Skip to main content
  • News
    • MTV News
    • Trending News
    • Videos & Interviews
    • Taylor Swift
    • Kim Kardashian
  • Music
    • Music Highlights
    • Music Videos
    • Charts
    • Playlists
    • EMAs
    • MTV PUSH
    • Artists
  • Shows
    • Latest Shows
    • The Charlotte Show
    • Geordie Shore
    • Ex on the Beach
    • Just Tattoo Of Us
    • Teen Mom UK
    • The Royal World
  • Movies
    • Movies Highlights
    • New Movies Coming Soon
    • Videos & Interviews
    • Trailers
    • Moana
  • Travel
    • Videos
  • Style
  • Life
    • Life
    • MTV Breaks
    • Sex
    • WTF
    • SRS
    • Travel
    • Fitness
    • Generation Change
  • Pictures
  • Win
  • MTV Play
  • TV Guide
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Search
  • Pictures
  • Win
  • MTV Play
  • TV Guide
Home
  • News
    • MTV News
    • Trending News
    • Videos & Interviews
    • Taylor Swift
    • Kim Kardashian
  • Music
    • Music Highlights
    • Music Videos
    • Charts
    • Playlists
    • EMAs
    • MTV PUSH
    • Artists
  • Shows
    • Latest Shows
    • The Charlotte Show
    • Geordie Shore
    • Ex on the Beach
    • Just Tattoo Of Us
    • Teen Mom UK
    • The Royal World
  • Movies
    • Movies Highlights
    • New Movies Coming Soon
    • Videos & Interviews
    • Trailers
    • Moana
  • Travel
    • Videos
  • Style
  • Life
    • Life
    • MTV Breaks
    • Sex
    • WTF
    • SRS
    • Travel
    • Fitness
    • Generation Change
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Search

Life

  • Main
  • Videos
  • Pictures
  • News

8 Ways To Spice Up Late Night Conversation With Your Cabbie

It's NEVER too late for funtimes...

  • Share to Facebook
  • Tweet to Twitter
  • Share to Google plus
Thursday, September 24, 2015 - 10:15

You know the drill: it’s late, you’ve had a big one and the time’s finally come for a cab trip home. You hail one down, get inside and begin the exact same conversation you always have. “Hey mate, how’s it going? Busy tonight? Yeah, what time did you start? Ooof, sounds like it’s going to be a long one then.” Etc, etc, etc.  

It’s hard to say who’s more bored of that conversation - us, or the cabbies. Either way, it’s about time we spice it up. So here are eight suggestions for how to make that cab trip home a little more memorable…

He’s Hands-Free, You’re Hands-Free… Everybody’s Hands-Free!

Let’s face it: these days you often don’t even get the chance to have a chat because your cabbie’s already hooked into his hands-free gear having one of those long, hushed, mysterious conversations with… well, we’ve no idea who with. But why let that stop the fun? 

Pull out some headphones, stick them in one ear and pretend you’re on a phone call as well, except… only ever talk as a response to whatever the cabbie says into HIS phone. For example… 

CABBIE (into phone): Will you be home later? 
YOU: Yeah, you wanna come round? 
CABBIE (to you): Oh, I was actually speaking to my friend on the phone. 
YOU: Huh? Sorry - I’m on a call. 
CABBIE (to you): Oh... (into phone): Hey, sorry - I thought my customer was talking to me. 
YOU: Oh I was. 
CABBIE (to you): Huh? 
YOU: Excuse me? Sorry mate, I just need to finish this call. 

Give Me A Beat

Why sit silently when you could be talking? And why be talking... when you could be SINGING!? 

If musicals have taught us anything, it’s that there’s no conversation that can’t be turned into a moving solo, uplifting anthem or hilarious ditty. So next time you get into a cab, why not tell your driver about your night as if Taylor Swift herself had imagined it for you. Plus, if there’s a whole bunch of you in the cab, obviously you all have to harmonise and do call-and-response material. The ultimate goal, however, is getting the cabbie to join in as well. 

Double points if he raps.   

Elementary, My Dear Driver

Sherlock’s one of the best things to come out of Britain in the last few years, so why not give your cabbie a chance at playing the hero for once? Provide details of your home address via a series of increasingly complex riddles and clues and see how he goes at getting you there. 

Don’t be too tough, though, otherwise your fun game will turn into a shockingly expensive detour. 

Coming Up Next… YOU

Step one: ask if you can turn the radio on.
Step two: ask if you can find a talkback radio show.
Step three: ask your cabbie what HE thinks of whichever issue is being discussed.
Step four: call up the radio station, put your phone on speaker and TAKE YOUR CABBY CHAT NATIONAL.   

I Spy

An oldie, but a goodie. Of course, given you’re being driven in the dead of night and you’re either sloshed, exhausted or both - spying anything  with your ‘little eyes’ will prove more challenging than usual. Add to that the fact that most of what one can spy on the street in the wee hours of the morning is generally confined to ‘drunks’, ’prostitutes’ and ‘annoyingly fit marathon runners’, and your game might be short lived. 

Better suggestion: appoint your cabbie as the one to spy. Not only will it prompt conversation, it’ll ensure his eyes are on the road and not his phone.       

The Question Game

Have you ever played the question game? 

Do you know how it works? 

Do you reckon you could give a cabbie your address purely in question form? 

Do you think it might piss him off? 

How would you handle a pissed off driver? 

Don’t they always seem semi-pissed off anyway? 

How could you correctly identify a cabbie's different moods without really knowing him? 

But can you ever really know anyone? 

WHOA…Rhetorical question! You lose! Next round!   

Bourne To Ride

Are you an aspiring actor? There’s no better place to try out a whole new persona than in a cab. 

The driver doesn’t know you, so if you can pull off a convincing performance and rock a heavy accent without them ever raising an eyebrow and asking where exactly you’re from, you know you’re nailing it. You wanna pretend to be a spy, too? We’re not going to stop you. Only the bad guys chasing you can do that (*wink wink*). 

Of course, if you really want to mess with them, change accents and/or personalities halfway through the trip, and if they ask you about it - act like you’ve no idea what they’re talking about.   

No, But For Real…

Time to get earnest for a moment. We’re talking full-on Oprah. You want a seriously good conversation with your cabbie? Then put the phone down, dial back the radio and actually talk  to them. 

Ask them where they’re from, then ask them more about wherever that is. Ask them what’s the best thing they’ve ever seen since driving a cab, and ask them about the worst. You might laugh, you might cry - all we know is, you’ll walk away from that trip more engaged and entertained by one or two real stories than all the other fun ones above combined, and they’ll appreciate the chance to avoid the usual chit chat even more than you. Guaranteed. 

By Tom Glasson

Latest News

Get To Know - Moonchild Sanelly
Get To Know: Moonchild Sanelly
Get To Know: FLO
Get To Know: FLO
Get To Know - Poppy Ajudha
Get To Know: Poppy Ajudha
Get To Know: Bru-C
Get To Know: Bru-C
Get To Know: Alissic
Get To Know: Alissic
Get To Know: French The Kid
Get To Know: French The Kid
Get To Know: Daisy Brain
Get To Know: Daisy Brain
Get To Know: Dylan
Get To Know: Dylan
Get To Know: Flowerovlove
Get To Know: Flowerovlove
Get To Know: Luude
Get To Know: Luude
Our Music Portfolio Is Changing
Get To Know: Belters Only
Get To Know: Belters Only
Get To Know: CMAT
Get To Know: CMAT
Get To Know: Rêve
Get To Know: Rêve
Get To Know: Lauran Hibberd
Get To Know: Lauran Hibberd
Bad Boy Chiller Crew
Bad Boy Chiller Crew Win MTV PUSH UK & IRE 2022!
MTV’s Catfish UK: Apply Now
The BRIT Awards 2022 Hosted By Mo Gilligan
Win Tickets To The BRIT Awards 2022!
Wet Leg
Wet Leg Found It "So Weird" When People Sang Their Songs
Thomas Headon
Thomas Headon: “If You Vote For Me, I Will Be A Step Closer To Meeting Harry Styles”

More From Life

Life
Young People Aged 18-24 Are Some Of The Most Affected By Sleep Deprivation In The UK[1]
5 Female Activists Using Their Voice To Fight For Gender Equality
How To Look After Your Mental Health In 2021
Generation Change
Life
Generation Change
22 Ways To Look Busy At Work While Doing Absolutely Nothing
The Most Empowering Moments From The Black Lives Matter Protests
Looking After Your Mental Health During The Global Pandemic
Generation Change: Our New Campaign To Support Young Activists
Our New MTV Breaks Podcast Is Here To Help YOU Break Into The Creative Industries
MTV Breaks: How We Help YOU Break Into Creative Industries
Punchdrunk: Sleep No More, Shanghai
Life
Punchdrunk Stans Are The New Arianators And We’re Very Here For It
5 Weird And Wonderful Adventures To Ditch Your Hangover For

Trending Articles

10 Things Your Heartbroken Friend Needs To Hear
18 Most Naked Of Naked Moments To Have Ever Hit Geordie Shore
Life
Here's Why Celebs Are Holding Four Fingers Up In Their Selfies
Charli D’Amelio Breaks Down Over Death Threats As James Charles And Bryce Hall Offer Support
What 15 Of The Most Common Sex Dreams ACTUALLY Mean
21 Types Of People You'll Find In Every Friendship Group
9 Signs That You're A Way Too Pushy Friend
Celebrity
10 Celebrities Who Have Some Seriously Kinky Sex Likes In The Bedroom
Dixie D’Amelio Speaks Out After She And Charli Were Criticised For Being “Rude” To Their Chef
What's The Difference Between Being Bisexual, Pansexual And Queer?
  • Contact Us
  • Access Services
  • Website Terms
  • Mobile Terms
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • MTV Jobs
  • MTV Press
  • Anti-Slavery
  • Global Tax Policy Statement
Hit us with some keywords!