Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. nonsense, excessively ornate speech.

1830		Freeman’s Jrnl 22 Jan. 2/2: Whom should they prefer to see in Parliament — such men [...] as Lord Fandangle, or Sir John Balderdash.
1892		Hull Dly Mail 22 July 2/7: Cursed by some old fandangle.
1895		E. Pugh Street in Suburbia 42: I ain’t much of a speaker [...] an’ it ain’t in me ter make a long fandangle.

2. (W.I.) any form of fussy ornamentation, whether of clothes, buildings, automobiles etc; also attrib.

1876		Leeds Times 28 Oct. 6/1: I’se allers been a plain, straight sided nigger, an’ hain’t never had no use for new fandandgles [...] I boun she won’t never stick her nose in dem new fandangle churches no more.
1895		Leeds Medrcury 23 Mar. 12/5: He never experienced any pleasure in visiting an agricultural show now-a-days, because of the fan-dange things.
1943, 1957		cited in Cassidy & LePage Dict. Jam. Eng. (1980).

3. an emotional uproar.

1916

Coventry Eve. Teleg. 5 Oct. 1/6: You must know the lad that we’re all in such a fandangle about — the rector’s son, who is giving us fits over what I maintain is a schoolboy’s prank.

4. stupidity, foolishness; also attrib.

1901		Derby Dly Teleg. 28 Dec. 4/3: I wil not have her [...] contaminate my girls with her foolish obstinacy and her fandangle notions.
1943		cited in Cassidy & LePage Dict. Jam. Eng. (1980).