Uniquely British things

[ChristmasA123]

I went for a walk earlier and saw one of my favourite things.. a random glove stuck on a railing. Obviously someone had dropped it and a kind stranger has put it somewhere easy to spot. I often see dropped items popped on fences/gateposts like this and it got me wondering.. I wonder if they do that in other countries? I've also noticed how polite drivers are here.. mainly! With that little wave or thumbs up when someone lets you through. I've never seen that driving in the US or Europe. Oh and I love the BBC Christmas ident. It's always so cosy. Are there any other cute/ wholesome things that only generally happen in the UK?

@ChristmasA123 that's interesting, just moved back to the UK from elsewhere in Europe and round here they are not more polite (unfortunately)!

Great post...yep, pun intended.

The Royal Family
Afternoon Tea
Full English breakfast
Queuing - I notice a lot of other nationalities at the school gates / bus stops where I live barge past a queue
Cup of tea in any situation to "make it better"
Eating with cutlery & no elbows on table
Politeness

Holding the door open for someone when they're unnecessarily far away so they end up running for the door.

@WishingWell5 when I read your post, I thought of scene 😀

The absolute best thing about the queue is when someone who's a non Brit and just doesn't "get" the queue cocks it up , and then you meet the eyes of a fellow queuee... the eye tolls are to die for, but no one ever says anything, just huffs a little.

"Y'alright?" being answered with "y'alright!" in greeting.
Don't know if that's just Northern!

The awkward, tight lipped smile we do when we make eye contact with somebody in public.

Seaside kitch

Punch and Judy shows, Kiss me quick hats, sticks of rock and the gift shops that sell souvenirs alongside random sex toys and inflatable penises.
Yes Blackpool, I'm looking at you..

In France they pick up gloves/toys/whatever and put it on a wall to be easier to find.

Ive never met politer drivers than on a French Caribbean island. Always thumbs up or thank you waves. And cars waiting in side roads are always gestured to join the main road.

The French also always greet bus drivers / say hello when entering a shop/office. They don't however apologise when someone else bumps into them.

On a Sunday - a roast dinner....any other day doesn't taste the same.

Putting vinegar on your chips first, so the salt sticks to it.

Baked beans in toast

I also wonder if other countries have the level of punning we do. I'm not particularly a reader of tabloids, but their headline puns feel particularly British

Our sense of humour.

• Queue culture
• Politness
• Thanking the bus driver
• British sense of humour
• English breakfast

But then also on the other hand:

• cold/distant
• passive agressive
• not very honest/transparent

As someone who didn't grow up here, it's always very hard to tell with British people. They say X but think Y, I think a lot of it is due to politness.

There's not as much of a warmth and genuine friendliness.

No one else puts so many variations on toast to declare it a meal.
Beans on toast
Eggs on toast
Cheese on toast
Spaghetti hoops on toast
Tomatoes on toast
Sardines on toast
Mushrooms on toast

We brits love a good 'on toast'!

Love this!

I lived in Australia for a year and they just didn't get it.🤣

That and my pining for Irn Bru (I'm Scottish).

@PuttingDownRoots , I have seen busses identifying as other vehicles.
Recently in Manchester the trams fave been stopped due to repairs needed yo the tracks so a replacement bus service has been in operation.
And certainly not all buses have had it but I have seen things like;
I identify as a eccles tram
I am a tram
Replacement tram service
But the best one was , I am a tram going off the rails 🤣.

I use buses a lot ( average at lease 4 per day ) and usually thank the driver as I get off if I think they have drove well ( doesn't have to be spectacular just sensible normal driving) but if the other type to accelerate and brake hard or shot passed bus stops then I don't thank them and this is my own little way of of complaining without actually voicing a complaint.

Obviously I think they're driving dangerously then I would put in a formal complaint.

Another polite thing I don't know if it is just British but if you're stood a busy bar most people are happy to queue even if there is a formal queueing system they know who is in front of them and we'll tell the bar staff that the person next to them is first

I've also noticed how polite drivers are here..
No, I feel the opposite about that.

But the thing that only happened in UK for me and I think it's really lovely was people helping out without being asked. I've experienced someone carrying my luggage up the stairs in the train station, or helping me with buggy on to the train, which happened multiple times. They just came from nowhere and done it and gone next minute. There seems to be true gentle men in UK. Lovely.

Self deprecation, general politeness and the ability to always make a joke out of a situation/good humour and not take things too seriously is always on the list of positives that come up when my international employees come over for a long extended time.

The negatives that are pointed out from europeans often cite Orwell in one form or another

I was on the bus from Beccles to Bungay (Suffolk) the other day and a woman walked straight past the driver in silence and got off the bus. At least two people tutted and shook their heads!

I live overseas, but there are a few bits that I miss about the UK - mainly food!

Pubs
Mince pies
Hot Cross Buns
Christmas cake
Sunday roast
Guy Fawkes Night
Parkin
Minor inconveniences being a "total nightmare" and huge problems being "not ideal"
Crumpets
Putting the kettle on

showing your affection to the people you care most about by mocking them relentlessly, while being scrupulously polite to people you dislike/don't know well.

Australians are the only other country I know that do the above, most other countries are generally very nice/respectful to their friends or family, occasionally going as far as a light bit of teasing. See also offensive nicknames/terms of endearment.

Putting the kettle on seems to solve any problem I have. Also queuing, I was in France once and I was shocked at the lack of queuing

My daughter who is in Europe for a year just tried to explain Christingles to a Finnish friend. Complete incomprehension.

Lack of straight talking. Used to drive international colleagues mad in my old workplace. There were frequently occasions where senior English partners asked people to do tasks in a roundabout coded way then got angry when the task not done.

Marmite.