"Lock, stock, and barrel" is a merism used predominantly in the United Kingdom and North America, meaning "all", "total" or "everything". It derives from the effective portions of a gun: the lock, the stock, and the barrel.
History
The term was first recorded in the letters of Sir Walter Scott in 1817, in the line "Like the High-landman's gun, she wants stock, lock, and barrel, to put her into repair."[1] It is, however, thought that this term evolved into a popular saying some years before in England.[citation needed][2]
Common uses
Media
Lock Stock & Barrel is a book dealing with the restoration and repair of antique firearms, in two volumes.
"Lock,stock and barrel" is mentioned in Silvia Plath's novel
"The Bell Jar".
"Lock, stock, and barrel" is the name of an achievement in the popular zombie survival video game, Unturned, which can be achieved by crafting a rocket launcher within the game's "Arid" map.
Officer Lockstock and Officer Barrel are two characters from Urinetown: the Musical. Another musical that used it was the animated musical The Nightmare Before Christmas by Tim Burton featured three infamous children, the 'Trick or Treaters' 'Lock', 'Shock' and 'Barrel'.
The phrase is written in the sign of the "Cannonball pub" in the 1981 movie "The Cannonbal Run"
Politics
Politician Mike Pence, Vice President of the United States under Donald Trump, has heavily favored the phrase since at least 2010[3][4] when urging for the repeal of Obamacare, and used the phrase extensively during and after the 2016 presidential campaign.[5][6][7]
Joe Loss and his orchestra recorded a version in London in 1950. It was released by EMI on the His Master's Voice label as catalogue numbers BD 6070 and HE 2832.