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British sailors aboard the amphibious assault ship HMS Ocean lip-sync to Mariah Carey’s Christmas recording while on their way home from what was originally supposed to be a seven-week deployment -but then they were diverted to Libya, and seven weeks turned into seven months. After a 225-day mission (176 at sea), they are stoked to get back to the UK by this Friday, in time for the holidays! Link
Have you ever wondered if George Washington, Ben Franklin, John Hancock and the rest of the Founding Fathers spoke with a British accent? It would make sense, after all, they were originally members of the English colonies.
As it turns out though, Americans these days speak with an accent closer to the British of that time than modern English people do. While dialects vary throughout both countries, the accents in England have changed a lot more than they have in America. Read more about it at the link.
The BBC News Magazine recently posted an article about “Americanisms” creeping into the English language (meaning British English in this case). That article brought many responses, as British readers shared their pet peeves about the language as spoken by Americans. Some are just examples of bad grammar.
2. The next time someone tells you something is the “least worst option”, tell them that their most best option is learning grammar. Mike Ayres, Bodmin, Cornwall
40.I am increasingly hearing the phrase “that’ll learn you” – when the English (and more correct) version was always “that’ll teach you”. What a ridiculous phrase! Tabitha, London
41. I really hate the phrase: “Where’s it at?” This is not more efficient or informative than “where is it?” It just sounds grotesque and is immensely irritating. Adam, London
While others are purely cultural differences.
14. I caught myself saying “shopping cart” instead of shopping trolley today and was thoroughly disgusted with myself. I’ve never lived nor been to the US either. Graham Nicholson, Glasgow
18. Take-out rather than takeaway! Simon Ball, Worcester
29. I’m a Brit living in New York. The one that always gets me is the American need to use the word bi-weekly when fortnightly would suffice just fine. Ami Grewal, New York
36. Surely the most irritating is: “You do the Math.” Math? It’s MATHS. Michael Zealey, London
And a couple are just inexplicable.
20. “A half hour” instead of “half an hour”. EJB, Devon
44. My brother now uses the term “season” for a TV series. Hideous. D Henderson, Edinburgh
Do all these complaints make perfect sense on the eastern side of the pond? Read the rest at the followup article. Link -via J-Walk Blog
(Image credit: Flickr user Chris Turner)
You knew there were some provocative place names in the United Kingdom. Now we have a definitive (and long) list of funny place names in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland all in one place. Here is a small sample:
Titley Close, London
Swallow Passage, London
Bachelors Bump, Essex, UK
Crapstone, Devon
Fanny Hands Lane, Lincolnshire
Golden Balls, Oxfordshire, UK
Hornyold Road, Malvern Wells, UK
Lower Swell, Gloucestershire
North Piddle, Worcestershire
Scratchy Bottom, Dorset, UK
Wetwang, East Yorkshire
Boysack, Angus, Scotland
East Breast, Inverclyde
Bullyhole Bottom, Monmouthshire, Wales
Go pick out your favorites at Anglotopia. Link -Thanks, Jonathan!
(Image credit: Flickr user Mark Robinson)
Which is better, a fresh apricot or a dried apricot? The way they argue, nothing will be settled. This is just one example of a series of talking food ads to promote the Supercooks program from the British Food Standards Agency. See sausages, potatoes, nuts, and more discuss their virtues at Eat Me Daily. Link -via Everlasting Blort
