What do other nationalities think of the British

[Baggingarea]

For non UK MNers, what are your general impressions of the British?

I was watching a documentary recently and a Spanish man said our houses are all dirty. I'd never heard that before but can see why someone might think that with muddy weather etc etc.

What do you think about us? Promise I won't be offended (no racism/sexism/general bigotry though please). Can't vouch for others though.

A relative's DH is French. He observes that, by and large, we eat far too many stodgy carbs. We don't know how to properly season food whilst cooking. Our meal times are too rushed. British women often neglect their appearance and are rarely elegant. He doesn't understand why we drink tea & biscuits. He doesn't understand our middle class fixation with private/grammar schools or RG universities because educational elitism doesn't exist in France, in the same way.

I've just remembered another one about Britain - it is that it is too full of Eastern European people. The wierd thing is I only ever hear that from other Eastern European people (whether Polish, Bulgarian, Ukrainian etc and I know quite a few because of where I live/work now) - they all have a downer on how many Eastern European people have moved to the UK. Does anyone know why that is? I wondered sometimes if its a pre-emptive reaction because of the negative comments you get in the British press. It pre-dated Brexit however.

Agree about NHS, it's ok once you have a diagnosis, but getting there is very difficult. Starting with GPs, healthcare is very bad. . Many European countries have "free" Healthcare, that is miles better then the NHS. Just cos it's free at the point of delivery it doesn't make it good. My elderly parents had considered coming here in their later years to be nearer their grandchildren, and one of the reasons they decided against it was the NHS being so bad ,it scared them off.

Tbh, I think a lot of the worst stereotypes which still persist are down to high levels of social deprivation and inflated housing costs in this country - poor teeth, poor diet, obesity, lack of exercise, poor housing, cluttered and dirty houses, drunkenness, poor education. I live in an affluent suburban area and you rarely see a fat child with bad teeth. Parents are out with their kids doing sports and activities the whole time. Also, parents round here put a huge emphasis (perhaps too much emphasis) on little children being polite and well-behaved...I think perhaps we expect a little too much and forget they are children. A dad in the playground the other day was getting very upset with his toddler for not listening and blocking the slide... Turned out the kid hadn't turned 2 yet! So maybe we do need to chill out a bit. Houses are very clean (if cluttered) round here, but that's maybe because lots of families have regular cleaners rather than because we're clean ourselves (that's certainly true for our house ).

One stereotype I agree with is that we're obsessed with bedtime and routine. Most parents round here (even the non-British ones) have their small children in bed by 8.30 latest. I've never understood the southern European habit of letting them stay up till all hours and fall asleep in buggies and on the table. What about bathtime, story time, teeth brushing? Where does that fit in? How do kids get enough sleep for school/nursery? But maybe that's a stereotype that I have about parenting in these countries and actually it doesn't happen as much as people make out.

I think we're quite similar to the Japanese in some ways ..maybe as an island race squeezed into small spaces we also have ways to save face , view furriners with amusement and occasionally explode into riotous drunken behaviour....and as for English girls being squeamish about penises ...hahahaha

I am from Singapore, have a British husband and have lived in London since I was 19. Some observations:

1. the drinking culture- was totally shocked at freshers and my first office christmas party. So many people here drink far too much!
2. Tiny houses- not really talking about the flats, even a terraced/semi detached is 1200 square feet which is the same size of an average public housing flat in Singapore (and singapore has the highest population density in the world) and the public housing flat wouldn't have stairs.
3. Love of gardening, nature (countryside) and animals- willingness to commute for long distances just to have the Good Life. Growing up in a city state, I guess there was never that option so it was quite a shock for me.
4. the fact that its perfectly acceptable to have kids and not marry
5. the fact that the UK has a welfare state and free medical care but ordinary people are expected to buy private housing. 85% of singaporeans own government built flats which are sold to them at a discount (and only singaporeans can buy and you can only buy if your household income is below the equivalent of £84k), you usually get a subsidy to buy the flat if you are a FTB and 92% of people own their own homes so growing up, I knew that I would definitely be a home owner. Of course, the flats are still not cheap due to the high population density and high cost of land, but my London flat that I bought in 2019 is still far more expensive than the vast majority of the 120 sqm family flats in Singapore. I find it strange that the UK government only builds housing for the destitute and the poor today as Singapore inherited its public housing system from the British but 50 years on, it looks so different!
6. inclination to have multiple cups of tea a day, I find it quaint.
7. I like how non judgmental and polite most British people are IRL relatively speaking. Its different on Mumsnet and forums, obviously!
8. Deification of the NHS. I like not having to worry about healthcare costs, but i am not sure its the best in the world.
9. When I bought my flat, I was shocked at how many of my peers ( I am in my 20s) received financial help from their parents! in Singapore, thats unheard of. In fact most of my peers are giving allowances to their parents (who are mostly still working and in managerial roles so earning much more than a fresh graduate). Its about the thought, not just the money. Children in Asian countries are supposed to give their parents money and 'support' them even if the 55 year old parent is on 100k and the child is on 20k. I get that in the west, the generational wealth gap doesn't really facilitate such a system, but for so many parents who are not rich to give out such large sums of money to their kids to get them on the property ladder was a bit shocking.

Some of these stereotypes are very inaccurate, either because they appear to be based on how things were in maybe the 1970s or because they are things that only a minority of British people do.

Have a heavy breakfast? No, most people don't do that.
Eat a very limited variety of foods? Some people, but there is plenty of variety available
Not rinse washing up? Some people maybe, but not anyone I know.
Share bath water? I doubt many people do this. Most people shower anyway.

As an aside, why are some people so obsessed with what the 2012 Olympics supposedly said about us as a country?

@MacDuffsMuff

but instead they were all really fat, drunk, loud and poorly dressed.

Your friend met EVERYONE in Scotland @garlictwist? 😂. I hate to disappoint but I'm not fat, not loud, I don't drink alcohol and I don't believe that I'm badly dressed (though that's subjective obviously!).

I've never heard of Brits supposedly having dirty houses, what nonsense. 😊

@MacDuffsMuff I'm just the messenger :-D

I remember being gobsmacked that (future) DH’s Eastern European family all thought English women were dirty, were too lazy to clean a house properly and the men were alcoholics

Given that women do the majority of the cleaning even in working households, this is a derogatory remark about women. I think it's no coincidence that in many of these countries (and I know some of them quite well), attitudes to women are sometimes a bit outdated, or women are expected to work AND clean and cook and look attractive and and.... In some ways, being a woman in the UK is quite a freeing experience compared with being a woman in some other European countries, there is less pressure to look a certain way, and I think people aren't judged on their houses as much. I felt very constrained as a woman living in some countries and prefer it here for that reason, I can concentrate on my work and kids and if the house isn't perfect, the neighbours aren't gossiping or shaming me!

I lived in France for a while and they generally thought the Brits had terrible food and healthcare. They also thought we dressed badly, wore too much make up, drank a lot of beer/tea, are a bit straight laced / stiff upper lip type thing.

Interestingly though, there were quite a lot of people who were really keen on bits of Britain/England that disprove some of the above...so for food I met some people who loved some of the food you can get in Britain - whether it was cakes/scones, dairy milk chocolate, full english (men everywhere seem to like this!), Tea in a teapot, all the different types of foreign food you can get here that isn't very available in France etc. Also met plenty of people who had dated Brits so the stiff upper lip thing can't have put them off!

I also thought some of these things were just because they differed to France. So french healthcare is very medicalised because of the insurance system e.g. they'll give you antibiotics for a bad cold, whereas the NHS will most likely send you away with nothing. The average french person dresses fairly similarly to Brits but a few years behind on fashion e.g. skinny jeans weren't worn there much until I was in my late teens, when they were already ubiquitous in the UK.

Sexually unadventurous and boring in bed 🤣🤣 funny enough, I ended up in the UK because I fell for (more than one) english guy and found them to be much better in bed than guys from Ireland. I have been living here for 6 years now after marrying an english guy.

As a PP said, I found when I was travelling, especially in asia, that the atmosphere completely changed when I hammered home that I was IRISH and not English. The attitude towards the english in most countries I have been to is quite hostile. I actually felt sorry for my DH when we were travelling. I got smiles as I attempted to speak different languages, while they snapped at him.

I am also a teacher and I can tell you that there is a shocking gap in education of young people in the place of the British throughout history OUTSIDE of britain. Even my DH, with his degree in history, had a shocking lack of knowledge of what the brits got up to around the world for centuries. He only heard how great Britain was. He said he was taught about WW2 about 5 times, but nothing about colonisation in Africa or India. He knew nothing of Ireland, not even that it wasnt part of the UK anymore and hasn't been for nearly 100 years, despite the fact that we are literally next door. My SIL couldnt pick Ireland out on a map at a quiz last week. Out of 20 european countries, she knew the UK and Italy (because we got married there). That's it.

Things I don't like about the UK (being British)- unpleasant and aggressive street culture, shouting out at women, general rudeness in barging about which I've noticed more in the last couple of years. Drinking culture which encourages violence, towns are not pleasant in the evening.

Things I used to like about UK (England): used to be cleaner and public spaces and roads better, parks well kept, this has gone by the board since austerity and the place looks dirty and uncared for. NHS just can't cope whatever we do and whatever money is thrown at it and there needs to be fundamental reform. Attitude to older people and social care a disgrace.

Things that may be true- I do have a wide back! Or at least not as thin as some Italians and Eastern Europeans when they are 18, I'm not sure the comparison holds up at 60! Teeth- yes, they are often bad, as in crooked and I am having an adult brace soon for this reason.

Oh dear, not too positively sometimes..this is a "general" consensus and not my personal (English) point of view. However, I could never return to the UK to live. For many reasons, not expressed here:
Good sense of humour
Lovely gardens, so keen gardeners
Beautiful countryside
Lots of lovely knick knacks in shops
Very heavy drinkers
Not too clean
Won't learn foreign languages, or expect everyone to speak English
Condescending towards foreigners in their countries
Awful language (swearing a lot)
Awful cooks
Dirty carpets in homes (because of outdoor shoes inside on them, not actual state of them)
Poor choice of fresh food in shops
Litterers (so much litter in the UK)
Racists
Snobs
Golf addicts
Horse mad
Overweight
Always eating fast food in the streets
Don't wear coats in the winter
Poor fashion taste
Young women are very promiscuous

I sometimes hesitate before saying that I am, originally, English.

@Caeruleanblue

Haven't read all the threads - there is some truth in most of the comments, but I've lived lots of countries and I prefer here, and people are literally dying to get to the UK, in fact crossing the whole of Europe to get here.

You’re so right. It’s utterly tragic that they are that desperate to get here that they literally risk their lives and dying. Hundreds of them each day.

When people try to deny this it makes them look foolish

So french healthcare is very medicalised because of the insurance system e.g. they'll give you antibiotics for a bad cold, whereas the NHS will most likely send you away with nothing.

To be fair antibiotics do not cure a cold.

In some ways, being a woman in the UK is quite a freeing experience compared with being a woman in some other European countries

Yes, look what's happening in Poland right now regarding women.

@MrMeeseekscando

Sorry to bring down the tone of the thread... Sexually unadventurous and boring in bed. (Had a fling with a Portuguese chap, he said most English girls are squeamish about penises )

Just how many English girls had he slept with in order to decide 'most'? And did he have a pencil penis?

One stereotype I agree with is that we're obsessed with bedtime and routine. Most parents round here (even the non-British ones) have their small children in bed by 8.30 latest. I've never understood the southern European habit of letting them stay up till all hours and fall asleep in buggies and on the table. What about bathtime, story time, teeth brushing? Where does that fit in? How do kids get enough sleep for school/nursery? But maybe that's a stereotype that I have about parenting in these countries and actually it doesn't happen as much as people make out.

A lovely bedtime routine is one of my happy childhood memories 😍 don't get that as a adult. I probably need to create one myself.

@Offyougo

Lol, some still think other are jealous of Britain's empire 😂 This s thread was never going to end well. A lot of people live here not because we live the English, but for purely economical and job opportunities reasons. I have been here years and years and have still not integrated, between me and all of my friends there isn't one that has made proper friend with an English person. And those complaining"but we do have clean houses! And we do have proper bread! ".the problem is that your houses are clean for your standard. And the bread is good for your standard. That's the difference. A lot of good things here, employers are more open minded then in other countries regarding employing minorities, benefits system is very good, people are friendly if you r not looking to make friend but just shout a you alright? whilst passing you on the street. The following rules blindly gives me the rage tho, can't stand it. Same for queueing, sometimes it reaches unbelievable levels. Child dieing for the toilet and no one offering to let them go ahead? Queueing in the rain whilst no one dare to sit under bus stop shelter?

where are you from? Eastern Europe?

My sister was dating a guy who is British and it didn't work out .

She tried to talk to him about their relationship problem. He never wanted to deeper. He thinks only the outside surface is the problem (long distance relationship is hard) . Yet when she came to live in Paris for one year, he never came to visit so the relationship could grow from there. So she wanted to know why. Did he not care for her ? But no, he insists it is long distance relationship is the problem and nothing else.

She got frustrated that he wouldn't talk but she met other people who are British and she feels they got their head in the sand.

I just remembered another difference in cultures. When I used to live with my very traditional Indian MIL, she used to wash down the walls of the house occasionally wirh soapy water as she used to do back home. I remember thinking 'you're going to ruin the paintwork doing that !' But then I saw how gross the water was in the bowl and ever since I got my own place, I do the same thing. It makes a massive difference and actually keeps the paintwork looking new.

@ConfusedcomMum

I just remembered another difference in cultures. When I used to live with my very traditional Indian MIL, she used to wash down the walls of the house occasionally wirh soapy water as she used to do back home. I remember thinking 'you're going to ruin the paintwork doing that !' But then I saw how gross the water was in the bowl and ever since I got my own place, I do the same thing. It makes a massive difference and actually keeps the paintwork looking new.

I actually once washed down the walls of my house as a preparation for repainting as it was so grubby. Turned out once the walls were clean I didnt need to repaint as it was just grubby. So now I try to do it regularly. Having been in a few hotter countries I wonder if part of the cleanliness issues are due to climate - in India if you left any crumbs on the floor it would be surrounded by ants in seconds. In sub-saharan Africa and anywhere with a more tropical climate you need to keep the floor spotless if you dont want cockroaches. But on the other hand we get silver-fish etc here so who knows...

Most peoples home I know are really clean! If for some reason I have low cleanliness standards that I am blinded to because I am British, then so be it. If would mean scrubbling a house down to within an inch of its life. The impact on the environment alone would be awful. I'd take my version of clean any day.

@Nowstrong

Oh dear, not too positively sometimes..this is a "general" consensus and not my personal (English) point of view. However, I could never return to the UK to live. For many reasons, not expressed here: Good sense of humour Lovely gardens, so keen gardeners Beautiful countryside Lots of lovely knick knacks in shops Very heavy drinkers Not too clean Won't learn foreign languages, or expect everyone to speak English Condescending towards foreigners in their countries Awful language (swearing a lot) Awful cooks Dirty carpets in homes (because of outdoor shoes inside on them, not actual state of them) Poor choice of fresh food in shops Litterers (so much litter in the UK) Racists Snobs Golf addicts Horse mad Overweight Always eating fast food in the streets Don't wear coats in the winter Poor fashion taste Young women are very promiscuous

I sometimes hesitate before saying that I am, originally, English.

Lol some of these things sounds like Americans lol but hey , I am mostly British in my DNA even though my family tree a long history in Virginia USA