Question for those who live in england?

Question

I've been Y!answer browsing and noticed a few comments from people in england, so I have a few questions.

One person said they were english first then British - What is the difference? And how do you choose which to be?

Another question, someone made it sound like all english/british disliked the monarchy. Is this true? why or why not?

and ... what is it like to live in England? I was in London for two weeks and decided I want to live there, but NO way could I afford that again * I stayed at knightsbridge Park Mansions*

I want to know about England, everything basically. So anything you want to say about it be my guest.

Answer 1

Okay. First of all, Britain is a mini continent containing four countries (if you include Northern Ireland, which you can when talking about the United Kingdom but Great Britain is really the mainland) (for the case of argument, we'll include N.I.).

The four countries are England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Inhabitants from the other three REALLY dislike being called English, they count it as a grave insult and revenge shall be visited upon your household for a thousand generations. You don't choose which nationality you are, you're born it. I was born 70 miles from the Scottish border (southerners often mistake me for a Scot - even though I'm quite an eloquent Mackem) (A Mackem is a person from Sunderland, a Geordie is from Newcastle and if you want to know the difference, revisit the part where I warn against calling a Scot 'English'.) but I am still very English.

Scotland is the beautiful, rugged country at the top and Wales is the gorgeous, green, rolling country to the west.

As a child I used to think of the map of Britain as an animal. Scotland was the head, England was the body and Wales was the stomach.

As for the Monarchy. My Dad was an out and out Royalist, even I was sometimes embarrased by the strength of his loyality. He carried a picture of Her Majesty in a wallet, he's stand at the National Anthem and he was as proud as he could be when I was invited to meet the Queen in person at Buckingham Palace.

I, too am a Royalist and although the rest of the Royal family have been outed as normal human beings with the same faults as the rest of us. I can honestly say that I don't think the Queen has put a foot wrong in over fifty years.

Not everyone feels like that and at work I am in the extreme minority, I usually keep quiet unless invited to give my opinion and then they find out just what I do think about idiotic republican ideas. However, it is good to live in a country where you can insult the head of state in public and not worry or look over your shoulder and I will stand up for people to have that right until my dying day.

That's what it means to be British, to be able to say what you think (it's changed in recent years unfortunately) and know that it is your right to do so.

I can't tell you what it's like to live in England, I have nothing to compare it with, I've always lived here and like the vast majority, I take it for granted.

I take it for granted that if I fall ill, there will be a doctor I can make an appointment with or a hospital I can go to and I won't have to pay for the treatment I get. I will have to pay for any prescription I get because I work but if I was unemployed, a child, a mother of a school-age child or a pensioner, I wouldn't have to.

I take it for granted that on the whole, the police are there to protect me and aren't a force to be afraid of.

I take many hundreds of years of glorious history for granted. Castles are two-a-penny. When I was born, we lived over the road to Sunderland's castle, I've never been at least, I can't remember going. I've walked around maybe two or three castles my entire life and the country is littered with them.

Knightsbridge is a very wealthy and exclusive area of London, most of us couldn't afford to live there. I live in a very small council flat but I like it and its enough for me.

You say that you would like to know everything about England but there is so much about my country that I wouldn't know where to start.

As for the other three countries, we may be the administrative heart of the UK but the Scots are the inventive ones. They have a knack with gadgets, Alexander Graham Bell ... John Logie Baird just to name two.

The Welsh are the grafters. They work hard and they sing hard. Welsh choirs have perfected pure sound, you can lose yourself in it.

The Irish are the creative ones. Actors, singers, writers etc just pour out of that little island.

As a whole, the British countryside is breath taking but I must admit that the only time I have experienced that, I was across the border in Wales, going towards the Brecon Beacons and it really is like going to a foreign country going to Wales because they are very proud of their language and everything is written twice. Once in English and once in Welsh.

I'm pretty sure I'm close to using up my allotted space but thank you for allowing me to wax lyrical about Great Britain.

Answer 2

Okay, I view myself as British, even though I was born in England, I live in England and have traveled round it. British just means the area of the British Isles (Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and England (and the Isle of Man)) English means from England

I personaly dislike the monachy, it is to me a waste of money, but each to thier own and all different people have different opinions. as a whole I suppose 'we' like the monachy,it is a deifining aspect of our country.

It is a little expensive living in the UK; but if people don't have much money there is a good social system, which helps out; as a whole, from my impression its a pretty fair and wealthy country. wages in the UK are in line with the prices (ie higher). if you stayed in Nightsbridge then you would exect higher prices (certain areas of the Uk are very expensive) go up north, and prices fall.

Any more questions or queries about this country, I'd be happy to answer them, just email me:

[e-mail]

jack

Answer 3

Yep, that's me, born in England so I am English as opposed to being born in Scotland and being Scottish. We are all British as well because England, Wales and Scotland make up Great Britain. It's like someone born in Texas being a Texan and also American.

There are many people who do not approve of the Monarchy, but they truly are in a minority as the majority of people do actually want the Monarchy. A lot of people say they shouldn't be here because their ancestors were German...but in my opinion that is rubbish because all our ancestors came from somewhere else, if your parents and yourself were born in England then you are English. People also say that they cost the tax payer millions a year and that they are lazy scroungers...not so... each tax payer in this country pays around 65p each year for the upkeep of the Royal Family...Queen Elizabeth also insisted that they pay tax in keeping with everyone else. It costs far more to accomodate all the asylum seekers and the monstrous EU than it does the Royal Family...they also bring in countless millions from tourism each year...look here to see a typical day for the Queen...who will be 81 this year!
http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page6.asp

What's it like living in England...well...right now it's damned expensive as you have already found out...London is allegedly the most expensive city in the world, so I'm glad I don't live there, though I do like to visit....and as for Knightsbridge...lol, that is SUPER expensive!

We have a government that is determined to tax us into our graves and is penalising people who try to improve their living standards, but giving handouts to all and sundry who have not paid a penny into our system. The National Health Service is a disgrace and let's not get started on what the government have done to dentistry in this country! On the basis of lies we were also taken into a war that the majority of us didn't approve of...but, thankfully, the Government had the sense to keep us out of the Euro so we still use the Pound Sterling here (£) often seen as GBP...

Having said all that...England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland (The UK) have absolutely wonderful scenery and even living in a large city, you are still only a short drive from some of it, and in essence, we are spoilt for choice. We are also countries that are steeped in history and tradition that goes back thousands of years...

If you want to know more just do a search for Great Britain, or England, Scotland, Wales, or the United Kingdom and you will find plenty of sites to choose from...here's one to get you started...
http://www.visitbritain.com/VB3-en-gb/default.aspx

Have Fun!

God Save the Queen!

Answer 4

I live in East Anglia (the bulge on the opposite of Britain side to wales). It's a flat, arable area, very green and great for cycling. The stony beaches are great, and Aldeburgh has what must be the best chippy in Britain. Loads of history, clay soil and damn expensive.

Free Schooling
Free NHS (health care)
Free Dentistry for minors
Unemployment benefits and support for parents, carers etc.
The roads are good
Public transport is good, especially for longer journeys

We like Britain, what's America like from your perspective?

Answer 5

Elflaeda - what an excellent answer. I'm English/British/European (live in the South East) and I agree with your sentiments although I'm not the royalist you are. But I have met the Queen too and think she's an amazing ambassador for the country.

Bravo! I'm really delighted to see such an eloquent answer that doesn't mock, rant or reveal narrow mindedness and parochialism (not to mention the appauling spelling and grammar you see so often on Answers).

I tend to view the English/British/European thing as something that varies depending upon whom I'm talking to... To a Scot I'm English, to someone from France I'm probably British but to an American I see myself as European. Really I think of myself as all of them.