British class system

[fandigo]

I've watched enough British telly to get the difference between working, middle and upper class but then i read on here about 'upper middle class'.. what's that? And is there a lower middle class and a medium middle class? Does this then apply to the other classes. So for example an "upper working class" or a "lower upper class"

I know it's a contentious topic on here because the Brits get accused of being obsessed with class (i disagree with that) but it would be interesting to hear what attributes people need to fit into the class within the class.

I could probably Wikipedia this 🤔

@Atalune

Oooh do me!

Is your furniture handed down or bought? Mixture - predominantly bought from a variety of places

What do you call the thing above the fire? Mantelpiece

What are your rooms downstairs called? Living room

How do you ask for salt at a dinner party? Please can you pass the salt (genuinely don’t know how else to ask - would be interested in your answers)

There is unskilled manuel workers.
Skilled manuel worker. (both would be considered working class but skilled considered aboe unskilled.)
Lower middle
Upper middle.
Upper class.

But class is always hard to distinguish. I mean what class is Lord sugar? He is a lor however I don,t think you can say he is upper class.

[quote perditaplum]@PlanDeRaccordement

Where do you fit in if you went to private school, have a postgraduate degree and are a worker bee with children who receive free school meals?[/quote]
Working class. The person has dropped down from middle class. Class mobility isn’t just one way.

@Atalune not sure if it works on non British people.

Both me and my husband have degrees, he has a masters. Both his parents have degrees, neither of mine did but had much higher income than inlaws. Household income of €120k pa but live in a very ordinary house in an ordinary area. Kids go to the local school because private primary's are non existent here. Can only think of one in the whole of dublin. I do shop in Lidl though. Could afford to shop in M&S if i wanted but why set fire to money. In my eyes we are very middle class but as i said before, i don't feel like we have the classes within classes here

perditaplum
@PlanDeRaccordement

Where do you fit in if you went to private school, have a postgraduate degree and are a worker bee with children who receive free school meals?

Working class. The person has dropped down from middle class. Class mobility isn’t just one way.

So class is all about the money then ? What if they were 'working class' when they got the degrees ?

But class is always hard to distinguish. I mean what class is Lord sugar? He is a lor however I don,t think you can say he is upper class.

He's nouveau riche, but if he has any grand children they will probably be middle class.

Where do you fit in if you went to private school, have a postgraduate degree and are a worker bee with children who receive free school meals?

You're middle class but living in genteel poverty.

Class is soo much more then money,

I have three degrees and DH has one. DH has a well paid professional job and his skills are sought after. We’ve both worked with a lot of middle class people.

We’re both from working class backgrounds. I’d say my family/history is upper working class as they were always in work and didn’t have periods when they were laid off. This meant they could buy property even 100 or so years ago. No one went to uni, private schools or really had ‘professions’ though.

I still consider myself working class, so does DH. I can operate in middle class settings, join in with certain activities but don’t feel it’s true to myself or necessary do these things to live a happy life or because we’re trying to climb into a ‘lower/middle middle class’ category.

@june2007

Class is soo much more then money,

I think so too but according to a pp a well educated person in a worker bee job is working class but we're middle class.

This thread made wonder how British people see me. I'm foreign, so probably just Euro trash...?

Or maybe automatically the same class as DH. But I'm not sure whether his class would be influenced by mine. And even if it wasn't... I still wouldn't manage to pinpoint his class.

We have social classes as well, tbh. But there are definitely less categories (=less complicated). 😅

What you are born and what you become are two different things.

I was born upper middle and probably had a high enough income in my 20s/30s to stay there. My mother will leave me relatively little because she has maintained the lifestyle her parents gave her.

DH was born lower middle to originally piss poor working class parents who by virtue of their upbringing are socially awkward but by virtue of their education horribly snobby to people like builders and hairdressers

DH is fundamentally good, moral and loyal and can use his eating irons properly, work a room, knows which way to pass the port. He is also a workaholic, has a brain the size of planet, due to brain and expertise nobody really gave a fuck providing they could purchase his skills and thanks to him we live a wonderful life that probably exceeds anything my mother and grandma ever had.

@perditaplum

perditaplum *@PlanDeRaccordement*

Where do you fit in if you went to private school, have a postgraduate degree and are a worker bee with children who receive free school meals?

Working class. The person has dropped down from middle class. Class mobility isn’t just one way.

So class is all about the money then ? What if they were 'working class' when they got the degrees ?

No it’s not all about money. It’s the need for state benefits to survive financially plus the low status as a worker bee. With technology so widespread now, you can have an office job and still be working class.

@TheQueef

m.youtube.com/watch?v=ue7wM0QC5LE

Explains class system comprehensively.

Is that a joke?

It really is not about money otherwise lottery winners would be upper class. They’re not.

@verylittlepen

Pets are a giveaway. The upper class employ staff who look after their horses, whereas the working classes frequently own ferrets and live in terraced houses in housing estates troubled by packs of stray dogs. The middle classes fret about which designer dog breed to buy and can be seen walking in packs through national trust estates wearing Toast and Boden.

Your idea about ferret owners is beyond stupid. Hilarious!

I don’t know. I was born working class, became briefly middle class and am now underclass. There are official explanations online which tell you where you fit. I think, being an archaic system, you take your husband or Dad’s class, unless like me you are an independent woman.

I’d steer clear tbh. Its another of those subjects which people can get riled up about..

@CuriousaboutSamphire

Wearing Toast and Boden

OMG!

Toast is breakfast and Boden make.glass teapots, also for breakfast. What the hell have I missed?!?!

Do either make coffee pots?

A mixture
A mantelpiece
A sitting room, an office

Scrub the above!

I expect those who think they are vair middle class to be able to spell the plural of “primary.” I do know that I have crazily high expectations...

@Janegrey333 you got me there. I find it hard to type because my fingers are so laden down with antique jewels

@BarbaraofSeville

There's too much overlap and inconsistencies for there to be any kind of objective system any more.

Your high earning plumber is just as likely to go to the theatre as the teacher that earns half what he (or she) does. Likewise for any other 'class marker'.

Most unlikely.

@verylittlepen whereas the working classes frequently own ferrets

Do you really believe that?

No it’s not all about money. It’s the need for state benefits to survive financially plus the low status as a worker bee.

What kind of jobs would you say are 'worker bee' jobs?