What is the meaning, if any, of the expression "taking gongs"?
I know what a gong is (a large Oriental cymbal).
But I don't understand the expression in the context of the following article: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/09/mad-men-modern-family-win-emmys-glory/
LOS ANGELES (AFP) – Cult ad agency drama “Mad Men” won the best drama
Emmy for the fourth year late Sunday, while “Modern Family” again took
the comedy glory at US television’s awards show.British shows also triumphed at the annual Hollywood show, the Oscars
of the small screen, with Kate Winslet leading a string of Brits
taking gongs, notably for “Downton Abbey.”“Mad Men,” which has spawned a host of lookalike shows, fought off the
strongly-tipped “Boardwalk Empire” to take the best drama Emmy at the
climax of the show.
The expression only appears in the said article:
http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=%22taking+gongs%22&oq=%22taking+gongs%22
so I am guessing is a typo of some sort…
or does it refer to another show?
Best Answer
Gong is a colloquial expression for an award or medal. The only citation I found for this was http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gong_(disambiguation)