby(as a city area) saying,more the coal mining areas around Ilkeston.