"Mad Lads": 45 Times People Tried Acting Like Absolute Rebels And Got Hilarious Results (New Pics)

According to the internet database Know Your Meme, the origin of the term "lad" comes from the media-driven, primarily British and Irish subculture of the 1990s and early 2000s called "laddism". Soon enough, the word became a popular internet slang describing principally young men who are drinking, partying, and, well, simply having a good time while trying to impress everyone around them.

The meme really took off after the phrase "absolute madman" started popping up on social media under pictures of pitiful nights out, including the well-known image of Dean lying on the floor. These posts helped to promote the slang term so much that it even spawned the 'Mad Lads' subreddit dedicated purely to these "unsung heroes" in 2015.

Since then, the community has been documenting the phenomenon of British masculinity at its weirdest and sharing the most ridiculous examples to ever grace social networks. And even though now the British lad culture seems to be withering, the group continues to immortalize their "power moves" with an ironic twist. Or, as Vice columnist Roisin Kiberd explained, "It's a joke on the Mad Lads, masquerading as a community for them."

Once the group started gaining more traction and made the top five subreddits site-wide, Philip, the creator of the group, started receiving comments from people wondering what this community is all about. "A lot of the time, people will be led to us by an 'absolute madman' comment, and they'll understand pretty quickly that it's a parody of lad humor," Philip said in an interview with Vice.

While there are many notoriously famous 'Mad Lad' figures, such as the Ruari in the bath and Owen with a pen in his hair, "The one that always stands out to me is that guy saying 'Never let me drink and have a broom,'" Philip revealed. "It's just so perfect. He's cleaning up, doing something quite positive, while probably very drunk. And the description implies he's doing something completely mad."

To hear more about the phenomenon from an expert, we reached out to Dr. Jesse Matthews, Psy.D., a licensed clinical psychologist based in Chester Springs, PA. He explained he has seen examples of this behavior online, and most of them looked like jokes.

"Some posts showed signs with rules like 'do not touch the glass' at the zoo with the poster touching the glass and #absolutemadman. In another, a guy posted his burger order, which included just about every topping." As none of these actions are all that extreme, humor comes into the picture, Dr. Matthews told Bored Panda.

Previously, "mad lads" seemed to showcase a vain and self-absorbed side of themselves by presenting an edgy persona to simply gain attention. In a sense, these young men were the product of masculinity in crisis, especially if they were being serious or acted very stereotypically masculine, Dr. Matthews added.

But the psychologist noted that in the posts mocking the "absolute madman" phenomenon, this doesn’t seem to be the case. "In fact, joking about breaking minor rules or acting as though small things are so extreme seems more like it’s poking fun at masculinity." So it looks like we’re likely moving towards a post-lad future where the "bantasaurus rexes" are faced with extinction.

But what lies behind the urge to share "power moves" online? "If we’re really being honest, anyone sharing anything online is seeking attention or recognition," Dr. Matthews explained. "Some people just from those they already know, but others from strangers too. It is generally regarded as a positive thing to get more likes or follows, and certainly some kind of notoriety or fame. And if you’re lucky, maybe even money or other deals."

Of course, people seek praise for various reasons, but one subtle impulse that drives this urge is our herd mentality. "Most people use some type of social media these days, and young people have had it just about their whole lives. It’s now normal to share things online, whether it’s serious or whether you are performing or portraying something else," the psychologist added.

"So there’s the idea that everyone is doing it which leads people to be part of it, and then if someone wants to stand out, they might try to start trends or they follow trends, or they may try to one-up what others are doing. It’s kind of like the idea of street cred, yet online and/or in your school, community, or local area."

A brief scroll through the community shows that some of the heroes featured in this subreddit are shockingly young. As many of them are growing up and have likely reached adulthood by now, there’s a chance they look back on the decisions they made with regret. But, according to Dr. Matthews, everything depends on the content they’re posting. "If it’s pretty vanilla stuff, then they are probably just doing what they see other people doing and at some point, they will grow out of it."

"However, if it’s too extreme, as in illegal, dangerous, or inappropriate, then it could certainly have ramifications — either in the short or long run. Most of us have seen people lose jobs, have scholarships or admissions offers revoked, or people getting injured or arrested," he continued. "It’s likely that the more extreme the content, whatever it is, the more likely you are to end up regretting it later."