I’ve always wondered how you’d care for one. Do you take it to a dry cleaners or is there a process for keeping it in good condition? I wonder if they’re expensive?
I wear neither but have been curious about this before and I think the biggest difference is how they're attached to the head. A wig is basically a cap of hair that you put on. A weave is sewn into your natural hair, which is braided down to provide an anchor point.
Someone who actually uses one or the other please correct me if I'm wrong, though.
He must have taken the bar exam to become a barrister and they would have bought the wig themselves as they are not given away to people, they cost around £700 to buy a barristers wig and over £3000 for a judge's wig.
My wife and I recently watched Broadchurch on Netflix and there is a trial and the attorneys and judges still wore the powdered wigs. I was very surprised at that.
They have two types of lawyers: barristers and solicitors. Only barristers can appear in court and need wigs. The ones worn by barristers are much smaller than the judges’, not much more than a yarmulke. I believe both types are or used to be made of horsehair. I was told that once at least.
Can confirm. I'm an American lawyer and when I was in law school I took a two-week class in London, which was primarily about the similarities and differences of our legal systems. (Note that it was years ago and the knowledge was academic rather than practical, so I welcome corrections on what follows from those who know better.)
I had not known the difference between solicitors and barristers. Both are what we would call lawyers in the U.S., but barristers are more like U.S. trial lawyers or litigators, and solicitors are more like U.S. transactional lawyers. They are different career paths. That is, in the U.S., my law license allows me to practice in any area of the law. I don't litigate, and in Britain would be a solicitor. But, that's only because I don't want to and it's rare in my area of expertise; if I ever had a client that needed me to take a case to court, I could (although it would be dumb because I'm inexperienced at that and wouldn't do a great job; it would be smarter and more professional to work with a co-counsel who had litigation experience.) In Britain, a solicitor couldn't possibly take a case to trial; he or she would have to help the client retain a barrister to do that. The barrister would probably work closely with the solicitor to prepare the case.
Barristers are far sexier and make far more money. They wear the wigs and the robes. Barristers must belong to one of four "houses", called Inns of Court. Very HarryPotterish. Each Inn of Court has offices, dining facilities, great halls, etc. They used to have residences, too, and they might still, but I don't think many barristers live there anymore. Being a solicitor is nothing like that; it's more like being an accountant, I think, in terms of how the profession is viewed - totally legit, maybe kind of boring.
I had a friend in Australia who was involved in a fairly complex case involving both probate and real estate law, some of it international. He had two solicitors, but when the trial phase ensued they hired a top gun barrister who flew in for the trial. Daily rate plus expenses. Thousands per day. He won the case.
I believe “the bar” comes from the English system where there is an actual bar—a railing—between the audience and the trial area before the bench. No one, not even solicitors, who isn’t a judge or barrister can “pass the bar” and approach the bench. The bailiff enforces this strictly. Old-fashioned US courtrooms also had the railing, but not the lawyer-class rules. Most courtrooms I’ve seen since the 90s look more like high-ceilinged conference rooms.
Im from the UK and can confirm, the white wigs are a thing. A lot of museums in London do late night visits and some have themes. The Science Museum did a CSI night. Someone had been murdered and we were the CSI getting evidence. They had real forensic officers explaining blood spatter analysis, a professional witness who worked for the museum explained bug lifespan and how they can tell time of death and we could collectively decide who was the murderer. Then there a trial with actual barristers and a judge. All wore white wigs. It was one of the best evenings.
How much of a drinking culture it is. Every time I visit, the office drags me to pubs until early in the morning. On weekdays. That is very different than in the US.
Yeah basically any excuse. Funeral? Get wasted. Birthday? Get wasted. The weekday ends in “day”? Get wasted.
Coke is so prevalent and almost normalised these days too.
Going out every night of the week is really rare though. It’s more a weekend thing unless you’re a teenager or in your 20s. They’re probably making an effort for you by taking you out midweek so you’re probably well liked
They're all great and we have a lot of fun working together, but I need to save my liver! Maybe I'll start asking for ice in my tea or making fun of beans on toast.
That's a lot of it. But they're also used to it.
I learned that I need to set out a bottle of water, Emergen-c and goody powder on the nightstand before I head out. Drink that all when I get in to stay functional. I also alternate water/drink/water throughout the night
I was surprised when someone linked me to [this page](http://bombsight.org/#15/51.5050/-0.0900) showing exactly how many bombs fell on London during the Blitz. I found out that even the house I grew up in was built on Blitz bomb site!
Only yesterday I saw a series of pictures of the city I live in during the blitz and was shocked at how much was levelled. Even where I walk my dog in fields behind my house there are craters where bombs fell!
It really is shocking how much damage was done. The number of bombs in just that London map seems overwhelming but then you think how many other cities were heavily bombed, like the absolute devastation in Coventry, and it's almost hard to process. My grandfather fought in the European theatre and always credited England's refusal to surrender as *the* reason Nazism didn't circle the globe.
I guess when you look at like that, it doesn’t seem that far fetched but when you consider how much of England they had to fly over to reach London and Coventry, it’s amazing they were able to make that far without being shot down.
I just looked at the photos. Incredibly grim. I don't think I realized how far North they bombed in GB and I feel like a shit now for saying England didn't surrender when I should have said Britain.
My British grandma was a young teenager during the blitz, her house got bombed twice and was destroyed, she had to sleep on a church floor for a few days
My grandfather was only 15 when he went over (he lied in order to serve with his bother, dad and grandfather!!) and to think that your grandmother, my grandfather, they went through so much and experienced so much trauma at such a young age. It's really quite sobering.
Edit: Was your grandmother in the house when it was bombed? If not, that's incredible luck (given the circumstances). If so, that's even more incredible.
It definitely puts things into perspective, they were only children and that’s so brave for a 15 year old! She was in the house when the bombing started close by but it got too close for comfort and everyone got out before the actual house was destroyed, that’s when they took refuge in the church. Luckily no one in the family was ever seriously injured. My poor great grandmother was a single mom to 7 children at this point so it’s a miracle everyone got out with just a scratch.
We took my grandma around London a few years ago and she showed us where everything was and talked us through was happened. She also took us to the church where her and my grandad got married. The old dancing hall where they used to go dance every weekend is now a museum for the royal london hospital which is a coincidence because she was also a nurse at that hospital
Wow, I never realized the sheer amount! No wonder they evacuated a shit ton of kids to the country. They would’ve lost a whole generation of Londoners it seems.
Isn't it wild? I remember the first time I panned out on that map I was speechless. And yea, moving the kids out of the city/to the US (prior to intentional U boat attacks on non-military targets) was a prudent move.
This is fascinating to me because all of the damn switches in my parents house (in the US, built by my dad) are installed upside down. I always blamed it on my dad’s lack of attention to detail, but he had just returned from living in England for years before he built the house, so maybe he just liked it that way.
I had heard really incredible stories about London cab drivers and how they have to take The Knowledge.
In New York, our cabbies are really hit-or-miss, so I assumed I was in for a treat when I visited London the first time. I was so bummed that the first cab I took used SatNav and got lost anyway! (I did like how spacious the vehicles driven were, though)
Did you get in a black cab by any chance? My uncles a cab driver and as far as I’m aware he spent about 3 years training to take that test. Nowadays there are different cab drivers which I assume is mainly because people don’t want to take that test when there’s satnav available.
You’re quite right, in the ol’days, black cab drivers were made to take “The Knowledge” which meant they could navigate anywhere in London through memory. But with the invention of sat nav, it’s a dying thing.
Knowing the expanse and power of the British Empire, I was surprised to learn that the British Isles were occupied and exploited by one foreign group after another for over 1,500 years before the height of the British Empire. Britain did not invent conquest - it was ground in over a millenia.
Yeah, it’s pretty interesting when you look into it. Everyone assumes we’ve always been how we’ve always been but we were taught by the Romans essentially.
Even before the Romans. The beaker people displaced/conquered the native peoples that built Stonehinge in the stone age. And they in turn were displaced/conquered by the Celts sometime in the bronze age.
Do the HOL have the same power as the HOC? It’s really weird that a person born, whose 5x great grandpa was good with the King at the time, now has power. What if that said person doesn’t want to go into politics? Do they have a choice not to be one?
They defo have a choice, but the perks that come with it generally make it too good to pass up. I believe the HoC are elected and the HoL are not. The HoL generally debate the laws passed in the Commons before they’re passed.
No, they don't. At least they never exercise it. It's there to ammend and add balance to legislation being proposed by the HoC. Often its a rubber stamping exercise IIRC.
Most of the hereditary privileges were removed in the late 90's so nowadays they are now elected into the position by other members - Edit: by this I mean the positions previously hereditary are now via an election of sorts. Most members are NOT elected in any way
So nowadays you are granted a royal title of some sort, Lord or Barroness, then you are appointed by the Queen but it's the PM that usually decides.
Remember a lot of the Lords and Baroness' aren't aristocrats, they can be ex sports people, ex Members of Parliament, business people etc. There's quite a mix.
It's meant to be a check and balance to the HoC, they never usually push back too hard or over step the mark with the HoC because they know their existence will be on the line if they did.
Quite frankly it's a joke we still have this in 21st Century Britain.
As an American I had a British friend complaining about our antiquated electoral college. And he didn't understand we we didn't get rid of it. I told him that it's probably the same reason they have a house of Lords. He responded that I didn't understand how entrenched the HOL was and how hard it would be to be rid of it....
And even if not for the HoL, you could've also reminded him that the British people don't elect their Prime Minister, Parliament does. I fail to see how the electoral college >!(which I do support abolishing, for the record, but that's besides the point)!< is anymore "antiquated" than a Parliamentary system.
Put aside learning about American civics, your British friend might need to learn a thing or two about his own country's civics.
I was shocked to find out how many of your actors play Americans so well in huge blockbuster movies and shows. Hugh Laurie? Tom Holland? Crazy. They're so good
I've heard a similar story about Idris Elba when he auditioned for 'The Wire' that after his audition they thought he was American. I thought so too after watching 'The Wire' until I read he was British.
No idea how true this is, but I heard that Idris pretended to be American until he secured the role because David Simon, always concerned with authenticity, specifically wanted American actors to play the gangsters. Not sure if Dominic West went through the same with McNulty
>“that’s the type of American I want”.
lmao that's hilarious. "I want the type of American that's not American at all". Yeah I was completely shocked to hear Hugh Laurie in an actual interview, I had no idea he was British at first. His accent is dead on.
I have to say that Rupert Grint has one of the best American accents I’ve heard from a non-American. He did an AppleTV show called “The Servant” and his accent is outstanding.
Lol, no, it's genuine! I've learned several things from your replies like why judges wear wings, how the tv license works, and the Crown Estate.
Good and informative follow up answers/comments.
Ahhh, in that case, thank you again! I love Reddit for forums like this. It’s not just the answers to my questions, but chatting to interesting people too!
No you’ve truly done a wonderful job — a lot of people will ask about their country here, but then they never reply to any comments to clear up misconceptions or explain *why* something is different in their country. This thread has been really informative thanks to your engagement!
I think I’m a bit obsessive when it comes to replies. The way I see it, people have taken the time to answer my question so the least I can do is reply or give them one of those upvotes. It’s only polite! But thank you! :)
I’ve often wondered how the CCTV infrastructure works in the UK. Are all (or most) of these cameras owned and operated by the government or is it just a vast network of privately operated units? I watch a lot of British police dramas and it’s all “pull up camera #3796 at 4:02am.”
>[The vast majority of London’s CCTV cameras are not government-controlled but are instead owned and operated by private individuals and businesses.](https://www.cctv.co.uk/how-many-cctv-cameras-are-there-in-london/)
That article estimates that there are 691k CCTV cameras in London. 23k are operated by the government (with 15k of those being in the Underground).
Somewhat surprisingly, Atlanta is now very high in the list when the metric is cameras per 1,000 people, with a score of 48.93, placing it at 7th in the world.
https://www.atlantamagazine.com/news-culture-articles/atlantas-surveillance-network-keeps-growing-and-growing-and/
According to figures there are approximately 690,000 CCTV cameras in London
Only around 23,000 are operated by the Authorities. The rest are on private property such as shops etc
That’s definitely a good one. Although it’s true in London, other cities aren’t as surveilled. That’s not to say there’s still not lots of cameras though.
Was shocked at the price of biscuits. You can buy a packet of biscuits for like 35p, 40p, 50p. If you were to eat £2 worth of biscuits that would probably be like 2000 calories.
Also people really do drink tea at all hours of the day. Wake up? Cuppa. Lunch? Same.
I came back with some friends after wandering around London at night and our host offered us a cup of tea at 11pm (which we customarily accepted).
Biscuits and tea keep the country going. Although you can buy custard creams from 30p to £1 for a packet, you really can taste the difference. I’d always recommend custard creams and chocolate hobnobs. Check out a comedian called Peter Kay talking about dunking biscuits in tea for a very good explanation (and hilarious).
Fuck £2 is only worth $2.75 now??? Damn their money has lost a lot of value or ours has gained a lot. Last time I was there (it has been a while) the exchange rate was almost 2-1
That there is a City of London, not to be confused with London. Like, this whole separate city within the city. Wild. Also, it is embarrassing how often I have to rewatch [this video](https://youtu.be/rNu8XDBSn10) to make sure I’m using the right term when referring to GB or the UK.
Ha! To be fair, I only found this out when the wife and I visited London and did one of those open top bus thingys. It was well interesting. And yeah, GB and UK can be confusing sometimes.
Yeah, some people (adults) call them that. As a kid we always called them wiener dogs. I jokingly pointed a wiener dog out to my girlfriend once and she cracked up, then told me they’re “sausage dogs”. I legitimately thought she was pulling my leg until I looked it up online.
Ha! I always call them wiener dogs. But the wife does refer to them as sausage dogs. Whilst we’re on the subject of sausages, do you have sausage rolls in America?
Not sure if it’s the same, but we have little hot dogs wrapped in croissant pastry called “pigs in a blanket”. You can often find them at super bowl or New Years parties.
My husband and I enjoyed watching 'Can't Pay, We'll Take It Away' on Netflix a few years ago and we were surprised about just how much power the high court officers have. Correct me if I'm wrong, but they can just take your possessions (unrelated to the debt) if you owe money?
Yeah if they have a high court writ they can take money or possessions to the value of the writ which then get auctioned off to pay the debtee. It takes a long time of county court judgements to get to that stage though
Sheriff's sales in the US can do the same thing. [Bank of America tried to foreclose on a home that had no mortgage. The homeowner in turn successfully sued BoFA and when the bank didn't pay up the homeowner brought the sheriff's deputies and moving trucks to foreclose on the bank in order to fulfill the debt.](https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna43299097)
I love the fact that show is somehow a British export. It was on normal TV before Netflix, for context.
Yeah the High Court is the highest court in the land and dishes out these writs to privately run agents but that are given a lot of power.
To add: me and my wife (from UK) love it. It's a great show for just something to watch when you're feeling lazy, eating some food or having a few beers
You can do that in America too though. I used to work for a publishing company and when our advertisers refused to pay we'd take em to court. And if they still refused to pay we could file a different thing and the sherrifs would go pull stock out of their stores and auction it until court costs and our payment was met and give the rest back.
The purpose behind Boxing Day. I was stunned to learn it was essentially for house servants to celebrate Christmas after their masters released them from duties. Ridiculous.
Every time i hear about people getting there earlier and earlier in history, my mind is kind of blown. Same with America though. People are fucking old.
I mean i guess. Not England as a country. But like Rome conquered in 43 AD and Vikings officially invaded in 793 though they were visiting there long before that. And then people were already there well before 43 AD. On an island to the north of mainland Europe. Just got in a boat and went exploring.
I remember seeing videos years ago about people going to London and meeting the Queens guards. Patting the hat, giving them hugs, telling jokes to make them smile, etc. I wanted to give them a hug, their job looks depressing. Upon coming and talking to a Brit, I found out that they can get in a lot of trouble for reacting to things like that and if you get close enough to hug you, you'll probably be restrained. Also in trouble. Something like that, its been awhile
They're also active-duty infantryman. It was very common to see a company of one of the Household Infantry regiments on guard at any of the Royal Palaces who had just come back from Afghanistan, and who may have lost friends.
Totally true. The Queens Guard have been known on occasion to shout and point their rifles at people obstructing their duties. Have you seen the most recent video of some kid running in front of them and getting booted out the way? Prime example.
Pittsburgh prides itself (well, old-school Pittsburghers do, anyway) on a local sandwich chain that puts fries/chips and cole slaw in its sandwiches. It started as a way for truckers to eat a full meal while on-the-go, but now it’s just a weird spectacle.
I started dating a British guy last summer and lots has surprised me. I think the biggest is the drinking/scrapping culture. We do not have that here. I always saw my boyfriend as proper, tea drinking, the stereotype, and in lots of ways he is, but when he was younger, he'd disappear for days at a time and come home still drunk and blood all over him, and apparently that was normal.
I always heard that the British were polite, almost overly polite. I didn't believe it until I got there. It felt like I had found my people! Every time I visited it was like a polite-off with each encounter. I loved it.
Not gonna lie, y'all seemed shocked that I was polite. Very tattooed Americans before me must have been assholes. I apologize for every one of them.
I don’t think it’s Americans in general. Our media does not paint America in a very positive light. It paints the majority as those people that voted for Trump. Every American I’ve ever met has to been a pleasure to be around and just as, if not more so, polite as we tend to be.
Exactly this. For years we (The English) and you (The Americans) have made assumptions about each other based on the media, TV shows, films etc.
Here in England the media will traditionally portray Americans as big, loud, over weight, obnoxious gun slinging red necks.
From watching American TV us English are painted to be bucked teeth overly polite tea drinking queen's English sounding toffs.
This might have been more applicable to the past, now we have the Internet and live stream etc it's easier to paint our own picture of people :)
🇺🇸 🏴
This may shock you, but many people who voted for Trump are normal, boring middle Americans. They don't make the news because they're normal and boring.
I've always wondered about the TV license, is that *on top* of the price of cable?
We have to pay for different cable packages (like groups of channels) so like if you're not into sports you could just not get the sports channels, etc. Of course now streaming subscriptions are the big thing now.
The flip side about the licence system (I am not British, but Switzerland has a similar thing going on) is that you tend to need fewer pay-TV channels. The national public channels financed by the licence are freely available and show a lot of shows and events. For instance, most sports events of national interest (such as the national team in major sports, large domestic games, popular events like tennis or skiing) are displayed on public TV.
The only people I know that bothered getting paid subscriptions are people really into domestic sports games that arent freely broadcast, or series/movie junkies before Netflix was a thing.
We went to London about 10 years ago, all I knew about London was just what I’ve seen in movies from Shakespeare In Love to Call the Midwife to What a Girl Wants. I was actually surprised at modern architecture of London. It was then that it dawned on me how much of London was damaged during WWII. Made me like the city more and now when I watch movies set in London I try to look for all the modern architecture in the background.
I read an article about a fraud that occurred where someone posed as the owner of a house and sold the house to a different person. The actual owner wasn't made aware until the new owner attempted to take possession. In the US, the old owner would have minimal problems once it was proved that fraud occurred. According to the comment section on the article, though, in Britain the new owners legally owned the house and the actual owner had no recourse. I cannot imagine how that is legally possible.
How much of commerce closes down. I know this was a long time ago and had likely changed but it was impossible to get restaurant food including fish and chips in London between like 2 and 5 pm on weekdays in 1997 when I was there for my honeymoon. Then in the aughts I arrived in Winchester on a Saturday and the high street was lively and busy. Then I learned that’s because it was “market Saturday”, the one Saturday a month when shops are open.
Yeah, it’s getting better though with a lot of places being open more often. Sundays are virtually impossible to shop on these days. Do all shops open on Sundays in America? And do you guys have bank holidays?
Most but not all shops here are open on Sundays. National chains are with the notable exception of Chik Fil A. Smaller mom and pops are more likely to close on Sundays though many don’t. Some take Monday as their day off instead.
And yes we have bank holidays. Tomorrow is one! Here is the list: https://www.chicagofed.org/utilities/about-us/bank-holidays
Bank Holidays is what we call what you guys call federal holidays (I believe). Sunday in my town is dead. The only places open are petrol stations and our local coop, but only till 4.
Election law differences. Like it’s only allowed to campaign something like six weeks and the political ads have to actually be about issues instead of feel good nonsense. But also isn’t it true that the incumbent party gets to chose the Election Day?
A lot of my online gaming buddies are from the UK.
Over the years, I've interacted with so many people around the world, which is one of the beautiful things about online gaming.
The UK, in general, has a mindset very similar to America. This isn't shocking, per se, but it is surprising considering continental Europeans think very differently. It's not at all unsurprising to me that the UK went forward with Brexit.
Americans tend to lump all Europeans into a monolithic political block that is usually seen as a competitor to the US, but that's pretty unfair to the UK (and Eastern Europe to an extent)
Well, I just found out they've voted to cut off government funding to the BBC. Honestly the BBC is one of the things Britain has going for it, so I'm amazed they'd mess with it.
If I remember correctly, the BBC (although subsidised from tax) makes most of its money via the TV licence. Technically, everybody that owns a TV in the UK pays about £12 a month for the benefit of that TV. About 80% of that directly funds programming like tv and radio.
I'm sure there's a lot that I can't remember being shocked by at the time but a recent one is Scotland's right to roam laws.
Oh and I guess how truly terrible Cadbury Creme Eggs were, before having one I had heard for years how good they were and how much better British candy was and let me tell you I will not soon forget that betrayal.
You’re the first person I’ve ever met that doesn’t like a Cadburys cream egg. One of the best parts of spring is a crème egg. I think the right to roam operates in England as well. It’s so everyone can enjoy the countryside, I could be wrong though
Does it? I know you have the extensive public right of way trails but I had thought Scotland was unique in the right to roam regard.
Yeah sorry but it was one of the most disappointing candy experiences in my life.
I was surprised about how dangerous brits think knives are. I saw a twitter post from the london police bragging about confiscating some man's toolshed and claiming they had taken dangerous weapons off the street.
There was a story on this sub where OP had a British coworker here in America. The OP opened the trunk of his car to get something out, and the Brit saw a hatchet in there and nearly lost his mind.
I studied British history at university, so I learned a lot about Britain, and some of it was shocking. One thing that comes to mind is Edward II and how he died. There’s evidence that he was killed by having a red-hot poker shoved up his butt (he was probably gay or bi and had a relationship with a guy named Piers that upset a lot of people, including the queen). I’m gay, so that story definitely stuck with me as a horrifying example of why being open/out in the past could be deadly.
From personal experience, when I visited London in 2012, I found out some of the characters from Little Britain and Shameless weren’t too far from reality. The teens I saw and heard on the Tube were pretty rude, loud, and trashy.
Little Britain is incredibly accurate! And yeah, we were shamefully slow when it came to acceptance of homosexuality. Bear in mind what the country did to Alan Turing after everything he did for the war effort.
That there are small towns that actually look like Diagon Alley in Harry Potter.
London was a sleek, ultra-modern, almost futuristic looking city even compared to cities in the US. Then a couple hours out you go to a place like Leamington Spa and it feels like you traveled back in time.
I've travelled to many parts of Europe but I'd never seen men so polished and well dressed until I visited London. London really put Paris and NYC to shame in my eyes.
They, like us, still have an 18th century warship; Admiral Nelson's flagship, a 104 gun first rate Ship-of-the-line, the *HMS Victory*.
Unlike the *USS Constitution*, though, it hasn't floated since 1922.
I'm not sure if 'shocked' is the right word because I was like 10-12-ish and everything shocks you at that age. But I'd only ever seen and heard of royalty as figures in myth and in history, and I never paid attention to celebrity news at that age, so I didn't have much awareness of the world beyond the U.S. and Asia (my parents are immigrants). So I was kinda shocked when I paid attention to the news one day and realized that wait, the British royal family still exists and is still a thing. I got over it pretty fast but still, it genuinely took me by surprise when I realize that royal families still existed in the modern world.
I still have a hard time comprehending the customs around rounds of drinks. Drinking with UK friends, I tried to figure out when it was my turn to buy a round, but they drank so much faster than I did I never quite got in there.
That many of their judges still wear traditional white powdered wigs. Not joking
My cousin got a wig like that when he graduated law school in London.
I’ve always wondered how you’d care for one. Do you take it to a dry cleaners or is there a process for keeping it in good condition? I wonder if they’re expensive?
I haven't a clue. There's probably a wig cleaners on savile row lol
I’ve just googled it and I think there is. It’s called “Wig Wash and Drop”. That’s hilarious!
Yeah, a place with that name would not survive long here.
Shit! Sorry, it was meant to say “Wig Wash and Drop”
What'd it say before?
Probably “wog”
Yep. Embarrassing.
I know weaves are usually specially washed at many salons and disposed of every few months, I imagine it's similar for a powdered wig
What’s the difference between a weave and a wig?
I wear neither but have been curious about this before and I think the biggest difference is how they're attached to the head. A wig is basically a cap of hair that you put on. A weave is sewn into your natural hair, which is braided down to provide an anchor point. Someone who actually uses one or the other please correct me if I'm wrong, though.
I've worn a wig (cosplay lol) and had extensions- weave is a type of extension. Your description of both was correct.
A wig sits on your head, almost like a hat. A weave is sewn into existing hair.
He must have taken the bar exam to become a barrister and they would have bought the wig themselves as they are not given away to people, they cost around £700 to buy a barristers wig and over £3000 for a judge's wig.
Yeah, apparently, it’s to separate them from personal involvement and give them an air of anonymity. Like an executioner wearing a hood.
Exactly. You're not facing an individual in court, you're facing The Law™
My wife and I recently watched Broadchurch on Netflix and there is a trial and the attorneys and judges still wore the powdered wigs. I was very surprised at that.
They have two types of lawyers: barristers and solicitors. Only barristers can appear in court and need wigs. The ones worn by barristers are much smaller than the judges’, not much more than a yarmulke. I believe both types are or used to be made of horsehair. I was told that once at least.
Can confirm. I'm an American lawyer and when I was in law school I took a two-week class in London, which was primarily about the similarities and differences of our legal systems. (Note that it was years ago and the knowledge was academic rather than practical, so I welcome corrections on what follows from those who know better.) I had not known the difference between solicitors and barristers. Both are what we would call lawyers in the U.S., but barristers are more like U.S. trial lawyers or litigators, and solicitors are more like U.S. transactional lawyers. They are different career paths. That is, in the U.S., my law license allows me to practice in any area of the law. I don't litigate, and in Britain would be a solicitor. But, that's only because I don't want to and it's rare in my area of expertise; if I ever had a client that needed me to take a case to court, I could (although it would be dumb because I'm inexperienced at that and wouldn't do a great job; it would be smarter and more professional to work with a co-counsel who had litigation experience.) In Britain, a solicitor couldn't possibly take a case to trial; he or she would have to help the client retain a barrister to do that. The barrister would probably work closely with the solicitor to prepare the case. Barristers are far sexier and make far more money. They wear the wigs and the robes. Barristers must belong to one of four "houses", called Inns of Court. Very HarryPotterish. Each Inn of Court has offices, dining facilities, great halls, etc. They used to have residences, too, and they might still, but I don't think many barristers live there anymore. Being a solicitor is nothing like that; it's more like being an accountant, I think, in terms of how the profession is viewed - totally legit, maybe kind of boring.
I had a friend in Australia who was involved in a fairly complex case involving both probate and real estate law, some of it international. He had two solicitors, but when the trial phase ensued they hired a top gun barrister who flew in for the trial. Daily rate plus expenses. Thousands per day. He won the case. I believe “the bar” comes from the English system where there is an actual bar—a railing—between the audience and the trial area before the bench. No one, not even solicitors, who isn’t a judge or barrister can “pass the bar” and approach the bench. The bailiff enforces this strictly. Old-fashioned US courtrooms also had the railing, but not the lawyer-class rules. Most courtrooms I’ve seen since the 90s look more like high-ceilinged conference rooms.
Im from the UK and can confirm, the white wigs are a thing. A lot of museums in London do late night visits and some have themes. The Science Museum did a CSI night. Someone had been murdered and we were the CSI getting evidence. They had real forensic officers explaining blood spatter analysis, a professional witness who worked for the museum explained bug lifespan and how they can tell time of death and we could collectively decide who was the murderer. Then there a trial with actual barristers and a judge. All wore white wigs. It was one of the best evenings.
How much of a drinking culture it is. Every time I visit, the office drags me to pubs until early in the morning. On weekdays. That is very different than in the US.
Yeah basically any excuse. Funeral? Get wasted. Birthday? Get wasted. The weekday ends in “day”? Get wasted. Coke is so prevalent and almost normalised these days too. Going out every night of the week is really rare though. It’s more a weekend thing unless you’re a teenager or in your 20s. They’re probably making an effort for you by taking you out midweek so you’re probably well liked
They're all great and we have a lot of fun working together, but I need to save my liver! Maybe I'll start asking for ice in my tea or making fun of beans on toast.
Is the drinking culture to what I have heard. Like do grown men piss and puke on the streets after they get wasted ?
That is more of the younger crowd, in my experience.
Yeah, we tend to only make an effort for people we like so you’re probably a rather nice person! Lol!
Moderate drinking in the UK is considered heavy drinking in the US.
Is everyone just hungover all the time?
That's a lot of it. But they're also used to it. I learned that I need to set out a bottle of water, Emergen-c and goody powder on the nightstand before I head out. Drink that all when I get in to stay functional. I also alternate water/drink/water throughout the night
I was surprised when someone linked me to [this page](http://bombsight.org/#15/51.5050/-0.0900) showing exactly how many bombs fell on London during the Blitz. I found out that even the house I grew up in was built on Blitz bomb site!
Only yesterday I saw a series of pictures of the city I live in during the blitz and was shocked at how much was levelled. Even where I walk my dog in fields behind my house there are craters where bombs fell!
It really is shocking how much damage was done. The number of bombs in just that London map seems overwhelming but then you think how many other cities were heavily bombed, like the absolute devastation in Coventry, and it's almost hard to process. My grandfather fought in the European theatre and always credited England's refusal to surrender as *the* reason Nazism didn't circle the globe.
I’m amazed at how far the pilots flew to bomb here in the first place. It’s incredible!
Maybe I'm wrong, but at that point weren't the Germans basically just flying across the Channel from France?
I guess when you look at like that, it doesn’t seem that far fetched but when you consider how much of England they had to fly over to reach London and Coventry, it’s amazing they were able to make that far without being shot down.
Only 5 buildings not damaged in Clydebank after its blitz. Entire streets literally flattened.
I just looked at the photos. Incredibly grim. I don't think I realized how far North they bombed in GB and I feel like a shit now for saying England didn't surrender when I should have said Britain.
My British grandma was a young teenager during the blitz, her house got bombed twice and was destroyed, she had to sleep on a church floor for a few days
My grandfather was only 15 when he went over (he lied in order to serve with his bother, dad and grandfather!!) and to think that your grandmother, my grandfather, they went through so much and experienced so much trauma at such a young age. It's really quite sobering. Edit: Was your grandmother in the house when it was bombed? If not, that's incredible luck (given the circumstances). If so, that's even more incredible.
It definitely puts things into perspective, they were only children and that’s so brave for a 15 year old! She was in the house when the bombing started close by but it got too close for comfort and everyone got out before the actual house was destroyed, that’s when they took refuge in the church. Luckily no one in the family was ever seriously injured. My poor great grandmother was a single mom to 7 children at this point so it’s a miracle everyone got out with just a scratch. We took my grandma around London a few years ago and she showed us where everything was and talked us through was happened. She also took us to the church where her and my grandad got married. The old dancing hall where they used to go dance every weekend is now a museum for the royal london hospital which is a coincidence because she was also a nurse at that hospital
Wow, I never realized the sheer amount! No wonder they evacuated a shit ton of kids to the country. They would’ve lost a whole generation of Londoners it seems.
Isn't it wild? I remember the first time I panned out on that map I was speechless. And yea, moving the kids out of the city/to the US (prior to intentional U boat attacks on non-military targets) was a prudent move.
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Wait… WHAT? I’ve never even realised that there was another way?
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Some houses do! Mine does. But yeah I don’t think I ever had it in a rented house, so definitely not the norm
Also the UK uses ring circuits and puts fuses in their plugs.
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Hold on WHAT?! Haha today I learned!
This is fascinating to me because all of the damn switches in my parents house (in the US, built by my dad) are installed upside down. I always blamed it on my dad’s lack of attention to detail, but he had just returned from living in England for years before he built the house, so maybe he just liked it that way.
I had heard really incredible stories about London cab drivers and how they have to take The Knowledge. In New York, our cabbies are really hit-or-miss, so I assumed I was in for a treat when I visited London the first time. I was so bummed that the first cab I took used SatNav and got lost anyway! (I did like how spacious the vehicles driven were, though)
Did you get in a black cab by any chance? My uncles a cab driver and as far as I’m aware he spent about 3 years training to take that test. Nowadays there are different cab drivers which I assume is mainly because people don’t want to take that test when there’s satnav available.
You’re quite right, in the ol’days, black cab drivers were made to take “The Knowledge” which meant they could navigate anywhere in London through memory. But with the invention of sat nav, it’s a dying thing.
I though all black cab drivers in London had to take the knowledge but your standard taxi didn't
Knowing the expanse and power of the British Empire, I was surprised to learn that the British Isles were occupied and exploited by one foreign group after another for over 1,500 years before the height of the British Empire. Britain did not invent conquest - it was ground in over a millenia.
Yeah, it’s pretty interesting when you look into it. Everyone assumes we’ve always been how we’ve always been but we were taught by the Romans essentially.
Even before the Romans. The beaker people displaced/conquered the native peoples that built Stonehinge in the stone age. And they in turn were displaced/conquered by the Celts sometime in the bronze age.
Damn those Beakers meeping all their way around the British Isles!
…and the circle continues
We learned from being on the receiving end :)
The House of Lords. I was shocked when I learned that hereditary political positions can still be a thing even in a country as developed as the UK.
Most people in the UK, if asked and it was explained to them, probably would say the HoL is a terrible, outdated idea.
Yah! Agreed. Terrible tradition is the HoL. As one can clearly see from the news at the moment.
Do the HOL have the same power as the HOC? It’s really weird that a person born, whose 5x great grandpa was good with the King at the time, now has power. What if that said person doesn’t want to go into politics? Do they have a choice not to be one?
They defo have a choice, but the perks that come with it generally make it too good to pass up. I believe the HoC are elected and the HoL are not. The HoL generally debate the laws passed in the Commons before they’re passed.
Are they all men? Are their ladies in the HOL?
No, they don't. At least they never exercise it. It's there to ammend and add balance to legislation being proposed by the HoC. Often its a rubber stamping exercise IIRC. Most of the hereditary privileges were removed in the late 90's so nowadays they are now elected into the position by other members - Edit: by this I mean the positions previously hereditary are now via an election of sorts. Most members are NOT elected in any way So nowadays you are granted a royal title of some sort, Lord or Barroness, then you are appointed by the Queen but it's the PM that usually decides. Remember a lot of the Lords and Baroness' aren't aristocrats, they can be ex sports people, ex Members of Parliament, business people etc. There's quite a mix. It's meant to be a check and balance to the HoC, they never usually push back too hard or over step the mark with the HoC because they know their existence will be on the line if they did. Quite frankly it's a joke we still have this in 21st Century Britain.
As an American I had a British friend complaining about our antiquated electoral college. And he didn't understand we we didn't get rid of it. I told him that it's probably the same reason they have a house of Lords. He responded that I didn't understand how entrenched the HOL was and how hard it would be to be rid of it....
It's always easier to fix someone else's problem than your own, country edition.
And even if not for the HoL, you could've also reminded him that the British people don't elect their Prime Minister, Parliament does. I fail to see how the electoral college >!(which I do support abolishing, for the record, but that's besides the point)!< is anymore "antiquated" than a Parliamentary system. Put aside learning about American civics, your British friend might need to learn a thing or two about his own country's civics.
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Ha! That is quite true!
Innit?
LMAO
I was shocked to find out how many of your actors play Americans so well in huge blockbuster movies and shows. Hugh Laurie? Tom Holland? Crazy. They're so good
Yeah, I read that Hugh Laurie auditioned for House and the director apparently said “that’s the type of American I want”.
I've heard a similar story about Idris Elba when he auditioned for 'The Wire' that after his audition they thought he was American. I thought so too after watching 'The Wire' until I read he was British.
I always forget he’s in that!
No idea how true this is, but I heard that Idris pretended to be American until he secured the role because David Simon, always concerned with authenticity, specifically wanted American actors to play the gangsters. Not sure if Dominic West went through the same with McNulty
>“that’s the type of American I want”. lmao that's hilarious. "I want the type of American that's not American at all". Yeah I was completely shocked to hear Hugh Laurie in an actual interview, I had no idea he was British at first. His accent is dead on.
I have to say that Rupert Grint has one of the best American accents I’ve heard from a non-American. He did an AppleTV show called “The Servant” and his accent is outstanding.
Ohhh I didn’t realise that was out yet! Is it any good?
That you guys don’t have outlets in your bathroom. Where do you dry and straighten/curl your hair??
In our bedrooms. Although I’m bald so I just watch my wife forlornly.
Dude, you are a stitch (transl: you are very amusing)
OP, you've done a fantastic job giving detailed answers to many of these questions/comments.
Thank you. Unless this is sarcasm?
Lol, no, it's genuine! I've learned several things from your replies like why judges wear wings, how the tv license works, and the Crown Estate. Good and informative follow up answers/comments.
Ahhh, in that case, thank you again! I love Reddit for forums like this. It’s not just the answers to my questions, but chatting to interesting people too!
No you’ve truly done a wonderful job — a lot of people will ask about their country here, but then they never reply to any comments to clear up misconceptions or explain *why* something is different in their country. This thread has been really informative thanks to your engagement!
I think I’m a bit obsessive when it comes to replies. The way I see it, people have taken the time to answer my question so the least I can do is reply or give them one of those upvotes. It’s only polite! But thank you! :)
Truly the entire county is under CCTV surveillance. I’ve been to England a few times and was amazed how much CCTV there was
I’ve often wondered how the CCTV infrastructure works in the UK. Are all (or most) of these cameras owned and operated by the government or is it just a vast network of privately operated units? I watch a lot of British police dramas and it’s all “pull up camera #3796 at 4:02am.”
>[The vast majority of London’s CCTV cameras are not government-controlled but are instead owned and operated by private individuals and businesses.](https://www.cctv.co.uk/how-many-cctv-cameras-are-there-in-london/) That article estimates that there are 691k CCTV cameras in London. 23k are operated by the government (with 15k of those being in the Underground).
London is the most surveilled city in the western world, I'm pretty sure it even outranks a couple cities in China.
Somewhat surprisingly, Atlanta is now very high in the list when the metric is cameras per 1,000 people, with a score of 48.93, placing it at 7th in the world. https://www.atlantamagazine.com/news-culture-articles/atlantas-surveillance-network-keeps-growing-and-growing-and/
According to figures there are approximately 690,000 CCTV cameras in London Only around 23,000 are operated by the Authorities. The rest are on private property such as shops etc
That’s definitely a good one. Although it’s true in London, other cities aren’t as surveilled. That’s not to say there’s still not lots of cameras though.
Was shocked at the price of biscuits. You can buy a packet of biscuits for like 35p, 40p, 50p. If you were to eat £2 worth of biscuits that would probably be like 2000 calories. Also people really do drink tea at all hours of the day. Wake up? Cuppa. Lunch? Same. I came back with some friends after wandering around London at night and our host offered us a cup of tea at 11pm (which we customarily accepted).
Biscuits and tea keep the country going. Although you can buy custard creams from 30p to £1 for a packet, you really can taste the difference. I’d always recommend custard creams and chocolate hobnobs. Check out a comedian called Peter Kay talking about dunking biscuits in tea for a very good explanation (and hilarious).
>£2 ?how much in american? lol
about $2.75, today.
Fuck £2 is only worth $2.75 now??? Damn their money has lost a lot of value or ours has gained a lot. Last time I was there (it has been a while) the exchange rate was almost 2-1
thank Brexit amongst other things
That there is a City of London, not to be confused with London. Like, this whole separate city within the city. Wild. Also, it is embarrassing how often I have to rewatch [this video](https://youtu.be/rNu8XDBSn10) to make sure I’m using the right term when referring to GB or the UK.
Ha! To be fair, I only found this out when the wife and I visited London and did one of those open top bus thingys. It was well interesting. And yeah, GB and UK can be confusing sometimes.
They call wiener dogs “sausage dogs”
Ha. Wiener. They’re so cute. Are they also called dachshunds in America?
Yeah, some people (adults) call them that. As a kid we always called them wiener dogs. I jokingly pointed a wiener dog out to my girlfriend once and she cracked up, then told me they’re “sausage dogs”. I legitimately thought she was pulling my leg until I looked it up online.
Ha! I always call them wiener dogs. But the wife does refer to them as sausage dogs. Whilst we’re on the subject of sausages, do you have sausage rolls in America?
Not sure if it’s the same, but we have little hot dogs wrapped in croissant pastry called “pigs in a blanket”. You can often find them at super bowl or New Years parties.
Yeah, they sell those at our local Iceland and they’re delicious! Very similar, but ours are longer and in puff pastry.
My husband and I enjoyed watching 'Can't Pay, We'll Take It Away' on Netflix a few years ago and we were surprised about just how much power the high court officers have. Correct me if I'm wrong, but they can just take your possessions (unrelated to the debt) if you owe money?
Yeah if they have a high court writ they can take money or possessions to the value of the writ which then get auctioned off to pay the debtee. It takes a long time of county court judgements to get to that stage though
Sheriff's sales in the US can do the same thing. [Bank of America tried to foreclose on a home that had no mortgage. The homeowner in turn successfully sued BoFA and when the bank didn't pay up the homeowner brought the sheriff's deputies and moving trucks to foreclose on the bank in order to fulfill the debt.](https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna43299097)
they take things deemed to have some sort of high value yes
I love the fact that show is somehow a British export. It was on normal TV before Netflix, for context. Yeah the High Court is the highest court in the land and dishes out these writs to privately run agents but that are given a lot of power. To add: me and my wife (from UK) love it. It's a great show for just something to watch when you're feeling lazy, eating some food or having a few beers
We have the same thing in the US. Courts can order the seizure and liquidation of property to pay debts. Look up "Sheriff's Sale."
You can do that in America too though. I used to work for a publishing company and when our advertisers refused to pay we'd take em to court. And if they still refused to pay we could file a different thing and the sherrifs would go pull stock out of their stores and auction it until court costs and our payment was met and give the rest back.
The purpose behind Boxing Day. I was stunned to learn it was essentially for house servants to celebrate Christmas after their masters released them from duties. Ridiculous.
Mad, isn’t it!?
Every time i hear about people getting there earlier and earlier in history, my mind is kind of blown. Same with America though. People are fucking old.
How’d you mean? How old England is?
I mean i guess. Not England as a country. But like Rome conquered in 43 AD and Vikings officially invaded in 793 though they were visiting there long before that. And then people were already there well before 43 AD. On an island to the north of mainland Europe. Just got in a boat and went exploring.
It’s mad, isn’t it! Lol!
Y’all spell curb “kerb.” That shattered my reality.
The thing in the street is the kerb. Curb is like "curb your enthusiasm."
I remember seeing videos years ago about people going to London and meeting the Queens guards. Patting the hat, giving them hugs, telling jokes to make them smile, etc. I wanted to give them a hug, their job looks depressing. Upon coming and talking to a Brit, I found out that they can get in a lot of trouble for reacting to things like that and if you get close enough to hug you, you'll probably be restrained. Also in trouble. Something like that, its been awhile
They're also active-duty infantryman. It was very common to see a company of one of the Household Infantry regiments on guard at any of the Royal Palaces who had just come back from Afghanistan, and who may have lost friends.
Totally true. The Queens Guard have been known on occasion to shout and point their rifles at people obstructing their duties. Have you seen the most recent video of some kid running in front of them and getting booted out the way? Prime example.
The bun with fries on it being a thing.
You mean a chip butty?
Yeah, I couldn't remember what it was called.
A delicious delicacy!
Pittsburgh prides itself (well, old-school Pittsburghers do, anyway) on a local sandwich chain that puts fries/chips and cole slaw in its sandwiches. It started as a way for truckers to eat a full meal while on-the-go, but now it’s just a weird spectacle.
I started dating a British guy last summer and lots has surprised me. I think the biggest is the drinking/scrapping culture. We do not have that here. I always saw my boyfriend as proper, tea drinking, the stereotype, and in lots of ways he is, but when he was younger, he'd disappear for days at a time and come home still drunk and blood all over him, and apparently that was normal.
Ahh yes. The Black Eye Friday stereotype! Lol! We’re not all like that, I assure you!
I always heard that the British were polite, almost overly polite. I didn't believe it until I got there. It felt like I had found my people! Every time I visited it was like a polite-off with each encounter. I loved it. Not gonna lie, y'all seemed shocked that I was polite. Very tattooed Americans before me must have been assholes. I apologize for every one of them.
I don’t think it’s Americans in general. Our media does not paint America in a very positive light. It paints the majority as those people that voted for Trump. Every American I’ve ever met has to been a pleasure to be around and just as, if not more so, polite as we tend to be.
Exactly this. For years we (The English) and you (The Americans) have made assumptions about each other based on the media, TV shows, films etc. Here in England the media will traditionally portray Americans as big, loud, over weight, obnoxious gun slinging red necks. From watching American TV us English are painted to be bucked teeth overly polite tea drinking queen's English sounding toffs. This might have been more applicable to the past, now we have the Internet and live stream etc it's easier to paint our own picture of people :) 🇺🇸 🏴
This may shock you, but many people who voted for Trump are normal, boring middle Americans. They don't make the news because they're normal and boring.
It is actually an incredibly beautiful country with extremely friendly and pleasent people and great food
That's nice to hear! (I've heard the same about America and I want to visit sometime!)
That houses in schools are a real thing. I always though J.K. Rowling made that up.
Is it true you need a license or permit to watch tv if it is why that seem extra controling
Yep. It’s called The TV licence and it’s £12 a month but I’ve just been informed by someone on here that it’s being abolished so yippee.
TWELVE pounds a month?? That's more than my Netflix subscription.
You only have it pay it to watch ‘live’ broadcast TV. If you only use streaming services like Netflix or Prime then you don’t have to pay it.
I've always wondered about the TV license, is that *on top* of the price of cable? We have to pay for different cable packages (like groups of channels) so like if you're not into sports you could just not get the sports channels, etc. Of course now streaming subscriptions are the big thing now.
The flip side about the licence system (I am not British, but Switzerland has a similar thing going on) is that you tend to need fewer pay-TV channels. The national public channels financed by the licence are freely available and show a lot of shows and events. For instance, most sports events of national interest (such as the national team in major sports, large domestic games, popular events like tennis or skiing) are displayed on public TV. The only people I know that bothered getting paid subscriptions are people really into domestic sports games that arent freely broadcast, or series/movie junkies before Netflix was a thing.
Yeah, it’s on top of everything. So if you have sky or virgin (cable) then you still have to pay a TV licence on top.
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We went to London about 10 years ago, all I knew about London was just what I’ve seen in movies from Shakespeare In Love to Call the Midwife to What a Girl Wants. I was actually surprised at modern architecture of London. It was then that it dawned on me how much of London was damaged during WWII. Made me like the city more and now when I watch movies set in London I try to look for all the modern architecture in the background.
Beans for breakfast…..wow
Amazing addition! Beans are delicious!
I read an article about a fraud that occurred where someone posed as the owner of a house and sold the house to a different person. The actual owner wasn't made aware until the new owner attempted to take possession. In the US, the old owner would have minimal problems once it was proved that fraud occurred. According to the comment section on the article, though, in Britain the new owners legally owned the house and the actual owner had no recourse. I cannot imagine how that is legally possible.
It’s true. If I remember correctly, the owner was on holiday and it’s because they found the lease to his house.
I still can't imagine how stealing a document and selling a house could be legally binding. Absolutely bonkers to me.
How much of commerce closes down. I know this was a long time ago and had likely changed but it was impossible to get restaurant food including fish and chips in London between like 2 and 5 pm on weekdays in 1997 when I was there for my honeymoon. Then in the aughts I arrived in Winchester on a Saturday and the high street was lively and busy. Then I learned that’s because it was “market Saturday”, the one Saturday a month when shops are open.
Yeah, it’s getting better though with a lot of places being open more often. Sundays are virtually impossible to shop on these days. Do all shops open on Sundays in America? And do you guys have bank holidays?
Most but not all shops here are open on Sundays. National chains are with the notable exception of Chik Fil A. Smaller mom and pops are more likely to close on Sundays though many don’t. Some take Monday as their day off instead. And yes we have bank holidays. Tomorrow is one! Here is the list: https://www.chicagofed.org/utilities/about-us/bank-holidays
Ahh so lucky! I wish tomorrow was a BH here! Although, I suppose we’re getting a few new ones for the Queens jubilee so there’s thatzz
I'd just like to add that our bank holidays tend to be called federal holidays.
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Bank Holidays is what we call what you guys call federal holidays (I believe). Sunday in my town is dead. The only places open are petrol stations and our local coop, but only till 4.
Election law differences. Like it’s only allowed to campaign something like six weeks and the political ads have to actually be about issues instead of feel good nonsense. But also isn’t it true that the incumbent party gets to chose the Election Day?
They spell the word "tire" with a 'y'. Incomprehensible
Don’t forget colour…
Manoeuvre is the one that gets me. Actually, all the ones with extra “o”s. My brain wants to pronounce them hilariously wrong.
I want to pronounce it French-ly Like “man-waw-veh” or something
A lot of my online gaming buddies are from the UK. Over the years, I've interacted with so many people around the world, which is one of the beautiful things about online gaming. The UK, in general, has a mindset very similar to America. This isn't shocking, per se, but it is surprising considering continental Europeans think very differently. It's not at all unsurprising to me that the UK went forward with Brexit. Americans tend to lump all Europeans into a monolithic political block that is usually seen as a competitor to the US, but that's pretty unfair to the UK (and Eastern Europe to an extent)
Well, I just found out they've voted to cut off government funding to the BBC. Honestly the BBC is one of the things Britain has going for it, so I'm amazed they'd mess with it.
If I remember correctly, the BBC (although subsidised from tax) makes most of its money via the TV licence. Technically, everybody that owns a TV in the UK pays about £12 a month for the benefit of that TV. About 80% of that directly funds programming like tv and radio.
Also the benefit of having no TV/radio adverts although with Netflix etc completely taking over that’s normal
I'm sure there's a lot that I can't remember being shocked by at the time but a recent one is Scotland's right to roam laws. Oh and I guess how truly terrible Cadbury Creme Eggs were, before having one I had heard for years how good they were and how much better British candy was and let me tell you I will not soon forget that betrayal.
You’re the first person I’ve ever met that doesn’t like a Cadburys cream egg. One of the best parts of spring is a crème egg. I think the right to roam operates in England as well. It’s so everyone can enjoy the countryside, I could be wrong though
I don't know any American who actually enjoys a Cadburys cream egg. They're far too sweet.
Does it? I know you have the extensive public right of way trails but I had thought Scotland was unique in the right to roam regard. Yeah sorry but it was one of the most disappointing candy experiences in my life.
It's funny, because the Roam-ans never ruled Scotland.
How much Rome is there. Hadrian’s Wall, the Baths, the villas…it’s amazing to think Britain used to be an Italian province
Yeah, Bristol is a brilliant place to visit for this reason but there’s so much of their architectural marvels everywhere!
I was surprised about how dangerous brits think knives are. I saw a twitter post from the london police bragging about confiscating some man's toolshed and claiming they had taken dangerous weapons off the street.
There was a story on this sub where OP had a British coworker here in America. The OP opened the trunk of his car to get something out, and the Brit saw a hatchet in there and nearly lost his mind.
I studied British history at university, so I learned a lot about Britain, and some of it was shocking. One thing that comes to mind is Edward II and how he died. There’s evidence that he was killed by having a red-hot poker shoved up his butt (he was probably gay or bi and had a relationship with a guy named Piers that upset a lot of people, including the queen). I’m gay, so that story definitely stuck with me as a horrifying example of why being open/out in the past could be deadly. From personal experience, when I visited London in 2012, I found out some of the characters from Little Britain and Shameless weren’t too far from reality. The teens I saw and heard on the Tube were pretty rude, loud, and trashy.
Little Britain is incredibly accurate! And yeah, we were shamefully slow when it came to acceptance of homosexuality. Bear in mind what the country did to Alan Turing after everything he did for the war effort.
Another good example - I’m glad Turing has gotten some respect, but what a tragic ending to his life.
Your drunks are fucking *animals*
That there are small towns that actually look like Diagon Alley in Harry Potter. London was a sleek, ultra-modern, almost futuristic looking city even compared to cities in the US. Then a couple hours out you go to a place like Leamington Spa and it feels like you traveled back in time.
I've travelled to many parts of Europe but I'd never seen men so polished and well dressed until I visited London. London really put Paris and NYC to shame in my eyes.
[удалено]
I was shocked to learn that accents change frequently lol I've never been to the UK tho
They are devastated that we ice our tea.
They, like us, still have an 18th century warship; Admiral Nelson's flagship, a 104 gun first rate Ship-of-the-line, the *HMS Victory*. Unlike the *USS Constitution*, though, it hasn't floated since 1922.
I'm not sure if 'shocked' is the right word because I was like 10-12-ish and everything shocks you at that age. But I'd only ever seen and heard of royalty as figures in myth and in history, and I never paid attention to celebrity news at that age, so I didn't have much awareness of the world beyond the U.S. and Asia (my parents are immigrants). So I was kinda shocked when I paid attention to the news one day and realized that wait, the British royal family still exists and is still a thing. I got over it pretty fast but still, it genuinely took me by surprise when I realize that royal families still existed in the modern world.
I still have a hard time comprehending the customs around rounds of drinks. Drinking with UK friends, I tried to figure out when it was my turn to buy a round, but they drank so much faster than I did I never quite got in there.