Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. one’s (best) friend; often as old china

1880		D.W. Barrett Life and Work among Navvies 41: Now then, my china-plate, out with your cherry-ripe, off with your steam-packet, and set your bark and growl agoin.
1898		Hartlepool Mail 26 Feb. 6/4: China plates, mates.
c.1902		Arthur Nelstone [perf.] ‘As You Were’ 🎵 [A] dear old china, Timothy what’s er name.
1905		Duke Tritton’s Letter n.p.: Dear China Plate, No doubt you have wondered how your old Thief and Robber has been doing since you went back to the Snake and Kidney.
1919		Truth (Brisbane) 28 Sept. 2/3: I knew the ‘Landsborough Lad’ well before he went to the chisel and saw [...] He was my china plate.
1925		(con. WWI) Fraser & Gibbons Soldier and Sailor Words 53: China, or Old China: chum.
1927		Eve. Herald (Dublin) 30 Nov. 6/4: Cockney bricklayers seem to have a quaint language of their own [...] china plate — mate.
1933		M. Marshall Tramp-Royal on the Toby 7: I meet with my chinas.
1938		L. Ortzen Down Donkey Row 24: It’s a good job I’m around, and there’s some china plates in the street.
1941		G. Kersh They Die with Their Boots Clean 2: Old Charlie, my pore old china, pore old Charlie, he says Gug!
1941		West. Australian (Perth) 12 Apr. 4: This letter has come from Private bates, / Regards to you and the china plates.
a.1945		L. Payne private coll. n.p.: Mate China Plate.
1952		Sun. Times (Perth) 20 Apr. 23s/3: His cheese-and-kisses shot through with his best China-plate. She took the tin lids with her.
1952		T.A.G. Hungerford Ridge and River (1966) 46: He’s the bloke that’s going to show us [...] and he runs away from his china like that. Don’t tell me he’s on the level!
1956		B. Behan Quare Fellow (1960) Act II: We came over here to see a chiner of ours.
1957		G. Kersh Fowlers End (2001) 269: Without ’eavens above or china plate / I know I can never be missed, / So I shake in the chivvy of ’orrible Fate / My trembling Oliver Twist.
1958		(con. 1940s) B. Behan Borstal Boy 112: Sometimes two chinas from the same town would start off a conversation.
1962		B. McGhee Cut and Run (1963) 13: I was introduced to Jenny’s china, a short-haired synthetic blond.
1969		S.T. Kendall Up the Frog 17: I met a china plate o’ mine. We ’ad a few dicky birds.
1979		J. Morrow Confessions of Proinsias O’Toole 102: The hand of the muckman, I presumed, while the other could as readily be throttling the life out of my oul’ china.
1982		P. Slabolepszy Sat. Night at the Palace (1985) 15: september: Aikona. vince: Don’t ‘aikona’ me, my china. Your tickey box swallowed my money.
1985		B. Simon ‘Outers’ Born in the RSA (1997) 45: We’re all chinas here, man.
1996		J. Byrell Lairs, Urgers & Coat-Tuggers 152: All his chinas were a jerry to his perpetual lousy luck in life generally and the punt in particular.
1997		T. Winton Lockie Leonard, Legend (1998) 121: ‘Archie!’ yelled Monster [...] ‘Me old china plate, I knew you’d come.’.
2001		D. Looser Boobslang [U. Canterbury D.Phil. thesis] 41/2: china plate n. a friend, mate.
2005		A. Lovejoy Acid Alex xiv: I’m goofed right now, so if I forgot to mention you in person, china, don’t be all goeters .
2009		J. Joso Soothing Music for Stray Cats 161: I see, China plate – mate. I got it!
2018		G. Gilmore Base Nature [ebook] ‘To show you, me old china, the headlines’.

2. (Aus.) one’s wife.

1957

D. Niland Call Me When the Cross Turns Over (1958) 52: ‘Aren’t you frightened she might get sick of it all and run away with another man?’ ‘Not my old china.’.