To find British nights out scary?

[Gimmeareason]

I've moved back to the UK after a few years working in different countries in Europe, my longest stint was in Barcelona.

There are loads of things im glad to have been reunited with, but now that I've experienced the social scene elsewhere I can't help but find the mainstream British night out slightly terrifying?

Things close here relatively early (compared to places on the continent where casual bars can stay open well into 6am).

This means you reach a point in the night where people are either baying in the street or are being funneled into a nightclub (aka tje only place open).

I feel like aggressive use of drugs and alcohol are more rife here - seems like people have their eye set on getting as fucked as possible rather than that just happening naturally.

Rather than seeing mixed groups of friends, ive noticed its much more gender segregated here, with "the girls" and "the lads" going out separately and aiming to hook up rather than just have a good time.

Weirdly, although the UK seems really progressive on gender equality, there seems this weird pressure that women have to go all out when going out (mainstream scene). So rather than just hanging out in late night bars in jeans and a cute top or whatever, you get these gangs of women who have really gone all out, hair, lashes, tan, heels, bodycon etc. Nothing wrong with it we're free to do what we want, but i guess the question is are we really? I dont see many who feel free to just go for a relaxed look.

Aggressive gangs of men who cant handle their drink - i see more british men kicking off in bars or the street whereas in spain for example it all.felt a bit more happy go lucky.

Its weird but it feels like in the UK past a certain hour people just go into this weird animalistic state where they kind of give up on being "civilised", heels come off, people just vomiting or screaming in the street. I saw lots of girls nearly passing out on the street, or girls completely out of it and crying as some man tried to "comfort" her (actually trying to take her home) - yes i did intervene and yes it happened several times.

I used to kind of think it was all a bit of a laugh but now having spent time abroad and having seen people going on long, casual, happy nights out i just wonder why that doesnt really happen in the UK.

It feels like UK nights out have something very hard and edgy about them if anyone sees what i mean

There's been a massive change in the culture. When I was young there was a sense of shame about getting so drunk you couldn't stand up, vomiting even worse. There's always been a few lairy types around but they were a minority.

Drinks are cheaper, sold in bulk, glasses are larger - and getting pissed is seen as a badge of honour.

To say, 'I was so off my tits last night I can't remember what I did, who with, etc' is something to boast about. When these young 'uns look back on their youth (if they live that long) I wonder how they'll feel. Shame, embarrassment? Or thankful that they had the chance to make a fool of themselves?

JingsMahBucket

You're saying British OP, but do you just really mean English people?

Unlikely, given what goes on in Cardiff and Swansea at least on a night out. And I seem to remember Glasgow not holding back much either.

I've been out frequently in both Spain and Denmark ( not capital cities and not tourist places) and seen people vomiting on the street, smashed windows etc. No different from places in the UK.

Definitely not just England, Cardiff and Swansea are well known for their hideous nights out:
www.walesonline.co.uk/incoming/article2005942.ece
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-west-wales-26260248
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1182373/Welcome-binge-Britain-Polish-photographer-documents-years-drunken-revelry-Cardiff.html

Sunny - I don't give a single fuck about what you think of my "experience". HTH.

FYI I have extensive experience with London nightlife, from exclusive members-only clubs in/around Mayfair to underground techno/trance clubs, from pubs and bars to outdoor events slightly outside the city that you only get the address to if you get the thumbs up from one of the organisers.

I also have a bit of a party past around the world on three continents, so don't you worry about my nightlife experience "elsewhere", either

"It’s dangerously easy to assume that some group to which you no longer belong (“no children” or “young” however you define that) will pick up the slack."

Because it actually is easy. You think nobody wants to work after 11 PM, which is strange. How do you think bars and clubs work everywhere in the world?

Gemütlichkeit is a German-language word used to convey the idea of a state or feeling of warmth, friendliness, and good cheer.

Hygge (Dutch) means 'snug'; a concept that evokes "coziness", particularly when relaxing with good friends or loved ones and while enjoying good food and drink.

There is sauna. And in Spain and Portugal the going out and enjoying tapas and such.

Too, families often are out later.

All this talk about licensing laws and bars open until 6am - you can tell which people live in cities and which don’t!

I live in a small rural village. All public transport stops by 10.30pm in summer, earlier in winter (often the last bus from here is 6pm). If you want a taxi on a Friday night, you need to book it at least a week in advance.

Our village is a tourist hotspot so we do have more bars and pubs than the norm, but none of them open later than 1am and we still get people getting in fights and vomiting in the streets - all the bars and clubs have bouncers now.

It is scary and not always as simple as “go out somewhere else”. We have two bars here and four pubs and they’re all exactly the same after a certain time of night! If you want to go out in the nearest town, you need a designated driver or an expensive pre-booked taxi to get yourself there and back.

@CoteDAzur. Yes it did help explain a lot - by your aggressive response and over explanation about yourself. Hahaha.

There's nothing new.
This is from Shakespeare's Othello (1622)

I learned it in England where indeed they are most potent in potting. Your Dane, your German, and your swag-bellied Hollander—Drink, ho!—are nothing to your English.

Duende is an interesting Spanish concept. A shared spirit. A communal volksgeist. Tapas, flamenco, art and culture.

I live near York, and it's well known that, on race days, you don't go anywhere near the city in the evening. Everyone piles into town from the racecourse and gets totally blasted, the police are everywhere and it's generally unsafe - so it's not just the 'working class', it's the toffs too!

And, in York, it's the stag and hen parties that are the worst. Staggering around the streets totally plastered from ten in the morning, wearing plastic penises (and real ones, in the case of the stags), accosting passers by. It's not permanent, but it's often enough that even the uni students get uneasy going out.

I think the people on this thread claiming drink culture elsewhere is just as bad as in the UK are entirely deluded.

Its also not snobby - the middle classes are just as bad.

Finally, there's nothing wild or youthful about it. These are people vomiting, shouting and pissing in the streets after too many vodkas and tucked up in bed with their curry chips by 4am, hardly the rave/scene/experimental crowd.

It's not fun, or "crazy", or free spirited, it's pathetic and entirely an English-speaking-country issue.

The student point is interesting - I think there used to be a much rowdier, more bacchanalian, culture amongst students than there is now. My city hosted an annual event in the 80s/90s, where tons of students dressed up in their PJs and went out for an absolute orgy of booze and sex. It got stopped because of health and safety culture. I suspect something similar happened in most big cities!

" it's pathetic and entirely an English-speaking-country issue."

My friend lives in a very, very lively part of Lisbon which is a popular stag/hen destination and absolutely rammed after dark (I feel sorry for those who have lived there quietly for decades). He says the worst stag/hen parties are the Spanish, followed closely by the French and English. So not just a British issue over there!

The whole stag/hen wedding thing seems to happen in a lot of major cities now.

You are talking about working class ideas of a night out. This has become spread to be more general as twats like sky make being thug working class more normalised.

Stereotype central.

Wow what exactly do you think 'thug working class' is then? Please share your wisdom with us.

I have actually seen worse behaviour in those who have money.

i hate to break this to you OP but it's not the British. You are just noticing it now because you have got old and are viewing the world around you in a different way.

For a start it's far more personally palatable to blame 'the other' than to reflect back and admit your youth has gone. And then the good old correlation not causation.

Your parents did it, and their parents before them. We will have threads like this in every country in every generation.

Barcelona gave you away, it's like a war zone at 6am with kids trying to get home, in their next to nothing clothes. But you won't remember it like that because you were younger then.

But you won't believe me nor will anyone who agrees with you. I don't blame you, I'm dreading getting to that stage and I can feel it setting in already.

How do you think bars and clubs work everywhere in the world?

By giving people an offer they can't refuse if they want work. But it's not ideal, is it?

i hate to break this to you OP but it's not the British

I will counter with pointing out that wine consumption has soared amongst, especially, middle-income women. Something has changed. We know that glass sizes have increased also.

I may agree that youth binging has been around for a while (post War?). But it seems to be carrying on for longer.

I have definitely noticed that the demograph of people falling over in the street drunk has changed in my city; it is now middle aged women who are dressed like teens whereas 20 years ago it was teens. I drive through the centre late every Saturday night and there is barely a teen to be seen, they seem to congregate around the entrances of supermarkets now.

There have always been certain areas of all cities where overly drunken debauchery rules-going out as a teenager we used to try and avoid these streets. There are still plenty of places where people are going out late but not puking in the gutters.

In the North we have always got dressed up to go out. (Although in the 90s it was sparkly trainers for dancing) I was surprised at how casual people were when I started clubbing in London.

It does make me snort though when the British wax lyrical about the restraint of the French or Spanish when it comes to drinking. They drink like fish!

I think it's more of an issue in towns. I live in one of the cities which has a reputation for exactly this kind of night out, but we all know the streets and specific parts of town which are like that, and can just avoid them and go to the restaurants and late bars elsewhere.

If all there is in your town is two wetherspoons and a Yates followed by one nightclub then yes, you're a bit more stuck.

Whilst at uni I spent 18 months in France and Germany. Lots of nights out, bars and nightclubs.

The first night out in France we dressed up as normal - and didn't stay long as we were hassled by lots of different men. After that we all adapted to dress more like the locals - jeans and a nice top. Not short skirts and heels. After that it was great and we weren't hassled.

In Germany it was all jeans and trainers and we were pratically the only ones drinking alcohol. The nightclub sold tea and coffee!!!

Then I went back to uni in England. And has a huge culture shock. I couldn't believe the (lack of) clothing the women wore. Or how they behaved and danced with the men. The men were overbearing and scary. The amount of alcohol...well I was

Took me a good few weeks to "aclimatise". But I much preferred the jeans and trainers for dancing - soooo much more comfortable

Britain is not progressive in gender equality. The UN has given it a low rating for this.

I always find this useful - list of countries by alcohol consumption. Germany and France drink slightly more than us per head.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_alcohol_consumption_per_capita