Off The Cuff relates to speaking without notes or carrying out a task with no proper preparation. In Victorian times, men wore shirts with stiff, detachable collars and cuffs, which made them easier to keep clean. Politicians and after-dinner speakers, to give the impression they were speaking to an audience from the heart, liked to address gatherings without any visible script or notes. They would, however, write key notes on their cuffs, which they could refer to from time to time. They might even make additional notes during the speech of a fellow politician in order to remember to counter any points made by their opponents. This all gave the impression that the speaker was completely prepared and articulate enough not to need a script - whereas in fact they had notes all the time, "on the cuffs."