Yewtree

From Operation Yewtree, an investigation by British police forces into historic sex offences primarily linked to Jimmy Saville. The name Yewtree (from yew tree) was randomly selected from a list of neutral terms.

Yewtree

1. Operation Yewtree

Yewtree (third-person singular simple present Yewtrees, present participle Yewtreeing, simple past and past participle Yewtreed)

1. (UK, slang) To investigate historic sexual offences as part of Operation Yewtree, or otherwise reveal or allege someone (especially a celebrity active in the 1970s and 1980s) to be a paedophile or abuser.
   • 2013 May 28, Bradley Steptoe, “I Tracked Down Mr Blobby’s Lair”, in VICE‎:

     Having been born in the late 80s, I remember Saturday night TV through a child’s eyes. Unfortunately, most of the people who were on it have now either died, been Yewtreed, or gone nuts.

   • 2016 January 6, Steve Binnie, Feeling Like a Number One‎, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 197:

     Anyway, this is the last Yewtreed edition of the show until we get to Christmas, when both end-of-year specials are scuppered by their hosts, which is a bit inconvenient.

   • 2018 November 22, Marina Hyde, “Jim Davidson gets stuck in an eco protest and bags his biggest audience for years”, in The Guardian‎:

     There was a brief return to Dubai after an Operation Yewtreeing that came to nothing, but Jim’s next gig of any note was the 2014 series of Celebrity Big Brother.

Yewtree (comparative more Yewtree, superlative most Yewtree)

1. (UK, slang) A paedophile, specifically one revealed by Operation Yewtree or a similar investigation.