Awkward moments caused entirely due to that British politeness embarrassment thing

I was once at a food market looking for somewhere to stop and buy lunch when suddenly someone who was selling food in a near by stall asked me to try the food they were cooking , I asked what it was and they told me however I didn't hear them and couldn't bring myself to ask them again! So I decided to just try it because what could the worst happen?! ... turns out it was a very fishy fish and resulted in me trying my absolute best not to gag and heave in front of the poor people stood proudly watching me try their food and I couldn't bring myself to say I didn't like it / no Thankyou ... I ended up very quickly spending £8 on the fishy dish to then rushing around the corner to put it in the bin gagging and looking for a drink 😂

A waitress in Greece accidentally tipped a glass of red wine over me, she was mortified so I apologized profusely to her.

Too many to mention. But today's example - I paid £24 for 2 products which were very clearly labelled £7.00 each because I was too polite/embarrassed/chicken to query it! My DH thinks I'm insane.

A friend was staying with another friend on holiday. When he went to bed a pigeon flew in yhrought yhe open window. He couldn't get it out, didnt want to wake other friend so spent the night with the bird in his room.

This is why deed poll was invented. Surely it's just less painful all round to change your name officially to Thelma and Louise (remember that film?) than it is to correct them. If you explain to all your English family/friends why they'll be totally on board too and wonder why you didn't do it sooner.

We moved to our house 4 years ago, 15 miles from where we used to live.

DH has a face that seems to get more 'hellos' than usual, so wasn't too odd how many people took kindly to him. Wasn't until someone asked him about an injury did we realise that loads of people thought he played rugby in the local towns reasonably decent rugby team.

Too British to correct them, and they have all been to British to do anything apart from carry on with chatting to us about various rugby games.

I went to a yoga class and the instructor misheard my name (think Lesley rather than Louise) and rather than correct her, I answered to Lesley. A few months later (!!) someone who knew me joined the class. The instructor heard her call me Louise and asked me what my name was. When I answered Louise, she asked me why I hadn't told her. I just smiled and said I considered Lesley to be my yoga name.......

Another wee one.
Years ago was invited with my DM and her friend to stay in an acquaintance's apartment in Paris. Didn't realise acquaintance's mother and dog would be also staying in living area which made getting to the loo difficult during the night without waking acquaintance's frosty DM and her very yappy dog. First night, we were woken up by the sound of running water which turned out to be my DM taking an pee. She had somehow emptied out a vase of flowers and was quickly filling it. To the brim. She was desperate.

Yes Louise, you should have nipped it in the bud at the start, but I know your name is really Thelma. lol

Q. E. D. there Mrs H

There's a lovely man at church. His role is to greet people and hand out Mass books. He is really lovely and greets DS and DD2 by name and asks after DD1 (again by name) - she's away at uni and greets DH by name when he comes to church at Easter and Christmas. However, he calls me Louise. My name isn't Louise and I feel that after 15 years of answering to Louise (pretty much every week) I haven't got the heart to correct him.

The least embarrassment is if both sides keep up the pretence even when it becomes obvious there was a misunderstanding. Discomfort, weeing in sinks, eating disgusting food ... these are all as nothing to the English (and I agree it is English not British) when the alternative is embarrassment.

I'm always astonished by American TV or films where one character gets another's name wrong and they say "actually it's not Steve but Geoff". Like WTAF how unrealistic is that dialogue?! He's Steve now forever.

Strange ah well, makes me proud in an odd sort of way.

There must be other nations out there like this? We can't be the only ones who are so barkingly awkward about little things like getting a name wrong??*

Not as far as I'm aware.
Just you.

It sounds utterly mad to me, but I am not culturally English.

Irish blood in me, but have some British traits too! However, I have learned over the years to be a bit more assertive when it comes to bad grub in restaurants. It's not easy but if you are discreet and kind it can work beautifully.

If something is truly awful, or not cooked well enough, or cold or whatever, when the wait staff come over and say "how is your meal", I say, hi I was just wondering if you could help me here, I just think to me the meat is tough, undercooked, cold whatever, and it just isn't what I expected when I ordered. Thanks so much, or something like that. No big hoo ha, it always works. And a big tip to the wait staff if they sort it out. I got over myself years ago, but would never be THAT attention seeking person looking for the impossible either.

Google translate is your friend when abroad in a country where you don't speak the lingo. Has saved me from some horrible meals!

But I would never ever criticise a dinner party meal that someone has gone to great trouble about. If it is not something I like, I just say "small portion for me please" and stock up on the accompaniments!

I've also learned to push into a Q abroad. When in Rome and all that.

But there are times when I won't make any comment, usually if it would embarrass those around me or even a stranger. I can't think of an example right now, but if I remember I'll let you know! We all do it if we have any emotional intelligence!

I totally forgot about my son, he is quite androgynous looking (he's almost 2) and has a name which pronounced one way is male and another female. I often get asked her name, reply and then they pronounce it the female way and carry on talking about my pretty little girl. I often do not correct them and sometimes even pronounce it the same way. I am unsure if the one person who pronounces it the female way and sees me on a regular basis has any idea he is a boy..

Are there any other irish people on this thread because I don't think I've any British blood in me but would certainly do all the things mentioned here.
Out to lunch recently with a friend, I deliberately between two wrap fillings, ordered one. Waiter brought the other. But obviously I just ate it, and in order not to make my friend feel awkward I lied when she commented that she thought I'd ordered the other one.

My auntie once went to the hairdressers with her best friend when they were teenagers. Her best friend went first and the hairdresser completely butchered her hair, dreadful cut.

Then it was my auntie's turn and the hairdresser asked what she wanted and she said "the same as her" 😂😂😂

They both went home crying.

Piglet But obviously I did it very quietly so as to not a) draw attention to myself or b) have them see my discontent and cause an awkward scene. Unlikely, but the risk is too high...

Mines quite boring, but the only one I can think of.

When I had my first, we were living with the boyfriends mum. She used to get a window cleaner in. Son was only a couple of weeks old when the window cleaner knocked on the door? To give the bill. He was being friendly, congratulated me on having the baby. Kept referring to him as a she. I was too embarrassed to correct him, and figured it didn't matter, I rarely saw him. And he would realise the baby was a boy on his own and we could both avoid the embarrassment. Except he had to ruin it. He had to ask what 'her' name was.

I said then he started to say what I can only assume was 'that's unusual for a girl' before the realisation dawned on him.

'It's a boy?'
'Yeah....'

Oh the awkward.

We were on holiday in Barcelona and heading to a tapas restaurant that had been very highly recommended. Found the restaurant, checked the menu, looked amazing. Took seats and a table in the square outside. Waiter came and took our drinks order and left menus. We immediately realised that we were not sitting at a table that belonged to the recommended place, but at a table belonging to another restaurant on the square.

Even though we were really looking forward to trying the delicious looking menu at the recommended place, we were too embarrassed, especially as we had already ordered drinks from the 2nd restaurant, to admit our mistake and move tables.

So we order our food from the 2nd restaurant. Food arrives, is really not nice at all. Naturally we don't complain. Until some (non-British) diners next to us make a loud complaint about the horrible food, at which point we feel brave enough to pipe up 'oh ours was horrible too'.

They were all together as a group by the way - the First Lady was obviously a type of sniper queue jumper and the rest follow her lead...

I had this today. Queuing for the bus, leaning against a post with a lady in front of me (gap of about a foot). In this gap a lady squeezes herself (ok, maybe she thought I wasn't queuing, even though 5 people had recognised the line and were stood behind me) but then another women, a man and 5 kids then get in front of me!!!

In my head, I'm screaming "You cheeky necky bastards" but because, you know, British, I just tutted very quietly and gave my head a very slight nod of discontent.