DON'T deny it - we've all thumbed through the dictionary looking for naughty words.

But who knew the origins of many of them was so fascinating?

Last night's Balderdash & Piffle, BBC2's highish-brow lexiographic detective show, focused its attentions on words of a rather adult nature.

And if there's TV beyond the pearly gates, Mary Whitehouse would have been turning in her grave.

We got to hear all about the origins of "slap and tickle", "wolf whistle" and "marital aid" among other words that couldn't possibly be published in a family newspaper.

I wonder how many prudish parents were frantically hunting down the TV remote when they realised what was going on?

I certainly know that if I'd have been back at my parents' place, the channel would have been changed within seconds, and certainly after the word "kinky" was uttered.

In our house there was a rule that if anything got stronger than "bloody" it was off.

My dad had to walk out of the room when Graham Norton came on.

Swearing is not big or clever. But isn't it funny that when BBC2 play around with rude words, it seems intellectual and quirky rather than smutty?

And by the way, who would have thought they'd been dancing round poles for so many years, even before the term pole-dancing was born?