Northern Vs Southern culture?

[Gumper]

DP is working class and from Newcastle, I'm middle class and from way down South.

We often talk about cultural differences.

He lives down here and I've only ever been up north a few times so it's hard for me to gauge.

So, is it UR to think there are big differences and if so what are they, in your experience?

[ScreenshottingIsNotJournalism]

Plus, I think that London has more in common with other countries capital cities, than it does with non London/home counties southern england

[ScreenshottingIsNotJournalism]

Yes but saying it's a hobby or a treat or an outing is just patronising. People may shop for clothes more often (actually don't agree but that's not the point) but the phrase is just condescending

I don't see it that way, my northern friends go shopping with friends or family and make a day of it, my southern friends get it over with as fast as they can, usually by themselves, and then whinge about having had to go to town/the shopping centre

[StickTheDMWhereTheSunDontShine]

I was astounded by how dressed up people were to go shopping (Trafford centre)

I think that's partly a big shopping centre thing. If I go up to, say, the Metrocentre, I notice the same thing. Also notice that everyone and everything looks quite plastic in there because of the lighting - which happens to make the more rural scruffs like me stick out like a sore thumb.

Newcastle, just a few miles away, OTOH, anything goes. You have people who are well dressed, people dressed in their best bling (whether well dressed or not) the football shirted crowd (not so much, lately!) and the alternative and even downright grungy types all rubbing shoulders.

Sunderland is much more biased towards the football shirted. It's less embarrassing there, this month.

Durham is another anything goes place, but if you're silly enough to wear heels, everyone stealthily stops what they're doing and watches to see if you make it from one end of Silver Street to the other :o Most of the shops are either coffee shops or purveyors of sensible shoes or outdoor gear.

[fanjoforthemammaries7850]

Ego..oh yes..DH is highlander and I am from edinburgh - different worlds.

[IonaNE]

I live in the north and the fact that people feel they can just start talking to you in the supermarket, bus stop, etc., and they then feel entitled to ask any question (including personal ones like if you have children) and generally to receive a correspondingly chatty response is hugely irritating. Why they think I would want to talk to them (don't they have friends and family to talk to?) is beyond me. I love being down south where I am allowed to read or just stay quiet and think while I am queueing or waiting for public transport. Yes, there are big cultural differences.

[FeckinCrutches]

I'm northern and have lived in bucks/Surrey/London. I don't get the 'southerners aren't friendly' thing at all. I talk to all sorts of people when I'm down south, so I'm not sure if I've been lucky or if it's me being northern and talking to everyone
I'm back in Durham now which is a great little city, but with no diversity at all. It's very odd.

[almondpudding]

The various descriptions of the North on here of all these dressed up for a night out people and shopping as a hobby make me think they think Essex is the North.

And I suppose it is North of London.

[BusStopBetty]

'However, the median tidiness of people is higher down south. I've never seen anyone without a shirt in Tesco, wearing pj's or really scruffy trackies in the shops.'

There speaks a woman who's never visited Yarmouth.

[2rebecca]

They certainly aren't talking about the highlands of Scotland.

[namechangedtoday15]

Laurie do you think that is an age thing? Did you live at home (which I presume is up north) when you were younger when the "big" nights were at the weekend? I go out more in the week now (now that I'm older) as it's easier to meet up after work etc.

[ouryve]

Rowanhart if ever you want to disabuse yourself of the idea that Durham's posh, take a walk along Sherburn Road or even hang around North Road for a bit (you can recover fro the drunks with their trousers falling off by buying yourself some samphire or purple carrots in Robinson's)

It has a university and an area of eye watering house prices, but also some real extremes the other way. Savvy locals in business also accept that, when it's too bloody cold for tourists, students keep them in business because they're the ones with the money to spend.

[ScreenshottingIsNotJournalism]

IonaNE I don't know where you are, but in my experience you get the exact same (random people chatting to you when you're on public transport/in a coffee shop) down south once you go beyond the home counties too

[LaurieFairyCake]

Well I see lots of young orofessionals in the pubs I go to - they're not dressed up with false eyelashes/ masses of makeup / beautiful dresses/skyscraper heels. Just ordinary (smartish) workwear, nice jeans, lovely accessories.

I realise mines a generalisation though for those who are criticising my point.

I never see anyone in a ball gown or cocktail wear in London - whenever I go to Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle they're very dressed up (and look lush!)

[MauledbytheTigers]

Far too many ignorant generalisations on here, ... the people who dress up to go to the Trafford centre are the kind of people who want to spend time at the Trafford centre in the 1st place....it's not a north v south thing. I live in Manchester and can count on one hand the number of times I've been to the TC, on the occasions I have been, it's been reluctant and purely from a convenience point of view. I certainly don't dress up for it and hate shopping.....I don't know a single northern friend that would see shopping as a day out.

In my opinion it's much more a city v rural and/or class issue.....now I live in a city I meet with friends mid week much more often. When I lived in a village, less so, purely because there was less to do.

Clearly there are going to be massive cultural differences between London and any other part of the country, but outside of that, a small middle class village in the north (and there are many although sometimes on here it feels like people think the whole of the north is some deprived wasteland) is not really going to be vastly different to a middle class village in the south.

[almondpudding]

You should definitely go for a night out in Essex.

[KenDoddsDadsDog]

I'd love to work in the businesses some of you do in the NE where people take lunch and finish at 5. Maybe it's the London influence of my FTSE 25 firm but it didn't happen in my last role either !
A lot of Durham is as far from posh as you can get. But we are attracting some more tourists thanks to countryfile.

[ouryve]

sorry Rowan, I've just mixed your post up with the one above yours

My point about "posh" towns and cities stands, though. I've been to Northallerton a few ties and, while it's lovely, I've noticed white a bit of outright class hostility, there. The town has two completely distinct accents and while, in Durham, I often see academics chatting with people clearly down on their uppers, during their lunch break, in Northallerton, people are more likely to exchange words for invading each other's space, or, like one I witnessed, get quite physical and aggressive - older MC couple and younger WC woman. Rather than her apologise and him asking her if she was alright when she stumbled into him, it blew up into a slanging match and he whacked her with his walking stick!

[MauledbytheTigers]

None of the young professionals I know dress up either. It all depends where you go....somewhere like the northern quarter in Manchester isn't going to have many people in high heels, Deansgate Locks, absolutely.

I really don't think it's as simple as splitting the UK into 2 categories.

[almondpudding]

Durham city is well known for its town/gown divide!

[ouryve]

KDDD I regard the tourists as being here for our entertainment. DH and I had a great time standing back and watching a couple of American Tourists buy cheese from the Deli in the market, a few weeks ago. iPad photos compulsory, of course.

I just hope they weren't planing on taking it home. Never mind customs, it would have been goo after 48 hours in an hotel room and suitcase!

[FeckinCrutches]

Huge town/gown divide. It's that bloody small though, there is no way to avoid it!

[KenDoddsDadsDog]

outyve we met some Man Utd fans who'd been to the game and come to Seaham to collect some glass !

[ouryve]

I believe that Peterlee has the same population size.

I'm quite dismayed that so many people want to stay in Peterlee, TBH.

Collecting glass on Seaham seafront is The Thing to fail to do. I've never been to that beach in almost 13 years of living (just) in East Durham! One for the summer hols with the boys, I think. I'd have done it at half term if it hadn't been winter, then.

[Gwenhwyfar]

"ask any question (including personal ones like if you have children)"

I had no idea that 'do you have children?' was a personal question. Why would it be?