# Britishers: is this a deadly insult? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 2, 2026, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542 "2026-10-02T17:08:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/1 "2026-10-02T17:08:13Z")
I was reading Trip Advisor reviews of a pub in Penzance, Cornwall, when I came upon this tale of woe from a customer. > [@](#): > > Guy with specs said “There We Are Then” when you pay. Because of that, we won’t be spending any more money in here for the rest of our week. I would rather drive miles than to give my cash to someone that insults you. Is there something nasty about the phrase “There We Are Then” that I’m missing? I can see being offended if it was said in a shrill, Monty Pythonesque voice while making a shooing motion, but otherwise I’m baffled. \*the pub in question has mostly excellent reviews, with a few vigorous dissenters. The place reportedly 86’d a local “celebrity” who referred to fellow townspeople as “inbreds”. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/2 "2026-10-02T17:12:50Z")
Not that I’m aware of. I think it’s just the lack of ‘Thank you’ they’re objecting to. A guy I used to know (manager of my old allotment site) basically started a hate campaign against a local pub because the young waitress asked him _and his wife_ ‘What can I get you guys?’ And how _dare_ anyone imply his _wife_ was a _guy_. Some people are just a bit weird. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/3 "2026-10-02T17:13:17Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > “There We Are Then” It’s an acronym. > **[Urban Dictionary: There we are then](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=There+we+are+then)** > > There we are then: A way of calling someone a t\*\*t without them realising. The insult is hidden as the acronym. (I didn’t know this; I just searched on the phrase in quotes.) ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/4 "2026-10-02T17:13:26Z")
Even in the US, the phrase is rather dismissive; certainly no substitute for “Thank you. come again.” ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/5 "2026-10-02T17:15:43Z")
As Spock would say: Fascinating. I may have to bookmark that one for local use. ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/6 "2026-10-02T17:20:44Z")
That’s just dead brill. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/7 "2026-10-02T17:27:05Z")
To which the correct response is “See you next Tuesday.” ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/8 "2026-10-02T17:30:03Z")
OK now I’m panicking wondering if I ever accidentally said it… Not the ‘See you next Tuesday’ that one I know… ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/9 "2026-10-02T17:50:45Z")
At least he didn’t say “I seem to be having tremendous difficulty with my lifestyle”. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/10 "2026-10-02T17:59:59Z")
Funny, unintended connotations kill your overt understanding. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/11 "2026-10-02T18:35:25Z")
The other server sends ernest regrets. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/12 "2026-10-02T18:48:39Z")
Who is ernest? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/13 "2026-10-02T18:53:06Z")
You saw it and you waited until it was too late to edit, didn’t you? ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/14 "2026-10-02T18:54:31Z")
It’s either Ernest’s regrets or earnest regrets. Take your pick; they both work. 😉 Going back to There We Are Then … Is that a common phrase established in its own right before somebody noticed it acronymed into T\*\*T? IOW would some out of touch UK geezer maybe say that as a totally normal summing up / taking leave statement not realizing the kids are using it differently nowadays? Or was it coined by those kids nowadays specifically as a code phrase? ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/15 "2026-10-02T18:54:57Z")
> [@ricepad](#): > > Who is ernest I’d say it’s something to take up with Oscar Wilde, but … then … there’s that whole “dropped vowel” thing to deal with… ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/16 "2026-10-02T19:07:33Z")
Yes, but no. It was already too late to edit when I saw it. Besides, I don’t know how long the edit window is. Five minutes? 10? No idea. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/17 "2026-10-02T19:09:52Z")
Messin’ with ya… 😄 ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/18 "2026-10-02T19:15:32Z")
See you next Tuesday! 🤣 ETA: I didn’t get this reference for YEARS. for the longest time, I thought it was a mistaken reference to John Landis. ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/19 "2026-10-02T19:15:54Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > would some out of touch UK geezer maybe say that as a totally normal summing up / taking leave statement not realizing the kids are using it differently nowadays? No. Maybe There You Go Then, but more likely just There You Go. And then only when they’re giving something (eg change). ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542/20 "2026-10-02T19:19:50Z")
Definitely my favorite word in the English language. 😁 Shame it’s frowned upon these here boards. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/britishers-is-this-a-deadly-insult/1033542.md?page=2)