Cock and bull story
'A Cock and Bull story' is a form of Chinese whispers. It comes from a long time ago when the two most popular pubs in a village were The Cock and The Bull. If a story started in The Cock, by the time it got to The Bull it had been either twisted or exaggerated.

We received this email from a site visitor:

I heard a more fullsome account than the one you give. Very similar, but it is of the roads between places in England there were many, many pubs, the most popular names of pubs being The Cock and The Bull. By the time a story had travelled along the roads, from pub to pub, Chinese Whispers had taken effect. I am not sure it doesn't even date back to Chaucer and the Inns used by travelers, where news only traveled by means of word of mouth from Inn to Inn, and unsavoury and elaborate stories abounded. The difference being, it was not just a couple of pubs in a village, but many pubs, all over the country, from town to town. I don't think merely being heard in two pubs is "enough" for a Chinese whisper to be fully "Cock and Bull" in nature. I also heard a similar story but the pubs were all along a certain road in London, not sure which. Another slant is that is means the kind of story someone gives to cover up the truth, "an elaborate Cock and Bull story".

  (来源：英语麦当劳 http://www.EnglishCN.com)