The other night we were dozing in front of ER when there was an outbreak of argy-bargy on the screen. Even before they said a word you could tell that the new arrivals in the emergency room were central-casting Brits.
Just not as good-looking as the usual actors. Bad teeth. They had a tottering high-heeled woman in tow who looked a lot like Posh Spice.
When they did start speaking it was with a mangled mockney sort of accent, so I expect they were meant to be from Manchester. At least one of them actually used the phrase 'Cor blimey guv'nor.' Perhaps it was the one who had hurt his ankle during an acrimonious cheese rolling contest - a popular pastime amongst ex-pat Britains in Chicago, we were led to believe. There was a dispute as to the rightful winner of the cheese.
The cheese in question looked suspiciously like a large Camembert.
They communicated with quaint olde English banter ('You slag!', 'You pillock!' etc) and were only silenced by one of the emergency doctors crying out 'David Beckham is a w**ker!'
It made us so proud to think that this is how America sees us.
No more stereotyped than our (British) view of them, then.
ReplyDeleteOh, I don't deny that. But stereotypes don't come entirely out of nowhere. If Americans and probably the rest of the world view Britains as foul-mouthed yobs there has to be a reason, doesn't there?
ReplyDeleteNo smoke without fire.[*]
ReplyDelete[*] Other clichés are available. Ask your rhetorician if clichés are suitable for you. Known side effects include lack of originality, and loss of interesting friends.
Fellow Britains unite! If we are to create a better impression in the wider world let us start today by giving up our national obsession with cheese-rolling.
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ReplyDeleteCHEESE THIEVES
Not content with taking away our right to drink ouselves senseless, wear handkerchiefs on our heads and mutter under our breath about the service, those crazies in foreign lands want to deprive us of defining part of Englishness: Cheese-Rolling. What next? Removing the right to bear an umbrella? I tell you, It's political correctness gone mad!
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Ah yes, the muttering under the breath thing. 'Mustn't grumble' is such a stock phrase in British English, isn't it, yet grumbling is one of the things we do best and most. Not constructive complaining, mind you. That would never do.
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