
‘What British stereotypes have you never understood?’ – 19 ways we aren’t as bland, boring or polite as we’re made out to be
We’ve probably all been guilty of stereotyping other countries, but it turns out we’re not so keen when they do the same to us.
We’ll happily dish it out, but we’re not so good at taking it. Over on the AskUK subreddit, user Bantabury97 asked ‘What British stereotypes have you never understood?’ and followed it up with an example of their own…
‘For me it’s that we like warm beer. I hear it a lot from Americans that we apparently drink warm beer.’
And lots of people chimed in with the things they felt were unfair generalisations of British culture. Like these…
1.
‘A preference for unseasoned food. Most Brits would die for their favourite curry or kebab house!’
–Mondaymarvin
2.
‘How we supposedly have terrible teeth according to the Americans, especially in TV and cartoons.’
–Jlaw118
3.
‘In films, the ‘bad guy’ is typically English,’
–DragonflyCoffee666
4.
‘That it always rains in the UK. The UK has a reputation for grey skies, but many parts of the country, especially the southeast, get less annual rainfall than cities like New York or Rome. Sure, the weather can be unpredictable, but it doesn’t rain all the time.
‘Popular media and the British habit of complaining about the weather reinforce this stereotype.’
–Accurate_Prompt_8800
5.
‘Italians think that Britons drink tea at 5 pm every day, while usually at 5 pm people rush out of the office in the hope to catch a train home. All without tea.’
–ConversationWhich663
6.
”You got a license for that?’ as a joke about how much of a nanny state we have. I don’t get it. About the only things you need a license for are driving and the telly.
‘Americans, meanwhile, can’t drink till 21 or in public, aren’t allowed to cross the road except for at a crossing (‘jaywalking’), can’t buy unpasteurised cheese, and even Kinder Eggs are illegal.’
–viperised
7.
‘The whole idea that we’re a dangerous country and there’s knife crime on every corner.’
–coffeewalnut05
8.
‘All we do is drink tea and eat fish and chips. Then go to the pub.’
–Flashy-Grass6646
9.
‘That’s they’re quite aloof and not very friendly overall. I’ve been here for over three years now and have been so grateful for the kind Brits I see every day!’
–stopshopbop