Green’s Dictionary of Slang

the hair, thus by meton. the head, the mind (see cite 2020).

1857		‘Ducange Anglicus’ Vulgar Tongue.
1860		Hotten Dict. of Modern Sl. etc.
1883		N. Devon Jrnl 8 Feb. 7/2: [from The Echo] Come, cows and kisses, put the battle of the Nile on your Barnet Fair, and a rogue and villain in your sky-rocket.
1891		G.R. Sims ‘Tottie’ Dagonet Ditties 126: She walked along the street / With her little ‘plates of meat,’ / And the summer sunshine falling / On her golden ‘Barnet Fair’.
1897		Marshall Pomes 110: And the start was all Sir Garnet, Jenny went for Emma’s barnet [F&H].
1900		‘Doss Chiderdoss’ ‘A Dangerous Dad’ Sporting Times 3 Feb. 1/4: The old gent’s Barnet Fair got at once out o’ comb, / And ’e ’ollered out, ‘Shut it, lad—nanty!’.
1910		Eve. Teleg. (Dundee) 3 Aug. 4/1: He puts on a clean 'Oxford,' changes his 'almonds,' brushes his 'Barnet,' and dons his 'turtles.' He then pays a visit to the 'rub-a-dub'.
1912		H. Champion ‘C.A.R.R.O.T.Y.’ [monologue] ‘Wotcha, Carroty! [...] Ain’t your Barnet Fair OK?’.
1912		Sport (Adelaide) 19 Oct. 13/3: They Say [...] That Wally had his ‘barney fair’ cut.
1924		G.H. Lawson Dict. of Aus. Words And Terms 🌐 BARNEY FAIR — Hair.
1935		Mirror (Perth) 14 Sept. 17/2: Hair: Barney fair.
1935		Thieves Slang ms list from District Police Training Centre, Ryton-on-Dunsmore, Warwicks 1: Barney fair: Haifr.
1937		J. Curtis There Ain’t No Justice 216: For Christ’s sake get your hair cut before you go into the ring to-morrow night. The old timers ’d of bin ashamed to have bin seen with Barnet Fair like what you’ve got.
1938		(con. 1900s) in J.B. Booth Sporting Times 87: But she cooled each mince with a little scent, And her Barnet arranged with grace.
a.1945		L. Payne private coll. n.p.: Hair Barnet Fair.
1958		F. Norman in Sun. Graphic 23 Nov. in Norman’s London (1969) 39: I saw one of the very biggest villains in the entire world bunnying away [...] to a double cultured geezer with grey barnet.
1960		(con. 1950-1960) R.A. Freeman Dict. Inmate Sl. (Walla Walla, WA) 6: Barney Fair – the hair.
1962		F. Norman Guntz 7: They send you to a doss house, so that you can get lice in your barnet.
1969		S.T. Kendall Up the Frog 13: She ’ad golden Barnet Fair an’ a smashin’ pair of mince pies.
1977		S. Berkoff East in Decadence and Other Plays (1985) 60: He, flashing his comb through his barnet.
1985		S. Berkoff West in Decadence and Other Plays (1985) 110: I got to the karzi / full of geezers doing their barnets.
1999		Guardian Rev. 13 Nov. 4: Its disturbing array of split ends and dodgy barnets.
2001		M. Coles Bible in Cockney 51: The secret of Samson’s amazing strength was in ’is Barnet, and [...] if ’e ever cut ’is Barnet, ’e’d lose his strength.
2002		D. Shaw ‘Dead Beard’ at www.asstr.org 🌐 Then it clicks – she’s a bit older and she’s changed the color of her barnet fair, but this is Dionne Longer.
2012		(con. 1980s) I. Welsh Skagboys 355: She’s nowhere near as good-looking as she thinks, although [...] that barnet is something else.
2019		P. Baker Fabulosa 289/1: barnet hair.
2020		G. Armstrong Young Team 78: We’re aw aboot tae take our first ecktos n git right oot our barnets.