English and proud (ish)
So it’s St George’s Day today. Once again it will no doubt pass with more of a whimper than a bang, but in honour of our great Saint’s day – and let’s face it, he slayed a dragon for a lady, the bloke’s a legend – I thought I’d give you a little guide to Englishness. Read it and weep:
English Design: English design is revered all over the world: Paul Smith, Vivienne Westwood (okay she’s barking but hey), Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen, Burberry… Ah Burberry. Once solely seen on stuffy, posh old ladies walking their Labradors, but now gracing a whole new generation of England, with less taste than ever before. A belly button ring, squawking child in a pushchair, white Honda Civic with dodgy plastic body kits and adding ‘innit’ to every sentence are must-have accessories.
The Weather: okay so most of the time you need a raincoat and umbrella, when the sun shines in England there’s no better place to be. There’s nothing nicer than lazing on warm grass watching a game of cricket on a sunny Sunday, or wandering around beautiful gardens like Sissinghurst. Our shores are many and varied, from craggy windswept coastline to golden sandy beach. In the winter, a glass of something in front of a crackling fire down the pub makes you glad to be alive.
The Lingo: ah the Queen’s English. From Shakespeare, Samuel Pepys and Beatrix Potter to Ted Hughes and J K Rowling, our literary accomplishments are huge. Mind you, given that we’ve bestowed our language upon half of the globe, you’d think we’d be a bit prouder of it. But no, we still manage to strangle it in any one of a thousand different ways. I worry that a whole new generation of English children will really think that U SPL TNGS LYK DAT.
The Monarchy: The Disreputable One maintains that on the day Prince Harry was born, one of the throng of journalists hanging about outside was alleged to have said ‘another bleedin’ parasite’. Many would echo that sentiment. After giving us false hope by giving up going out on the piss to join the armed forces, William ruined it all by taking the company Chinook out for a jolly, and Harry came back from Afghanistan to get on with the important royal business of skiing, lounging on various beaches and staggering out of clubs at 4am. Proud? You betcha we are.
But don’t get me wrong – for all its little quirks and foibles, I love everything about my country of origin. I miss watching the fellas play cricket on a perfect summer’s afternoon, wandering down to the village for an ice cream at tea time. I miss walking along the canal in the snow, the ducks skittering about on the frozen water. I miss visits to our beautiful coastline, fantastic restaurants, lovely old pubs, and the odd game of footie. I’m proud of our sporting achievements (okay, so don’t mention the World Cup, but our sportsmen are amongst the best in the world), our fantastic food (it’s not just fish and chips, it’s British Beef, the best seafood, the tender lamb, the fantastic puddings…) and, okay… can I mention the war?
The English are renowned for their reserve (which is funny when you think that our teenagers are currently vomiting and fornicating their way around half of the resorts in the Med) but it’s high time we started being a bit more patriotic. So I’ll start, shall I? Happy St George’s Day, people. Innit.
Further Reading: Bill Bryson’s Notes from a Small Island, anything from William Shakespeare, How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie, Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss, England for Dummies by Donald Olson
22 Responses to “English and proud (ish)”
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What a wonderful post (had to add a link hope you don’t mind).
Emily – English and proud
Favourite parts: Kent where the godfather lives, Surrey where the uncle lives, Somerset where I lived for a while, and Bristol where I lived for a while and one of my best friends from Tipp now lives. Let’s face it the suspension bridge rocks, Go Brunel! There are other excellent spots, I just haven’t seen them though.
There are some wonderful and beautiful places in the city to name just one of hundreds…
In Hanwell where I am from there’s a beautiful viaduct by Brunel himself and the most wonderful view of it from Brent Park.
Thrifty: Sadly I’m from the Shires so not much experience of London beyond trips to the museums you mentioned!! I think Buckinghamshire is severely underrated – Marlow and places along the river there are beautiful – oh, and Oxford too…
Em: Wee Jen did a great post on her foodie trip to London – you must read it. I’ll find you a link, hang on…
http://littlebirdeats.wordpress.com/2008/04/04/my-teeth-still-hurt/
I hate to disagree but you’re IRISH!
You married a Paddy (2nd gen, but still) your kids have the cúpla focail and your dog is as Cork as it gets!
Also, I claimed you for The Nation exactly THREE YEARS ago!
Sorry to break it to you Missus but it’s Paddys Day or nowt’ from here on in!
(what’s cricket? is it like hurling with a straight camóg?)
Yeah, me too. Me too. Spelling was quite bad enough before txtspk came along. *Sigh*
BTW – you’ve been tagged. It’s on my blog, along with my own comments on St George’s Day.
Isit: Why thank you dahling. Mwah xx
Jay: Ooh..a tag? Pour moi? I’ll be right over…
I’t Shakespears birthday too to boot.
Oi, nothing wrong with your dog being Cork..”like”..it’s my adopted home.
I don’t know about this though “it’s high time we started being a bit more patriotic”. My experience of living there was that it was a very patriotic country and sometimes that was a bit overwhelming.
Queeny: Et tu? I’m mostly proud to be English but when something really awful happens, like little boys get shot on the street, or I watch the antics of our teenagers on holiday, I could gladly forget it too! But I guess that’s the same with all nationalities.
Thrifty: Oh dear. I’m afraid I’m ‘Ertfordshire accented. People here assume it’s Lahndan and say things like ‘ta ta me ol’ china’ to me. Funny how one assumes one doesn’t have an accent until someone points it out!
Aidan: Why thank you. Funny, as a nation I don’t think we’re anywhere near as patriotic as the Irish. Look at the Paddy’s Day celebrations, and how often do you see ‘Irish and proud’ on shop fronts/lorries etc. You never get that at home. xx
Now you mention it, I wholeheartedly agree with you that Irish people can also be über patriotic, often not accepting any criticism of their country even when it is fully justified. Besides that I have to laugh when people boast about writers like Joyce or Beckett and it turns out that they have never read anything by them.
In England the more unsavoury patriotism that I encountered was far more of the ‘two world wars and one world cup variety’ so it was predominantly a male thing (girls were lovely
Have considered my taking offence and think it is probably pretty hypocritical seeing as I left London behind and have now adopted Kilkenny as my home.
I don’t have much of a London accent I don’t think (maybe a twang) being from the West. I hope I don’t offend anyone by saying that most really strong accents make you sound a little uneducated??
Em: Ah I love Kilkenny – nothing better than an afternoon spent pottering around those little lanes. I love the castle too. Gorgeous place. And yes, I’ve been claimed – I have to say I’m rather proud!!
Thrifty: I have rellies in Somerset and they do sound odd. Yes, I’m not keen on the real cockney thing. It does sound like you’re a bit of a duffer (apologies, cockneys, but it’s true!) x
Aidan – that’s cos Éire is practically perfect in every way don’t you know.
I spent 2 weeks over Christmas in London in ’95 with the NOW “INsignificant other” sporting my brand new hips! Walked and walked and walked all over doing concerts, museums and, of course, shopping – also went to Canterbury, Ironbridge and Bath all on our own – managed to avoid all touristy stuff. Took a flat rather than stay in a hotel – what a fabulous experience – made me wish I could live in “jolly old” but then the weather always deters me. :>)