Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. cheek, verbosity.

1919		A. Baer Two and Three 27 Jan. [synd. col.] He gives the two disciples of science the class A-1 hoot and pages some action.
1963		A. Burgess Inside Mr Enderby in Complete Enderby (2002) 65: Too much hoot altogether, mate, to my way of thinking, that’s what you’ve got.

2. (Irish) a joke, something amusing.

2015		L. McInerney Glorious Heresies 216: Shakespeare hadn’t looked very amused but had apparently reported back that the whole thing was quite the hoot.
2018		(con. 1963) L. Berney November Road 215: Charlotte, curious, asked Gigi if she liked her job at the hotel. ‘It’s a hoot,’ Gigi said. ‘Oh, the things I see’.