early doors
Early, near the start or beginningEarly, near the start or beginning.
Meaning
1 senses(Northern England, not comparable)Early, near the start or beginning.
The party was very dull, so I made an early doors exit.
Origin
According to some, the phrase originated at a time when English pubs closed in the afternoAccording to some, the phrase originated at a time when English pubs closed in the afternoon as a term for customers who were waiting or arrived soon after the pub re-opened in the evening. Alternatively, the phrase is said to originate in the theatre world, where it described a facility available to early-arriving members of the audience, who were allowed to avoid the crush and choose the best seats in return for paying a small premium.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Dictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.