The International Thread

[RogerDuke]

Do most folks from England describe themselves as British or English? I assume it's not that much different than a person saying they are from America or saying they are from the United States. 

[HossC]

Speaking personally, I'd generally consider myself English. Each of the countries in the UK has their own identities and accents, and people usually identify with one rather than all of them. Maybe that would change if I was further from home, since we all travel on a British passport. Of course, there are exceptions, such as sporting events where we compete together as a British team, e.g. the Olympics. I'm only ever European during the Ryder Cup .

The terms America and USA are pretty much interchangeable if it's where someone comes from. Obviously the word American could refer to anyone from the Americas, but I don't think I've ever come across someone from another country calling themselves American.

[RogerDuke]

On 11/12/2017 at 1:49 PM, HossC said:

 I don't think I've ever come across someone from another country calling themselves American.

This reminded me of a friend of mine who has lived here a long time but grew up in South Africa. Despite being white he jokes that he is African-American. Even though he really is nobody would consider him to be that. 

[HossC]

I've finally thought of a question for this thread:

How much British TV makes it to the US?

I wouldn't be on this forum if US TV wasn't shown in the UK. As well as Dukes, I grew up watching action shows like CHiPs and the Fall Guy, and comedies like Cheers and M*A*S*H, amongst many, many others.

I know that the US has a habit of remaking UK shows with varying success. The Office did very well, but two shows featuring Rick Hurst, On the Rocks (Porridge) and Amanda's (Fawlty Towers) only made a single season. Are US audiences familiar with the original shows?

[RogerDuke]

I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news Hoss but not very much. I don't watch as much TV as most people but I really don't think we get much exposure to other things. Since Hollywood was so big of a part of American culture long before cable television came out, my generation was never exposed to anything else and our lack of interest in anything not made here seems to have carried over to other generations. I'm sure glad you were exposed to Dukes though. We've had so many Europeans here (especially Brits) and it has been a pleasure to know them...especially you. 

[Spike]

PBS stations air quite a few British shows. One of the wife and I's favorites is the Great British Baking Show. Unfortunately that is also getting the American Reality TV makeover which is premiering this week on ABC stations and it looks like it will be unwatchable. We've also Enjoyed Lucy Worsley's British Documentaries and the Secrets of... series on various England historical sites.

[RogerDuke]

My grandkids are Peppa Pig fans. My grandaughter says "George" with a British accent. She doesn't realize she's saying it with an accent since that's the only way she's ever heard it. It's so cute we hope she never says it our way. I think a lot of people in America hear a British accent and automatically think the person is smart. Is everybody over there smart Hoss? The only smart folks over here are Dukes fans. If there are smart people who don't like the Dukes I've never met one. 

Edited December 6, 2017 by RogerDuke

[Meadowmufn]

On 12/4/2017 at 6:31 AM, HossC said:

I've finally thought of a question for this thread:

How much British TV makes it to the US?

I wouldn't be on this forum if US TV wasn't shown in the UK. As well as Dukes, I grew up watching action shows like CHiPs and the Fall Guy, and comedies like Cheers and M*A*S*H, amongst many, many others.

I know that the US has a habit of remaking UK shows with varying success. The Office did very well, but two shows featuring Rick Hurst, On the Rocks (Porridge) and Amanda's (Fawlty Towers) only made a single season. Are US audiences familiar with the original shows?

I'm afraid I'm not very familiar with those originals. I did grow up watching some British tv and watch BBC America occasionally now. "The Avengers" is one of my favorites. When I was younger, I watched a lot of "Are You Being Served?", some "Doctor Who" (mostly Tom Baker), and Monty Python (of course).

[RogerDuke]

Hey Hoss, are you worried about Brexit? 

[HossC]

Brexit is all over the news at the moment, and a lot of it is about the border between Northern and Southern Ireland. The North is part of the UK, so will be leaving the EU, but the South (where I live) is staying in the EU, and everyone's worried about what sort of border we'll have. I didn't have a vote in the Brexit referendum, and there's nothing I can do about it, so there's no point worrying, but it will be interesting to see how it turns out.

Barack Obama once warned the UK that they would be at the “back of the queue” in any trade deal with the US if the country chose to leave the EU. As one comedy show pointed out at the time, he didn't take into account how much the British love queueing. It gives us a chance to moan about the weather .

Are there any other stereotypes you have for the British? Americans normally quote warm beer and bad teeth, and as Roger pointed out, we're all really smart .

[RogerDuke]

I heard that on the radio about how Ireland will be affected. The big issue is the economy. Markets don't like uncertainty and the situation over there is about as uncertain as you can get. Who does it look like will benefit from Brexit the most economically, northern or southern ireland?....or is it way too early to tell?

[HossC]

13 hours ago, RogerDuke said:

Who does it look like will benefit from Brexit the most economically, northern or southern ireland?....or is it way too early to tell?

I think it's still too early to tell. They've made a start on agreeing details on the border this morning, which paves the way for more trade talks. At present you can drive across the border and the only indication is the signage telling you that speed limits are now in miles instead of kilometers. Shopping is currently cheaper in the North, so people from the South often cross the border if they're close enough. On the other hand, Southern Ireland has been giving good tax deals to large companies, so businesses like Apple and Google have been sending a lot of money through here so they don't have to pay higher rates elsewhere.

[Roth Potter]

Ireland use KPH? I did not know that. I thought it was MPH like the UK.

[HossC]

Yes, Southern Ireland swapped to KPH just over 10 years ago. There was a time when I first moved here that speed limit signs were still in MPH, but road signs had distances in kilometers, which was strange.

Even though we're in KPH and kilometers, I still tend to automatically convert to miles because that's what I grew up with. Also, I have no idea what a good fuel consumption figure is in liters per 100km - MPG makes a lot more sense to me (once I remember that a US gallon is about 3.8 liters while a UK gallon is just over 4.5 liters).

[RogerDuke]

I haven't been to Canada for a few years but when we did it was fun to go 100 all the way from Niagara Falls to Toronto and not get pulled over by Rosco for speeding.....even though it was KPH. Hey Hoss do you folks laugh at us Americans when we can't tell by a person's accent if they're British, Australian or South African? 

[HossC]

14 hours ago, RogerDuke said:

Hey Hoss do you folks laugh at us Americans when we can't tell by a person's accent if they're British, Australian or South African? 

I get the feeling that some Americans expect everyone British to speak like Gaylord Duke or Iggins. The UK may be much smaller than the US, but there are a huge range of accents. I wonder how many are known in the US. Here's a video I found with some examples. They're not all spot on, but they'll give you an idea.
 

I'm afraid that Americans also have a reputation for struggling with geography. I think you might like this example, Roger.

[RogerDuke]

That was pretty interesting Hoss. I caught references to three different Lord of the Rings characters which was cool since I love those movies. Thanks for sharing it. 

[HossC]

The West Country accent may work well in Lord of the Rings, but here's a behind-the-scenes clip from the original Star Wars. It would have been a very different movie if they'd used Dave Prowse's own voice.
 

 

[Boss JD Hogg]

23 hours ago, HossC said:

The West Country accent may work well in Lord of the Rings, but here's a behind-the-scenes clip from the original Star Wars. It would have been a very different movie if they'd used Dave Prowse's own voice.
 

 

It's so different hearing David Prowe's voice coming from Darth Vader.  It's just not as scary. LOL

Edited December 12, 2017 by Boss JD Hogg

[HossC]

George Bernard Shaw once said: "England and America are two countries divided by a common language", so can you match the food items in British and American English?

Can you match the British food names with the American ones?

Boy, are the Americans going to be embarrassed when they find out that they've been using the wrong words all these years ?

Edited January 20, 2018 by HossC

[Hobie Hartkins]

I can't hardly tell the difference between Scottish people, with their accents and Irish people with their accents. My friend, who like me, is descended from people, from Ireland, told me that Irish people can not only tell the difference between them and Scottish  people, they can even tell when someone from Ireland, is from another county and usually can tell WHICH county they're from!

[RogerDuke]

If I heard Daisy Duke's voice and Miz Emma Tisdale's voice without seeing their faces I could tell which was which. If Jesse Duke and Flash both had masks on I'd be able to tell which was which. If they took the 01 off the General Lee I'd still be able to tell it from Cooter's wrecker. I'm acting a little silly tonight Hobie. Did you slip a little of that mountain dew in my root beer when you were visiting this evening? I thought it tasted different. 

[Andrew D Charger Chaser]

Sorry been away so long folks, been more than overwhelmed with school this year.

Hoss, I grew up outside Boston in the '70's and '80's, and at that time the local PBS station WGBH was the master station for most of what came into North America from the UK. They had a MASSIVE amount of British programming, compared to many other PBS stations at the time, or so I've heard. Despite being staunchly patriotic, I also grew up enjoying more British programming than American, the Dukes being a huge exception. I have a collection of Britcoms (25 complete or near-complete series). 

Funny, for a guy who grew up right where the American Revolution started (Lexington/Concord, Bunker Hill, Boston Tea Party all local stuff for me) I sure prefer the TV programming of the enemy our British cousins!  

[HossC]

Care to name any of your favorite British shows, Andrew?

 

 

14 hours ago, Hobie Harkins said:

I can't hardly tell the difference between Scottish people, with their accents and Irish people with their accents. My friend, who like me, is descended from people, from Ireland, told me that Irish people can not only tell the difference between them and Scottish  people, they can even tell when someone from Ireland, is from another county and usually can tell WHICH county they're from!

You seem surprised, Hobie. I know America is much bigger than Ireland, but accents vary just as much here. I'm sure you could easily tell the difference between a New Yorker and someone from Texas, and it's the same with Irish accents (in which I do not claim to be an expert). Here's a humorous comparison of just a few that I found online:
 

 

[Roth Potter]

They speak so fast I couldn't understand half. But I liked it!