I want to be British

My great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather on my father’s mother’s side came over to America from England in the late-1600s. His cousin was John Tillotson, Archbishop of Canterbury. My surname is a common one in England.

The first car I remember riding in was my parents’ Triumph Herald convertible. My mom got an MGB after that, and that one eventually became my first car. I had two other MGBs too, and I have one now undergoing restoration. The owner’s manual is where I picked up “boot” and “tyres” and “sparking plugs”. (Sometimes I still spell it “tyres”, but I haven’t said “sparking plugs” in years.)

One of my favourite films is Spitfire, starring Leslie Howard. How British can you get? Battle of Britain, Spitfires, God and Country and all that… And Monty Python. Brilliant! I’ve always loved Monty Python. Of course I went to typical American schools; but I’ve always liked the way English schools are portrayed. I feel I’ve missed out on a lot of History by not attending an English school. And History is one of my favourite subjects!

Maybe that’s it. History. We have 400 years of it here. England has thousands!

I was watching a documentary on the Titanic. The captain’s last words might have been, “Be British!” Can you imagine someone saying, “Be American!” Americans tend not to take the inevitable stoically. We tend to fight until the bitter end. (Although there was an American Naval pilot in WWII who bemoaned his problems on the radio. He was told, “Shut up and die like an Aviator!”)

I find English syntax to be more stimulating than American syntax. They just seem to turn a better phrase.

Beer.

I find English women quite attractive. Not that there’s anything wrong with American women; just that English women (and Canadian women, and French women and Australian women, and Italian women) are a little more… something.

A sense of decorum.

You know the last company I worked for is headquartered in Nottingham?

I’m reasonably young. Well, young at heart at any rate. I’m fairly intelligent. I have a wicked sense of humour. I’ve put "u"s in my words since I was a child. (More aesthetically pleasing that way.) I’m good at data analysis, and wouldn’t mind wearing a suit to work. I’m good looking. Well, I’m not bad looking. I mean, small children don’t hide behind their mothers’ skirts at my approach as I walk down the street. At least, not very often. I can fly a helicopter. Any English ladies interested? :smiley:

No? Well, anyway; I’d still like to live in England.

Well, move here, then!!!

Oh yeah, work permits and stuff…

Never mind - can you discuss Bush and Blair with just the right level of disdain?

I’ve lived in many various places in my lifetime. If I could pick a country (besides the U.S.) to live in, it’d be Germany. People do the same things we do…but everywhere else, they seem to do it with flair and style! (Not sure if that’s the right expression for it but I can’t think of a better one).

I guess I’m just sick of the same 'ol, same 'ol.

-K

i concur with you johnny. i’ve wanted to be british ever since i was old enough to stay up on saturday nights and watch monty python on public tv…or roller skate around the driveway humming the theme from masterpiece theatre…

oh…i just read that. that’s pathetic. now i’ll never be british…sigh.

BTW Johnny…I just reread your post.

I still have the 1961 Triumph Herald that I learned to drive with. My dad bought it in 1980 or so and had it restored. It’s the the car I drove for the first time! wow…

Since then it’d sat in my family’s yard for 10+ years. I just got it from him last summer and I’m trying to restore it. It’s a VERY hard car to find parts for.

-K

My grandparents were British (actually, all English, even). If you have a UK grandparent, you can claim ‘Right of Abode’: residency and work permit. There’s a lot of paperwork to jump through, but I may take them up on it.

I work for a British company (ultimately) and with British people. I don’t know why, but the British accents I’ve heard seem to be …easier to listen to, like there is greater variety in the voice, making it easier to distinguish words.

It’s far less simple. It’s only for Commonwealth citizens, for starters, and as far as I can find by google, one UK-born grandparent wouldn’t be enough. Here’s the Canadaian British High Commision info: britainincanada.org - britainincanada Resources and Information.

I’m happy to live my big comfortable American life in my big comfortable American apartment and drive my big comfortable American car… and wear Pringle twinsets.

This thread reminded me…

Oh, England! My Lionheart!
I’m in your garden, fading fast in your arms…

First of all, change your SDMB name to Johnny U.K..

I used to live in Berlin, but had to travel to London every April for a job I had in Switzerland (I know, it makes no sense, but that was where we planned the Swiss job).

I really like to visit London, and I have travelled a bit through England but I have to say I really wouldn’t want to live there.

No offense to the British Dopers, but I found that the average Brit had to pay a LOT for the simple things - beer, smokes, rent, utilities and gas. And I mean a lot more than here or in Germany. Most of the guys I knew in London were barely making a living, despite a fairly decent wage. One guy told me what he was paying in rent, and I said, “That’s not bad.” And then he told me that was per week!

I even knew a member of Parliament who had a home in the East End that had a gas meter where you had to put in coins in a little box, in his home, to pay for the gas to heat the home! That may have changed since then…quite a few years ago.

Then there is the not-so-stereotypical problem with the food. It is wretched. Sure, there are some good Indian restaurants and a few other places, but for the most part, the old adage, “if you like the food, you’ll love the weather” is correct.

Reading over this, I sound like I am bashing Britain, and I am not. Like I say, I love to visit. They have great theater, the people are witty and far more politically aware than the average US citizen, they are great folks to hang out with in a bar and you will have a great time when you visit.

But - living there? Well, like NYC - it is a terrible place to be poor, so unless you make a great wage, I would give it a short try before you rent that flat in Chelsea.

Hell, I haven’t even changed it to Johnny Birch Bay!

Well, you have to admit that the beer is better there. Thus, it’s worth more! :wink:

I never starved in London! I found the food quite tasty. (Okay, I’ll admit that Wimpy Burgers were wretched.)

Heh. You’re talking to the guy who moved from L.A. to the Pacific Northwest! "If you like the weather… :slight_smile:

GorillaMan, I forgot that it was (most) Commonwealthers only… but looking at the High Commission page, it appears that one UK grandparent may be sufficient:

Of course, I have four UK grandparents. Given prices in the UK, it looks like the monetary requirements would be the killer for me…

And Johnny L. A.? If you just keep moving north, you can end up in Victoria, which is about as British as you can get in your neck of the woods. And there’s jobs in the helicopter shuttle to Vancouver…

Hey, I’ll drink to that!

I was in Vancouver once and it reminded me of the best of Europe! Great outdoor cafes, beautiful city, nice people, great bars, lots of outdoor activities, and you would be ruled by the Queen, sort of.

Yeah…move further north and see what you think!

Don’t let DMark frighten you off!!! True, London is reputed to be the most expensive city in the world outside Japan and Switzerland. But the rest of the country is much cheaper to live in. Just about any other city will offer similar accomodation at half the price you’d pay in London.

And the food is steadily improving, honest…

Uh-huh. I go past the headquarters every time I go to town. Need me to have a ‘little chat’ with anyone?

Please tell Sir John hello for me. :smiley:

I applied for a position there a couple of months ago, for a position that was exactly like the one from which I was laid off in California. They couldn’t have found a better fit than me! They didn’t say it when they turned me down, but I think they found me “geographically undesireable”. :stuck_out_tongue:

Really? Cool. I’ve always wanted to move there!

Hey Johnny - my grandmother was born and raised in England. Wanna get hitched and move to England? :wink:

Get married to an amazingly attractive and intelligent woman and move to England?

Okay. :smiley:

[sub]Gosh, I sure hope the English can tolerate eccentric people. Otherwise I’m buggered! :eek: [/sub]

Not something you’ll have to worry about in this marriage. ::cough ::

:stuck_out_tongue:
Judging from my grandmother’s family (up to and including me), I don’t think you’ll have to worry about the eccentric part either. :wink: