Being British Act VI

[rita_skeeter]

Woah...I hadn't noticed how quickly that last thread was filling up!

Of course, I must inform you again that this is where to come to find out about all things cultural: customs, school, food, work, etc.

On all of the threads so far, I've posted a small paragraph about this next rule, but it seems that some people have been carefully averting their eyes of late... So may I remind you that we have quite a healthy number of users who hail from the UK and Ireland on these boards, and so far I've seen a lot of enthusiasm to help from many of them. Therefore, please could ONLY Brits answer things in here.

And finally, remember the time difference when posting questions - you may have a bit of a wait before someone replies to your post. ;)

[Vindictus Viridian]

Well, it didn't come up in 'search forum' requests. The "geroff" used by the garden gnomes and Ron occasionally -- is it something one might say to one's mother? Particularly in the 1970s? I've now seen it translated as "Get off" but also as "(bug)ger off." Neither seems definitive, but knowing whether you would say it to Mum would help narrow down the possibilities.

[Pepper Imp]

*squees at answeing the first question in the new thread*

Well, I suppose that it really depends on the situation and the character of the person who is saying the "geroff" to his/her mother. If the mother if really hugging the child, or grooming him/her, then it would be acceptaple and I say it to my mother quite often! :p

Really, though, I don't see many kids saying "bugger off" to their mother.

-- Cammie

[h_vic]

I completely agree with Cammie - it's something that I've only come across as a mumbled contraction of "get off" and it could definitely be used by a child to its mother, particularly if the mum was attempting to wipe a dirty mark off the child's face or do something else equally as embarrassing in public.

Whilst I'm here though, I do actually have a question, despite being English, because this is more of a Being Irish question and I wasn't sure if here would be the best place for it but I wasn't sure where else I could ask it. I'm writing a story that that involves two Irish characters and I was wondering if anyone could give me any guidance on writing their accents. I haven't resolved where exactly in Ireland they are from so I can be flexible there, but I want it to be rural - they're from a small village. One character is a farmer's son who's lived there all his life and would have quite a broad accent, whereas the other has been at Hogwarts for the past seven years so her accent would have lessened and i'd only want the particularly key aspects of it left with her.

If anyone has any guidance at all on how to write a convincing Irish accent in terms of both modifications to words or any idiomatic phrases etc, I'd be really grateful for some help, or even if you could point me in the direction of a particularly well written Irish accent that I could use as guidance.

~Hannah

[Ginny Weasley Potter]

I know that I seem to be asking rather a lot about cricket (I had, in the last thread); but I am a freaky fan of that game and I love it to pieces! In fact, I'm watching the India v/s Pakistan 20-20 now! (Nooooooo! I don't want India to lose!)

So, how is a typical household in England during a cricket match? Is it like mine "A sixer; A SIXER, YOU IDIOT!" or is it calmer than that? ;) England also won the ODI against India. Was there much excitement after that? What about the defeat from Australia today? Do people curse players? "Damn that (insert name)".

So, what is it like? I'd like to know... quite a part of a fic, you see. :D

Thank you!

[Magical Maeve]

Cricket is not as popular as football. However, it would not be unusual for the man of the house (or, rarer, the woman) to get very involved with a cricket match. I wouldn't say it was typical; more families would get involved with football, but it's not unlikely.

h_vic... I'm short on time right now, but I can help you with the Irish accent. You need to decide North or South and take it from there. If you have something written I'll look it over, if not, give me a day or two and I'll Pm you.

[CopLopARopA]

Yay! Irish questions! Eireann go brea! (will stop speaking native language and start speaking one she actually understands) If you have any questions at all about Irelan, I am willing to help! The Irish accent varies completely depending on where you are. You say they live in a small rural village, but it still really depends where. I suppose you don't want a dublin accent, which is were I am from, but I know people from evverywhich where, so I'll do what I can.

Cork accent - sinig song-ish. Peoples voices go up and down alot and they tend to add "like" or "boy" to the end of sentences.

It depends what educational status and what age and where they come from. It's actually really hard to tell what is different to an english accent when you are used to hearing it! If You have i-Tunes, search Mooney Goes Wild (Irish radio show about wildlife), and listen to the Irish accents there. I might edit later with more. If you need help with names, or phrases in Irish(Gaeilge) Just PM me, or post here or whatever else...

EDIT: Here (http://www.rte.ie/radio/mooneygoeswild/archive/) Is the link to the national Irish radio station's website's archive for Derek Mooney for September. Click on the Sep. 14 link (today) and listen out for Eanna Ni Lamhna (Irish name pronounced "Ayna Nee Lowna"). She has a perfect Rural Irish accent. You may want to skip past the news, but the irish accents are there too. I hope this helps!

EDIT2: here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sj87-Bd7fLs) is a Youtube link to Eanna Ni Lamhna talking, you don't have to listen to what they're saying, just listen to her accent. BTW, I don't lsten to this stuff much, mostly my parents. This also might give you some insight into Irish TV and Radio! WARNING This show is on after 9 O' clock. It contains mild swearing and some Irish words, that aren't swear words, you just probably won't be able to understand them.

EDIT3: Irish people often slur words together (not majorly, just very slightly, individual words aren't very distinguished). It is kind of hard write an Irish accent, the way Fleurs accent is written in the HP books, but you can add little Irishisms, such as saying "eejit" instead of idiot. This is because Irish people often speeek with a soft "d" os idiot got morphed into eejit

[Cedric'sGirl]

So, how is a typical household in England during a cricket match? Is it like mine "A sixer; A SIXER, YOU IDIOT!" or is it calmer than that? ;) England also won the ODI against India. Was there much excitement after that? What about the defeat from Australia today? Do people curse players? "Damn that (insert name)".

I think the stereotypical view of us Brits is that we're very reserved and calm when watching cricket, however there are exceptions (my family for one). I can only speak for my family here, but my dad is definitely as you described - he gets very excited about cricket and is always yelling at the television, often cursing players. There wasn't all that much excitement over the ODI and the only reason I even knew about it was because my dad is such a huge cricket fan; people get much more excited about football or rugby.

I guess what I'm saying is that it varies between families, so you could take it whichever way works best for your story.

[Nutz-chan]

Okay so I need plates/dishes etc. that brake when they are dropped. This is durring the late 70's in a middleclass flat in London. What do you think the plates/dishes would be made out of? I don't want china, that pretty expencive...but I can't think of anythign else that oule brake><

[SiriuslyMental]

Erm, china? Porcelain? I dunno. China plates to me are anything that's not plastic, wood, or tin.

[Magical Maeve]

If it's middle class I would say China was perfectly acceptable. It's not prohibitively expensive and depending on the occasion a middle class family or person would be highly likely to use china. If it's an ordinary occasion with no guests they might have a second set of crockery, as Siriuslymental suggests, made of porcelain.

[Ginny Weasley Potter]

I was really amazed when someone told me that Britons like to dress very simply. Is it true? Do you people prefer simplicity and comforts to trends? (I think that's cute! I like simple people too!)

[LuckyRatTail]

I don't know if that would be considered a trait of every Briton, to be honest. I'm glad you think it's nice, though! No, I'd have to say that, whereas some Britons might choose to dress casually all the time, others will dress just as over-the-top and outlandishly as those in other countries. I suppose what you might mean is that Britons aren't perhaps as fashion-conscious as a nation like the French, for example, where (apparently), especially in places like Paris, it's important to look good all the time.

In actual fact, the British are quite an eccentric nation; whenever someone who insists on wearing 19th century clothes all the time appears on tv, someone always says "Oh, the British do eccentric very well, don't they?" But then, the Americans can be rather eccentric as well.

I hope that's sort of helped ;o)

[kehribar]

I have a question about the British education system. Are there middle and high schools which you have to pass an exam or have a GPA higher than a standart to be accepted? Like, kids try very hard to get accepted to those schools? If yes, are they standart middle/high schools or for more intelligent, gifted, or specifically skilled children in different areas? (The point is to start those schools at age eleven.)

I hope the question makes sense. Thanks in advance.

[SiriuslyMental]

There are very few left anymore, but what you are talking about sounds to me like a grammar school. It depends on the time period you are writing this from, because it would be loads less common nowadays for someone to be going to a grammar school than even in the 80s. A grammar school is free, but you've got to pass the exams for it once you leave primary, and if you do well on the Eleven Plus you can go to the grammar school.

[Cedric'sGirl]

Ginny Weasley Potter - I think like anywhere else, the trends depend on the area and the people in question. I know where I live people are unfortunately very vain and looks-orientated, so they usually look as if they're part of a fashion show. On the other hand, in more rural areas it would probably be more common for people to dress more simply (although there are obviously exceptions in each case; I don't mean to generalise).

Kehribar - as SiriuslyMental said, the grammar schools that admitted students based on tests have pretty much died out now, however if this was important to your story, some private schools still insist on admissions tests, or some people without the funds to afford the ridiculous fees would possibly be able to take a test to gain a scholarship to one of these schools. They are normally just regular schools, just with better facilities and staff, however lately it has become more common for secondary schools to apply for specialist status in certain subjects, for example my school was a specialist media school, which basically means it gets a load of money from the government to buy equipment and hire better teachers in that area. So I guess if there was a child who was particularly gifted at art for example (seemed appropriate as you're taking the art class :) ), they would maybe try to get into a specialist art school. I think this is all a fairly recent thing though, so I wouldn't include any of this if it is any earlier than trio-era. I hope this answers your question, I think this is what you were getting at anyway.

[TyrannoLaurus]

Ginny Weasley Potter: I agree what everyone says, but I would just add that it's usually the younger ones who do dress up like a Christmas turkey (and can at times look as bad as a Christmas turkey) for day-to-day life. A lot of adults have the philiosophy of ' all you need is comfy pair of trousers from M and S or Debenhams' and as such they don't really bend towards whatever the latest fashion is. Then you'll always get the adults who don't want to grow up or are going through some mad midlife crisis, who dress like they're still in their teens with bleach blond hair, more makeup than a Beijing opera singer and stilletto's four inches high just to go to Tesco. And there's quite a lot of them; we don't usually blink an eye.

kehribar: Cedric'sGirl has more or less answered it for you :D For the majority of kids, you go to your local school or at least a school in your region. Catholic families tend to take their kids to Catholic schools (sometimes slightly better school, because they get funding from the diocese as well as the gov) and because of this any Anglican child who isn't in one of the feeder schools might have trouble getting into a local school. But they don't take their intelligence into account, so this is really just trivial information.

I know a girl who went to a middle school about the time I joined high (so we're talking 1999). We were both eleven, only she'd been in middle I think one or two years and would leave for high when she was thirteen) but it was the only one in the area and it closed down within a year or two. They're usually attached to public or private schools and not part of the norm, but they did exist in the late 90's.

[Ginny Weasley Potter]

Thank you so much! The younger generation is always conscious of looks and trends, but Christmas turkeys? :cool:

Now, something about education. I know that British system of education has two important exams placed between three years (leaving a year in between the two), but at what age are these conducted? Am I right in knowing that the first set of exams are called GCSEs? Here, I gave something called ICSE boards last year (at the age of 15) and am going to give my CBSE boards next year. I was just wondering if the age coincided. And just as a matter of interest, do you do Julius Caesar in English for GCSEs? Only, my question bank last year had questions from those exams.

[padfootsgirl1981]

Hi! Here in England we have GCSE examinations which are taken at the age of 16 and then there are A/S levels and A levels, A/S levels being half an A level qualification. But A/S and A levels are not compulsory examinations and are only taken by those who wish to further their education, but good grades at GCSE are required to do so. A/S levels are sat at the age of 17 and A levels at 18, it is these examinations that are needed to get into university.

I hope I helped.

[TyrannoLaurus]

Yea, I have Christmas on the brain at the moment. Don't ask why.

GCSE's are a very long slog of disorganised exams that every sixteen year old has to suffer. You do roughly ten different subjects and are given at least two exams and one piece of coursework (a bit of a poshed-up homework assignment: usually an essay, or a dreaded logic puzzle for maths and a very dreaded experiment/practical for Sci). Exams are usually in May and June.

It's pretty much mandatory to do one piece of Shakespeare for GCSE, either as a piece of coursework or as an exam question. Usually this is for English Literature - you also do English Language (unless really struggling to grapple the subject, in which case you only do the latter). The most popular plays are the four tragedies and Romeo and Julliet but it wouldn't be inplausible for a school to choose Julius Ceasar. You'd probably only study a key scene in depth whilst also knowing the full story so that they can refer to other parts of the text. A grade students will need to quote from a key scene with confidence and analyse it, whilst also being able to say how it relates to the play as a whole. Although, you can probably gain a B by only learning that one scene. It's only at A-level that we began to study a WHOLE Shakespeare play. This might sound silly, but with the amount of work you do for the other subjects at GCSE it's quite a relief.

/flashback to the GCSE days

[Heather25x]

I have a question about the British education system. Are there middle and high schools which you have to pass an exam or have a GPA higher than a standart to be accepted? Like, kids try very hard to get accepted to those schools? If yes, are they standart middle/high schools or for more intelligent, gifted, or specifically skilled children in different areas? (The point is to start those schools at age eleven.)

I hope the question makes sense. Thanks in advance.

Hi :) I know your question has been answered about twice already, but i thought i'd add my little bit, because of the way my school is.

You don't always have middle and high schools, there are different systems for different areas of the country. In some areas they have something called the Three Tier System where they have Lower School (ages 4-9), middle school (10-13/14) and Upper School (14-a maximum of 18). In other areas (i'm not sure about the ages because i have never been to one of these) they have the Two-Tier System where they combine Middle and Upper School and Middle and Lower. Confusing:o But some schools are known for being really good, and lots of parents want their children to go there. Most of the time you go to the school in your catchment area (the nearest school to you), but if your catchment school isn't as good as another school then you can apply to go there. You can't alwasy get in though. Every school must let in everyone in the catchment area, but if they have any room left they let in the first-chosen. If you're not one of the first chosen, you have to go to your catchment school.

With some Private schools (in case you didn't know, Private schools are just where you have to pay to go there) you have to take an exam to get in. If you don't get a certain mark on the exam then you don't get into the school. This is so that only people on a certain intelligence get in the schools.

So, to answer your question, for some schools you have to be at a certain standard, and for some schools it's just first-come first-serve. :)

[R_Ravenclaw]

Do the British ever use the word "fully".

As in, "I fully want to do [something]" or "I was fully thanking God" or something like that?

[Toasty]

Aye, some do.

At least, it's common enough in my region, but things like "proper" would work just as well.

As long as you aren't talking about toffs though. Can't imagine that without grinning. >_>

--

Ugh. GCSEs. Still, I passed all mine without doing any revision, so there are good memories there. xD

A2 is a pain at the moment though.

[Weasley24]

R_Ravenclaw- I'm not sure, at least no one I know says that. You might be better going with really.

[Ginny Weasley Potter]

GCSE's are a very long slog of disorganised exams that every sixteen year old has to suffer. You do roughly ten different subjects and are given at least two exams and one piece of coursework (a bit of a poshed-up homework assignment: usually an essay, or a dreaded logic puzzle for maths and a very dreaded experiment/practical for Sci). Exams are usually in May and June.

Hehe, you're right, it's a pain. We even have two prelimnary exams before the actual exam! And everyone around you is like, "BOARDS? Go home! Study! It's very important!" As for the twelfth boards, almost everyone gives them nowadays. Isn't a great deal. I had eleven papers in ICSE, combined into seven subjects for marking purposes; and managing everything was like... hell! What a nightmare! It always starts on March 1st here (Ron's b'day!). :D CBSE people keep criticising ICSE. My friend, who was in CBSE all her life, agrees that the english in our board is better, though :rolleyes: . We did the whole of Merchant of Venice as well as Julius Caesar. Another friend of mine, who is continuing ICSE, is doing Macbeth this year. I'm not too fond of that particular play, though.

And the marking system- is it grades or percentage? I got both here, but my college considered the percentage.

And the A/S levels- are they for special subjects only? Like, I'm giving my boards for Physics, Chem, Math, Bio and Engligh next year. Is it anything similar there?

Thanks a lot for that info!

[Toasty]

^^^ xD

Er, both I think, but to get into courses in a sixth form, you'll need to have 'C' and above, for example. So more on the grade itself in general. Depends on whether you are going to one of the better ones or not... I know there's an art college that needs right high marks to get in, so percentages are the extra level of division... I guess. Am I making sense?

AS levels? Well, we're not so different. Most students have to take four different subjects, and some take ones as traditional as yours, but you get things like law, media, psychology, travel and tourism etc. thrown in too.

[leahsm2]

Am I correct in assuming that a "Barrister" is the term for legal people who go into court, while an "Attorney" is used for civil matters, or are they both called "Barristers?":confused:

[Cedric'sGirl]

Am I correct in assuming that a "Barrister" is the term for legal people who go into court, while an "Attorney" is used for civil matters, or are they both called "Barristers?"

I think what you're thinking of as an attorney is what we would call a solicitor. But yes, a barrister will go into court whereas a solicitor is used for civil matters, although you could also use "lawyer" to describe either of these. I'm sure someone who knows more about the British legal system will be able to go into far greater detail for you though. :)

[garyf]

I think what you're thinking of as an attorney is what we would call a solicitor. But yes, a barrister will go into court whereas a solicitor is used for civil matters, although you could also use "lawyer" to describe either of these. I'm sure someone who knows more about the British legal system will be able to go into far greater detail for you though. :)

Not quite true.

Both solicitors and barristers can represent you, depending on the court. Your solicitor has a more general knowledge of the legal system, while your barrister has a more specialised knowledge. Recently, solicitors have started representing people more in the Court of Appeal and the High Court (a civil court), but they must pass a test to be able to do this and they become solicitor-advocates.

More law firms are starting to train and employ solicitor-advocates or even directly employ barristers in a move away from the traditional Barristers' "Chambers" in a bid to reduce cost and keep everything in house. Also having someone in house means they may get more time to look into a case before going into one of the higher courts, which can be good for the clients.

A solicitor will offer you legal advice and will represent you in court for minor cases that are tried in the lowest of the criminal and civil courts, however, in the higher courts you would be represented by a barrister, or a solicitor with rights of advocacy - although there are few of these. It's even possible for someone to be a solicitor and barrister at the same time, however, a barrister must be a member of one of the Inns of Court, which used to educate and regulate barristers.

There are four Inns of Court: The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn, The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, and The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple - all in central London, near the Royal Courts of Justice.

It is the Inns that actually "call" the student to the Bar at a ceremony similar to a graduation.

Normally a barrister will pick up a case a day or two before someone reaches court relying on material provided by a solicitor to be able to represent someone. It's rare that a barrister will get involved much earlier in legal proceedings, except in exceptional circumstances.

[R_Ravenclaw]

In America, the word is spelled "realize".

I always thought that in Britain, this word was spelled "realise", and my betas have always had mixed opinions on this. Which is the appropriate way: "realize" or "realise"?

I just really want to get this straight. Thanks! :D

[Schmerg_The_Impaler]

Okay, this is a really dumb question (all of mine on this thread have been!) but do Brits use the word 'spaz,' both as a verb and as a noun? It's like a contraction of 'spastic,' which, weirdly, is an adjective. Yep.

Where I live, it's incredibly common, but where I live, people use really, really dumb slang (like the 'beast' thing I mentioned earlier), so I want to know what the Brits say.

At least four characters say it across the three volumes of my future-gen trilogy, and there is one whole scene discussing whether or not Emma is a spaz.

Examples:

"I'm sorry I was such a spaz." (Used as noun.)

"I mean, Ted just spazzed out." (Used as verb. I've never heard it used as a verb without the 'out.')

If this word isn't used, what could I say instead?

[TyrannoLaurus]

Realise is British English and realize is American English. However, realize has become part of the mainstream English language so it doesn't matter too much. I use it.

Sorry, Impaler, we must have been posting at the same time. I use spaz as a verb sometimes - such as "Oh, I really need to stop spazing out about this". Calling someone a spaz is still viewed as very derogatory and using spaz as a verb isn't as common, but still very much used. Telling someone to stop spazzing out is just a fancy way of telling them to calm down, though; it doesn't have the same negative inference. It might have come from America, but in Britian modern day it's still very much used

[MrsRuebeusHagridDursley]

Um, I've got a somewhat awkward question. Don't read on if things tend to make you uncomfortable.




Here in a America we use a baseball metaphor to describe how, erm, far you've gone with your boyfriend/girlfriend. (i.e. First base, then second base, etc.) Do the British use the same one? If not, what do they use?

And does it differ with era? Would the Marauders say the same type of things the trio would? I want to know both.

:o

Sorry about the awkward post here.

~Morgan:)

[Heather25x]

MrsRubeusHagridDursley:

Well, not usually. It's not a very common thing to say over here. I think most people just say "How far did you go" and then people just answer with what they did :rolleyes:

It's known, like, first base, second base etc. But not very many people use it. If someone does decide to use those phrases then we know what they mean, but only people who are American, or who are very shy about that sort of thing, speak with bases.

The Marauders strike me as the type of people who would go like this, for example.

Sirius: How far did you go?
James: Just kissing.

Or whatever the situation is. As we don't play baseball over here (obviously, since it's an American sport and it's never been played here) we don't refer to baseball speak in conversation.

It does not differ with the era greatly. Adults would probably never sa it because they are adults, they would just say the proper "terms" lol. But teenagers who don't want to say exactly what they did in terms might say it with bases because teens and children are surrounded by the American culture. On TV etc.

Hope that helped:D

[AurorKeefy]

The base system isn't used over here, chiefly because we don't have baseball and the nearest equivalent (rounders), doesn't tend to be played all that often. Although the expression would probably be understood by modern teenagers, that's pretty much solely down to the American Pie films. Even with that in mind, the expression hasn't taken root, and even now people don't use it, and many wouldn't understand it.

Unfortunately, there is no easy substitute for bases. Considering how fond of euphemisms we seem to be culturally, it seems strange that we don't have something to use in this context. I'm afraid to say that the reality is that the teenage boys in my experience would have used rather more literal and less subtle descriptions of the acts. There was a word used to describe third-base in particular, but I'd rather not mention it here. Suffice to say, that when I used the phrase recently in the company of my (extremely sexually liberal and rude) female friends, it went down like a ton of bricks. Knowing how unpleasant they found it, I'm loathe to even attempt to post it here.

Not very helpful, I know, but better than the alternative.

[moonymaniac]

Getting back to the question concerning the barrister/solicitor thing, I think I understand in terms of the defense of individuals, but who actually brings charges against an accused and prosecutes a case? Would there be a Prosecuting Barrister?

edit to add another quick question: Do Brits typically sing Happy Birthday or have some other celebratory ritual to take its place? I feel like this has been asked before, but I can't find it and don't remember.

[Weasley24]

Yeah, we sing Happy Birthday. You'll usually find that people add three cheers to the end.

[garyf]

Getting back to the question concerning the barrister/solicitor thing, I think I understand in terms of the defense of individuals, but who actually brings charges against an accused and prosecutes a case? Would there be a Prosecuting Barrister?[/SIZE]

In criminal cases the prosecution will be the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) similar to what would be the DA's offices in the US. In civil cases would be Claimant v Defendant. Rather a few months ago VV asked for details on how a trial breaks down and I posted that here - that thread may have been archived but it may be worth searching for it, or asking her if she still has the information, as there was rather a lot and it might be useful for you.

[R_Ravenclaw]

Do the British ever use the term "wing it"? Like, "I don't have to study for the test, I'll just wing it."?

Thanks!

[AurorKeefy]

Yes, and Ron uses it to describe the proceedings at the Ministry in Deathly Hallows. The other expression that gets used - perhaps in a slightly different context, is Play it by ear, as in "We'll just have to play it by ear." While wing it tends to denote improvisation in some form of task, play it by ear is generally used for less crucial things. So if you weren't fully clued up for your French Exam, you'd have to try and wing it, but if you were going to meet up with your friends afterwards but didn't know with who and where, then you'd play it by ear. :)

[leahsm2]

I think what you're thinking of as an attorney is what we would call a solicitor. But yes, a barrister will go into court whereas a solicitor is used for civil matters, although you could also use "lawyer" to describe either of these. I'm sure someone who knows more about the British legal system will be able to go into far greater detail for you though. :)
Thanks. I thought there was a different term for it!:)

[Heather25x]

Back to the Wing It question, just thought i would add that it is used often. I use it, my friends use it, it's quite common. Ron uses the term in Deathly Hallows:)

[Schmerg_The_Impaler]

Do the Brits use the word 'smart' for an intelligent person? Someone once told me they didn't. Just checking, for a fic I'm beta-ing.

[padfootsgirl1981]

Yes us brits do use the word 'smart' :D.

50505050505050505

[emmaholloway]

We most certinately do. I'm sure JK herself uses it in reference to hermione.

[Schmerg_The_Impaler]

Thanks! I'm gonna have to hunt down my old beta... (Luckily, no one from this site.) She also told me Brits don't say 'guy,' which I discovered was totally wrong after watching an interview with Dan Radcliffe...

[harrypotterfangirl21]

Do Brits use the word 'funny' to describe a humourous situation? Or do they have something different that they say?

- Katie

[Magical Maeve]

Yes we use funny.

Just as a side note to smart; while we certainly use smart, we never use smarts, as in book smarts. As far as I am aware this is definately an Americanism.

[Vindictus Viridian]

In criminal cases the prosecution will be the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) similar to what would be the DA's offices in the US. In civil cases would be Claimant v Defendant. Rather a few months ago VV asked for details on how a trial breaks down and I posted that here - that thread may have been archived but it may be worth searching for it, or asking her if she still has the information, as there was rather a lot and it might be useful for you.

moonymaniac (and anyone else following this thread for bunnies), it was back in January if that's any help for hunting it down -- I know using the "Search" functions around here can be an inexact science bordering on art. A good bit of substance is also in the PMs Gary and I exchanged afterward; if you feel you're coming up short, I kept those for reference and could forward. We also got into the difference between Wizengamot trials and the Muggle ones a little bit.

Googling "Barrister" and a few other prominent terms from Gary's post above may also get you a website explanation or two of what a British trial looks like. I seem not to have kept my bookmarks from that project, alas.

[Weasley24]

Do Brits use the word 'funny' to describe a humourous situation? Or do they have something different that they say?

- Katie

Yep we say funny. We also say funny is somethings wierd or different like "That pasta tasted funny," or something like that.

Hope I helped
Sarah

EDIT: Sorry didn't notice that Magical Maeve had already answered your question (:

[Heather25x]

On the "smart" side of the discussion, we do use it to describe intelligent people. It's very very common, but perhaps "clever" is slightly more common.

We do use guy, but only the younger generation does, really. We sometimes use it instead of boy or man, if we don't know which to use. We'll use boy for "he's just a little boy" but where you might use man we might use guy, simly because we're unsure when to use it nowadays.

And on the "funny" side, we definitely do. We might say "that was so funny" or "she's really funny" or "that smells funny" or something:). We use it as other countries do.

Just thought i'd add a bit more to the answers:D

[CakeorDeath]

On the smart issue we don't use it for being cheeky or rude to teachers or parents. We usually say "don't answer back" instead of the American "don't get smart"

[garyf]

We usually say "don't answer back" instead of the American "don't get smart"

I'd have to disagree there - it does get used a lot.

[CakeorDeath]

I'd have to disagree there - it does get used a lot.

Really. Aw well you live and learn. Where do live?

[Heather25x]

I don't necessarily hear "don't get smart". I'm more likely to hear "Don't get bigheaded". We tend to use a different word than "smart" in that kind of context.

[garyf]

Really. Aw well you live and learn. Where do live?

All over the place. At the moment a combination of the north east, north west, west London and south Wales - I get about a bit, and hear a lot. A dictation machine is wonderful for stealing writing ideas.

I don't necessarily hear "don't get smart". I'm more likely to hear "Don't get bigheaded"

That would be something completely different.

[Magical Maeve]

I agree with Gary here. I've lived in a fair few bits of the country and don't get smart is fairly common and has been for a good long while. I think we can safely say you can use it in the specific context of someone trying to be clever in a cheeky way. Don't answer back would be a rather more formal phrase, I think, possibly used by said teacher. As a parent I'd be more likely to use the smart phrase. Backchat could also be used.

As Gary pointed out, big headed is a different term with a different meaning; used for someone who has let something go to their head and is being either obnoxious about it, is bragging or generally has an over-inflated sense of their own acheivements.

[LucillaJoanna]

I mean a reputable private school that doesn't flaunt their quality through school fees. And an eleven-year-old is about to be in secondary school, right? Thank you! If you can name a private school known for the description I've said above, more thanks and some disabled Canary Creams! :)

[emmaholloway]

it would really depend on where you are and if the child is boarding or not.
I think an average would probably be like £10,000 for someone who wasn't boarding and then £15,000 for someone who was.

There are also Grammar schools, which don't have fees but you have to pass an exam to get into, I'm not sure who funds them... I think they are partially government funded so they are still considered independant.

[Heather25x]

I agree with Emma. Most private schools cost around £10,000 a year, and for most you have to pass an exam to get into the keep the "standard high". In my opinion you can learn just as much from a normal school but, i won't start on that:rolleyes:

[Yellow_Rose]

£10,000 is right for an English independant school but, from my experiance, Scottish ones are generally cheaper around about £8000.

[LucillaJoanna]

Thank you, emmaholloway, Heather25x and Yellow Rose!

Now I have a new question:

We're talking pounds here, so I ask. Phew! Do you know that one pound equals 98 pesos in my country? How much do you get for school supplies? With some allowance left for, say, unnecessary cute stationery and some hotdogs and ice cream after the shopping? Thank you! This is my last question for now here, and expect shoutouts in my fic when it's validated. :o

~Joanna

[Magical Maeve]

It depends. Some schools charge a fee that includes a lot of the supplies like books and lunches etc. Some don't and the price varies accordingly. A half decent school blazer, for example, will cost at least £40. My son is off to grammar school next september and we have just been given the kit list and costs and it isn't pretty. £75 for sports kit alone. As a rough approximation it is going to cost £180 for clothing, that's before the books etc.

So I reckon, for a mid-ranking public school that does not include books in its fees, you would need about £200-£250 for basic equpment and sundries.

Unnecessary cute stationery costs from £1 for a pen to maybe £10 for a really nice notebook. Ice creams, again, about a £1, hotdogs roughly the same. £20-£30 should be enough for some really nice treats.

A non-boarding grammar in the North of England charges £8000 and that charged is levied on a term basis, three terms per year with the option to pay by monthy direct debit. The further south you go the prices rise accordingly. I believe it costs around £35,000 a year for a boarding place at one of the top schools, Eton. Usually the difference between boarding and non-boarding is around £7,000 per year, but these costs may not include things like laundry.

Also, it's worth noting that quite a few public schools still operate on a single sex system. Two seperate schools for boys and girls, or they are schools aimed at just one, like the Cheltenham Ladies College.

[Love_is_4ever]

Do you guys say 'dummy'? You know, as if you're trying to tell someone to stop being an smart-a** (Sorry, didn't know what else to put!), but in a playful way, not really meaning it... You know, that kind of playful bicker that goes on between a young couple. I have her telling him "Shut up, you big dummy." Does that make sense to you guys?

If not, what do you say?

~ Samarie

PS: Okay, I will use idiot and hope for the best. Thanks Weasley24!

[Weasley24]

Well in Britain 'dummy' means something that baby's/toddlers put in their mouth. I'm not sure what other country's call them.

I wouldn't say dummy more twit, eejit, idiot.


Hope I helped (:

EDIT: Magical Maeve - Please be careful when posting profanities/slang. The word I've edited out is considered by many to be an offensive swear word.

[Heather25x]

I don't think many people use dummy like that. We're more likely to call them an idiot or a moron or something offensive :rolleyes: (Sorry if those words aren't allowed, i'm not sure if they are or not)

But yes, as Weasley 24 said, a Dummy is what we call the thing that goes in a babies mouth (pacifier...[sp] ).

[Magical Maeve]

Heather:

1: You have a double post. This is not allowed; you need to edit your first post.

2: There was absolutely no need for the rolling eyes icon. The word I deleted from the previous post was a term for a certain part of the female anatomy that is best not aired on a public forum. Okay? I think this is an instance where you need to credit the moderators with at least an iota of common sense.

[Heather25x]

Heather:

1: You have a double post. This is not allowed; you need to edit your first post.

2: There was absolutely no need for the rolling eyes icon. The word I deleted from the previous post was a term for a certain part of the female anatomy that is best not aired on a public forum. Okay? I think this is an instance where you need to credit the moderators with at least an iota of common sense.

OK i didn't realise i double-posted, sorry! I completly bypassed the fact that i'd posted before. I'll try not to do it again.

I'm not comppletly sure what you mean by the second point. I put the eye-rolling icon because we Brits seem to use swearwords a bit more often than more polite words like Dummy, which was the word we were talking about. I thought this was rather typical of us, which was why i said it, not because you deleted that word in the last post. I know i should've made that obvious or not said it at all. Sorry. I do have commen sense, i just wasn't sure it moron would be allowed as some people consider it swearing. I was just being careful. In the post you edited you said "please be careful when posting profanities/slang", which was what i was doing. I am sorry for not being clear about what i was saying, i know you were perfectly right to correct me on this, but, with all due respect, i was a little offended by being told i needed to use commen sense, which i have. I am sorry for the rule-breaking, i will be more careful next time.

EDIT: Magical Maeve: I didn't say you needed to use common sense, I said you needed to credit us with some common sense - although now that you have made it clear what you actually meant it's redundant anyway. Just goes to show we need to be careful where we use those rolling eyes. ;)

[CakeorDeath]

Thank you, emmaholloway, Heather25x and Yellow Rose!

Now I have a new question:

We're talking pounds here, so I ask. Phew! Do you know that one pound equals 98 pesos in my country? How much do you get for school supplies? With some allowance left for, say, unnecessary cute stationery and some hotdogs and ice cream after the shopping? Thank you! This is my last question for now here, and expect shoutouts in my fic when it's validated. :o

~Joanna

Do you mean pocket money? I get around £30 a month. I don't buy my own school supplies (you mean stationary right?) so I spend it on going out, magazines, choclate.

[harrypotterfangirl21]

Do British people call it "going out" when two people are boyfriend and girlfriend, or do they have another term for it? (This is for a Marauder-Era fic, if that makes any difference...)

Thanks is advance. :)

- Katie

[CakeorDeath]

Do British people call it "going out" when two people are boyfriend and girlfriend, or do they have another term for it? (This is for a Marauder-Era fic, if that makes any difference...)

Thanks is advance. :)

- Katie

Yes going out would be perfectly acceptable. Always happy to help!

[Heather25x]

Do British people call it "going out" when two people are boyfriend and girlfriend, or do they have another term for it? (This is for a Marauder-Era fic, if that makes any difference...)

Thanks is advance. :)

- Katie

Yes, the term "going out" is mostly used. For example, James would say, "Lily Evans won't go out with me, but she's going out with that Hufflepuff." :D

[Ghoul in Pajamas]

For my story I need some examples of popular British comic strips. I wrote Garfeild and Foxtrot originally, and the next day realized they might not be in British newspapers. *oops*

Thanks in advance to anyone who responds!:D

[Magical Maeve]

It depends. Are you looking for a comic strip that would appear in a newspaper? It also depends on what era you are in.

If it's a newspaper then I suggest you Google the following titles with comic strip before the title in the search box:

The Daily Mail (Ultra Conservative/traditional)

The Sun (Down-market tabloid - beware, if you go to their website there may be scantily clad ladies. One of the most popular papers.)

The Daily Express (Mid-market tabloid.)

The Sunday Times. (Higher end tabloid with a populist touch. Has a seperate section on sunday for kids called the Funday Times that has cartoon strips.)

I'm not sure if the high-end broadsheets have strips. I usually don't get to the back page, which is full of sport. :rolleyes:

Garfield is a current cartoon strip, and has been for sometime, although it switched papers a year ago. I have vivid memories of Garfield being well-known in popular culture mid-eighties. Never heard of Foxtrot, though.

Whatever you do, if you are being specific, check your dates.

[harrypotterfangirl21]

Well, I seem to visit here a lot... ^^;

Anyway (and I'm terribly sorry if this is an obvious question), is "flirting" British?

Also, what's a bad pick-up line that I can use? (For example, I've gotten this one before: "Did it hurt when you fell from heaven? 'Cause you must be an angel!")

These are both in the Marauder's Era.

- Katie

[CakeorDeath]

Well, I seem to visit here a lot... ^^;

Anyway, (and I'm terrbly sorry if this is an obvious question), is "flirting" British?

Also, what's a bad pick-up line that I can use? (For example, I've gotten this one before: "Did it hurt when you fell from heaven? 'Cause you must be an angel!")

These are both in the Marauder's Era.

- Katie

Yes flirting is british. You could also use chat up i.e. "Stop trying to chat me up"

[TyrannoLaurus]

A very Britishly bad pick up line is: "Get your coat, you've pulled". Although, most people nowadays use it consciously as a bad pick-up line (whether or not they're flirting). Phrases like 'going on the pull' or 'he's trying to pull tonight' are also very popular, especially by blokes, although the male intention is very seldom honourable :p

Flirt has been around for quite some time, often used for anything between friendly banter and serious persuasion tactics by both gender, though how long it's been around I can't say for sure (Jan'll know). I agree with Cake that 'chat up' is just as popular, too. This

[hpheart]

Yes flirting is british. You could also use chat up i.e. "Stop trying to chat me up"

Flirting is very British!

One Chat-up lins I've heard is Can I have your mobile number, I've lost mine?

[The Marauding Cupcake]

I've heard the phrases "taking the mick out" and a variant of that before, which I believe refers to teasing or making fun of.

I actually have a character saying something like "he wasn't making fun of me" and also "I was wondering how much I was going to be made fun of...". How would I go about wording it, or would th be all right as they stand?

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[TyrannoLaurus]

These are two very common British phrases.

You can refer to who the person is taking the mick out of: "He was taking the mick out of me this morning."

Or you could tell someone to "Stop taking the mick"

You can also use "micky" (kids used to use micky in the 90's if that helps) or "michael" (if you want to be particularly sarcastic), or if the person is rather mad then "mick" is usually replaced by a certain swear word. It does mean making fun of someone, but it can also mean mimicking them, and is usually referred to someone very sarcastically ridiculing someone else. "Stop taking the mick" can also more generally mean, "Be sensible!"


Your second two phrases are fine :) We use the phrase "making fun of" quite often and it probably means the same as it does in America. It's also quite a good euphemism for someone who doesn't want to admit they're being ridiculed or even bullied. It can be backed up with, "They're only having a laugh" or "It was just a joke" with perhaps a shrug of the shoulders ;)

I hope this helps!

Laura xxx

[Mistletoe]

Erm well, since I live in America, I have absolutely no idea where anything is in England or anwhere in Europe for that matter because I'm directionally challenged, and I need a city or area or... something, that is inhabited by Muggles of course. Anyway, what I'm looking for is a place that has lots of remote area around where a magical family could put their home. Weird post... I know, kind of silly too, but any suggestions?

[SiriuslyMental]

Mmm, I'd suggest somewhere Northish. Moorland maybe? It's more secluded than, say, London or Birmingham, and you could find some random moor to stick a family on. I doubt anyone'd bother them. Moors are a bit depressing.

[TyrannoLaurus]

My reccommendation, just because I know the area reasonably well, would be Northumberland or county Durham. Both counties are in the North East region of England, and have both a very industrial and commercial city with Newcastle (and the angel of the north!), a quaint and historic city with Durham (with an amazing cathedral). There's also Sunderland (which Gary knows) and then even further north you have Berwick and Alnwick that are also very nice towns. The reason I would say Northumberland is because it has copious amounts of countryside -- very beautiful countryside (good for horse riding!) -- and a very good coastline. A lot of people go up to Northumberland for a quiet life, though they get the best of both worlds with cities so nearby, and I think it'd be very easy for a wizarding family to rent out an abandoned farmhouse or barn, do some hocus pocus in rennovation, and live there quite undisturbed!

Mmm, I'd suggest somewhere Northish. Moorland maybe? It's more secluded than, say, London or Birmingham, and you could find some random moor to stick a family on. I doubt anyone'd bother them. Moors are a bit depressing.

Moors are depressing? Have you ever been to the North York Moors? Have you ever read Wuthering Heights? They're not depressing! I would certainly reccommend using one of our moorland sites because they're very typically British. The landscape is overwhelming and so you've got some greast scope for writing description. Local to the North York Moors you've also got places like Whitby - a very popular tourist attraction and coastal town that does amazing fish and chips (apparently) and obviously the gorgous city of York.


I hope this helps. :) You are going to need to do further research into all of this if you want to create a realistic account of the setting of the place you choose, but feel free to ask more questions!

[Mistletoe]

*blanches*

Well, that was far beyond anything that I was hoping for, thanks for that so much, TyrannoLaurus! I'm going to go with Northumberland-- I like all of this country you speak of :D

[TyrannoLaurus]

I guess that's because they're always depicted as creepy, dark and windy. But then there's the flip side - when the sun comes out and you've still got that breeze, and all you can see for miles is hills upon hills with wild heather and free-roaming wildlife! I think of freedom, the Romantics, and the raw passion of nature. But then, you are speaking to someone who is having to engross herself deeply into two Bronte novels in order to write an essay in four weeks.

I'm glad I was some help to you, Mistletoe. I know it sounds basic, but type in Northumberland to Google and read Wikipedias page. Also, have a look at the house market -- it gives you a sense of the local areas, the more rural villages and also what the houses are like. It's probably quite expensive to buy a cottege in Northumberland (but then, it's quite expensive to buy a terraced house in Barnsley!) but I'm sure your wizarding family will overcome that.

[Heather25x]

I would say somewhere in Yorkshire. It's a very nice place with secluded coutryside where you might get somewhere like The Burrow, where there are big hills where a wizard family could live in privacy without any Muggles:)

[garyf]

*blanches*

Well, that was far beyond anything that I was hoping for, thanks for that so much, TyrannoLaurus! I'm going to go with Northumberland-- I like all of this country you speak of :D

If you need any help with info on Northumberland, PM or email me. I live about 4 miles from Northumberland and know it well. They have a very unusual dialect in some parts of Northumberland as well. Particularly in south east Northumberland. Out in the west you have Hexham and Ponteland where the fashionably wealthy like to live.

[witch6]

Hey!

I was wondering how common are Joint families in Britain? Do you find anybody who lives in one there? What I know about England is from the books i have read and have never read of anyone living in one over there.

Also, can anyone please suggest some commercial areas in London? Well, my OC's father is a muggle and is a businessman, not super rich though well to do, but I have imagined his business to be something related to medicines. Also, can you please suggest a residential area in London for an upper middle-class family? Well, my OC has shifted to London, so can please suggest a few things I should keep in mind while writing? anything that you think is important.

Thanks in advance!

[apollo13]

By joint families, d'you mean two families living together? No, that's not common at all. In fact, I've never even heard of it.

Islington's a pretty good place to live - I used to live there. ;) - althought it depends on the time period.

~Evie

[Heather25x]

I'm not quite sure what you mean by a joint-family. Maybe you could elaborate?:)

I would say, for a commercial area, maybe for your OC's father to walk through or just to work near or something, you could use Trafalgar Square? Or any other square lol.

Things to keep in mind: You won't find a quiet road. There are no pigeons in Trafalgar Square anymore:( lol. It's not the type of place you would take something vauable around with you. So if your character is walking around with a laptop it is likely to get stolen;)

[emmaholloway]

I was going to suggest Islington!!

Also, things are unlikely to get stolen in Trafalgar square. Its so busy, and there is always police around, theres no way you would get away with it. As for the pigeons they went in ahout 2004, so if you're writing before then, they would still be there.

With somewhere to work, I'm not sure about the medicine thing, as anything with medicine would make him like a doctor... but you said buisness man. Big buisness areas could be somewhere like canary wharf.

[bertiebott12]

Hello British People!

I am purely American, and have several questions, but they all take place around 1937. It is a Tom Riddle/Minerva M. fic.

1) What are some popular British greetings at that time?
2) What goes on in a British orphanage? I expect they wouldn't have tea...
3) Would they use phrases such as,"Swell" or "Imagine that!"
4) Would sarcasm be used?

Thank you!

*Claire*

[apollo13]

1) What are some popular British greetings at that time?
2) What goes on in a British orphanage? I expect they wouldn't have tea...
3) Would they use phrases such as,"Swell" or "Imagine that!"
4) Would sarcasm be used?


1) Well, Hi wouldn't be used, but just plain old Hello, Good morning, Afternoon would. ;)
2) Wouldn't have tea?! :eek: I assure you, by that time, kids were better looked after!! In the Victorian age, then, yes, they wouldn't really be cared for, but by the 1930's then they would be given the basic needs and a few wants.
3) No - swell is pretty much American. In the 1940's the term "wizard" was used, but I'm not so sure about the 1930's.
4) Oh, yes. Sarcasm was probably used by the British when we were still running around with clubs yelling "Ugg". By that, I do not mean football matches. ;)

~Evie

[hermybabay82]

***DH Spoilers--some what****

I'm currently writing a drabble about Percy Weasley placed roughly in the beginning of DH after Voldemort has taken over the ministry. Now I know that after the end of GoF he moved out of his parents house and into a room at the Leaky Cauldron, but I'm sure within the two years that pass he has found a flat somewhere. I'm looking for a district or village of London that I could put him in. I'm currently thinking about placing him in the Twickenham district on Sherland Rd, mainly because I like the name. I don't even know if there is housing in that area so I'm needing some information on it if anyone has any. If Twickenham isn't a good choice, which area would you suggest? Please keep in mind that I would prefer something in the London area.:o

Thanks,
Stacy

[emmaholloway]

You havent really said what kind of area that you want him to live in. I've never actually heard of twickenham even though i live in london so i don't know what the area is like. My suggestion would be to find out about that area. Type it into google, or wikipedia and see if it is what your looking for.
Also, it wouldn't be called the twickenham district, it would just be twickenham.

If you can specify what you are looking for I will probably be able to give you more help, but as for now I can't really do much else. Someone else might be able to help more.

[hermybabay82]

In regards to the type of neighborhood for Percy, I'm looking for more of a warehouse type area that has been converted into flats. Something with an urban feel, lots of muggles around with parks and everything.

Again any suggestions are greatly apprecciated!

Stacy:cool:

[tha_looney_one]

Heyyyy.....

The Three Broomsticks Weekly Challenge is about Bonfire Night- but I'm American so I've never celebrated it:confused: . When I looked it up on Wikipedia, the entry mentioned some traditions, but was rather skimpy on the topic of traditional foods. Are there any sort of treats that Mrs. Weasley would make for her kids if they're at home for the holiday? I need something for my drabble idea, in which George reflects that life always goes on, using memories of Bonfire night treats as a metaphor:p. I've yet to decide if he loves or hates the food in question. Can anyone help??

[apollo13]

Well, to be honest, it wouldn't really be a holiday they came home for. It's not major, and there isn't really very much traditional food - most people just have a BBQ. Hot dogs and hamburgers and stuff.

~Evie

[tha_looney_one]

Really??? That seems sooo... normal.:p Well, it works. BBQ, huh? Never would have thought. And Mr. Weasley would love trying out a grill.... *cackles evilly:cool: *

Thanks, apollo13!!:D

[emmaholloway]

a bbq?? in november!! it's far too cold for a barbeque and will probably be raining. my house always has jacket potatoes. But there really isnt anything traditional about it. Just the fireworks.

They live near a hill i think so they might go up there to look at all the fireworks going off around them. or have a big bonfire in there garden.

[Heather25x]

I wouldn't necessarily be raining. It hasn't rained where i live for a week. It might be cold out, but it is very traditional to have a bonfire and to roast food on that. Like potatoes, and other BBQ food, like Apollo13 said. It's cold this time of year, yes, but that's why we have the bonfire's and use them as the BBQ.

It's not the kind of holiday you would come home for. Not like Christmas. It's the kind of holiday you would go and see fireworks shows at, but you wouldn't make a special visit home for it.:)

But if it's a dry day/night then yes, a BBQ.

The Weasley's might have fun setting off fireworks (oh, the fun of writing Arthur in that story). The boys at home could make the bonfire and then they could all roast their food on it. Hope i helped. Have fun:)

[Pondering]

Okay...here is a question from a snow deprived Aussie...

In an neighbourhood like Spinner's End where Snape grew up, would it snow in winter? I'm thinking around Christmas to the end of January. What temperatures would it reach?

Thanks in advance for any help. :)

--Tash

[Heather25x]

It depends were Spinner's End is, really, but i would say that it would reach at the coldest, -11 degrees celcius, if you want it the coldest it gets. But it's not likely to snow until late January, early February. :)

[AurorKeefy]

Although Snape, Lily and Petunia don't show even the remotest signs of holding the regional accent, I had always mentally placed Spinners End in South Yorkshire - specifically Sheffield, Barnsley or perhaps Bradford. The description of the houses under the shadow of the mill surely refers to a Northern Industrial town, and as much as I might talk about Lancashire, I think that the description of the street is more of a Yorkshire style. Of course that could just be me.

Anyway, if we assume that Snape took his mothers accent, and Lily and Petunia were quick to ditch theirs to adapt to the company they keep, I'd say it was very likely that you'd have snow at Spinners End. Certain places in the country are more geographically prone to it, and I'd say those areas of Yorkshire get their fair share, being about as inland as they can be, while still having the North Sea as the nearest body of water. We get sod all around here, because we're only about 15/20 miles inland, and it's by the Irish Sea, which is positively warm compared to the North Sea (which easily get's into my top three grimmest bodies of water).

But I ramble. Snow? Yes.

[Mistletoe]

Random, but what is the British term for nightgown? If it's even different than that.

[Cedric'sGirl]

Mistletoe: nightgown would be fine, or nightie would probably be more common, if you wanted to shorten it.

Pondering: from the description, I think the general consensus is that Spinners End is somewhere in the north of England, and if you consider that Sev and Lily were growing up in the 1960's, it is likely that they would still receive some snow in the winter, and the temperature would probably reach about a low of - 10-15 degrees centigrade.

tha_looney_one: for bonfire night, my family's tradition has always been to have a big bonfire and fireworks in the garden, with all of the neighbours invited round for jacket potatoes and chile, with sticky toffee pudding for desert - yum! although another traditional food would be parkin - a kind of stodgy ginger cake that I could definitely imagine Mrs Weasley making!

[Mistletoe]

NEW QUESTION! I'm so American, I don't even know what to do with myself! :o

Er, anyway, could someone kindly describe to me the process of making tea, and around what time of day does it occur?

[TyrannoLaurus]

Although Snape, Lily and Petunia don't show even the remotest signs of holding the regional accent, I had always mentally placed Spinners End in South Yorkshire - specifically Sheffield, Barnsley or perhaps Bradford.

*now has visions of Snape walking through Barnsley town centre and getting sneered at by all the chavs*

I always had north in mind. More Manchester than Sheffield, though. Although, hmmm, Snape and Lily coming from Barnsley - I could use that for the latest one-shot challenge! Hehe. It would be a laugh.

Er, anyway, could someone kindly describe to me the process of making tea, and around what time of day does it occur?

Do you mean tea as in dinner or tea as the drink? I assume making tea (drink) is the same in England as it is in America. As for tea (dinner), families can have this any time between 5 and 8 (or 10, if you're in my family, because it takes dad that long to do the preparations). Many use tea as a synomyn to dinner - so it can be any hearty meal with vegetables, cooked meat, lasagne, pasta, curry e.t.c.

However, the more technical term is used for a light afternoon snack. This involves sandwiches, crisps (potato chips), fresh juice, cold meats, salad e.t.c Obviously, it's more appropriate for summer. Some people have tea and then later on have supper (something smaller, such as a piece of cake and some hot chocolate, or if you're my dad youll have a big can of soup with lots of soggy bread). However, most people just have tea.

[Mistletoe]

Wonderful, wonderful. That was absolutely wonderful :D

But for you know, the 1970's, people would be using tea kettles and leaves and whatnot, correct? Or no... I'm slightly um, befuddled is the word.

[apollo13]

a bbq?? in november!! it's far too cold for a barbeque and will probably be raining. my house always has jacket potatoes. But there really isnt anything traditional about it. Just the fireworks.

They live near a hill i think so they might go up there to look at all the fireworks going off around them. or have a big bonfire in there garden.

Well, I live in the warmest county in England. ;) It might well be cold, but we'll still have a BBQ in thick coats and gloves!! :p

But for you know, the 1970's, people would be using tea kettles and leaves and whatnot, correct? Or no... I'm slightly um, befuddled is the word.

No - teabags were around at that time, I believe. ;)

~Evie

[Mistletoe]

Oh man, I'm so confused about tea!

Good thing I've got you guys around to set me straight!

Now I'm off, to write... about tea... :rolleyes:

[Merlynne]

Another location question!
What would be the dodgiest area of London (residential) where one might be able to find a very cheap, run-down apartment building?
Also, what would be an approximate monthly rent for a small one bedroom apartment in said area? I did some research, but the cheapest rents I could find listed were in the £ 2200 range (but of course, real estate websites don't make it easy to find the grubbiest apartments online).
It's a small part of my story, but I want it to be as accurate as possible. I hope I'm not asking too much. :)

[emmaholloway]

Peckham is a pretty dodge area. If you look it up on google you will see that alot of scary crime things go on around there. Not good. I always try to avoid going to peckham.
I'm not sure how much you would pay monthly but an average flat is about £140,000.

Deptford also. I used to go to the parks there when I was younger and I was never allowed to play in the sandbox because there used to be needles found in them. And I think once the bones of some animal or something. Again I don't know much about prices of rent, but it wouldn't be high.

I only really know about my surrounding area (of which these are a part of... slightly worrying)

ooooooh. i've done some looking up. On one of the websites there was a large one bed appartment in deptford for £140 p/w. And that actually looked quite nice.

Peckham was about the same for a nice flat. Every place seemed to be all modern and just done up. So you could probably knock quite a bit off for an ugly place.

[Merlynne]

Thank you very much! I will google those places and take a pick, but I'm leaning towards Deptford. Thanks for the price range. I'll run with that :D

[The Marauding Cupcake]

I was looking for another word for "shocked" and right-clicked for synonyms. I'm American and I have the language set for English (United Kingdom) to more easily catch British mispellings (on my part). When I read the synonyms, the one at the end read "knocked for six".

What does this refer to? How is it used or what would it be used to describe?

Thanks for any help.

~ Michelle :confused:

[Magical Maeve]

It's a cricketing term. When you knock a ball for six you knock it out of the boundary and so have to give it a good whack. So getting knocked for six would mean something has hit your hard or really knocked you back. I'd say it's not as common now as it used to be.

Examples of use would be:

"I caught a really bad cold that knocked me for six"

*My cousin's death has really knocked me for six."

"Doing badly in that exam knocked me for six."

It's less about being shocked, I think, and more about suffering a real blow or set back.

[witch6]

Hey!! thanks for your help.. i'll make my OC live in Islington then..

apollo13, heather25x - well, joint families are two or more families living together, they are generally related though. it can two brothers and their families, etc. I guess, they are not at all common out there but here (where i live), it's petty common, and as my OC is also from India, i wanted to confirm!

emmaholloway- when i said business connected to medicines, i meant like a medicine's distributor or a pharmacist or a manufacture, etc..

Anyway, thanks a lot!! and i'm for the pigeons out there at Tamflagar (i'm sorry i forgot the name of the square!) Square. All of us (the people living on this beautiful planet, i mean) really need to buck up and save our earth from destruction! yes, i'm pointing out to global warming, pollution, extinction of animals, growing up animals so that we can kill and eat them one day and so much more! uuh.. we really need to save earth!! (I'm really sorry, mods!! i promise i'll never spam again! its just that this is one topic i'm really sensetive about.. Sorry! won't happen again!)

[Nymphadora]

More clarification on what terms we use for particular meals.

Breakfast - obviously the same in the US, but sometimes we shorten it to 'breakie'.

Lunch - Lunch in the South of England, Dinner in the North.

Dinner - Dinner in the South of England, Tea in the North.

Supper - Snack before bedtime.

Note: Tea in the 1940 and before was usually a cold meal, eaten by the middle and upper classes, (i.e. sandwiches and cake accompanied by a pot of tea) and then supper was a hot meal usually eaten by the adults after the children had gone to bed. Although that tradition of a cold tea at around 4-5pm has been lost and is replaced by the terms as decribed above.

Also some information on Spinners End. There are a couple of Spinners End's in the UK, the first is in Cradley Health, West Midlands. The second is in Weston-Super-Mare, Avon. There are probably some more dotted about too. I agree it sounds like somewhere up North, but not necessarily. It does, however, sound as though is has some link to a mill town, but there were plenty of them in Southern England also.

About Bonfire Night, traditionally we would eat Bonfire Toffee sometimes called Treacle Toffee, possibly Toffee Apples, Baked Potatoes or as we usually do Potato Pie, or Tatty Ash (which is like potato pie but without the crust - more of a stew) - both are usually served with pickled red cabbage or beetroots. I'm from the North of England though and it's quite possible that they have different things in Southern England.

Hope that helps!

[Magical Maeve]

Lunch - Lunch in the South of England, Dinner in the North.

Dinner - Dinner in the South of England, Tea in the North.

Be wary of a broad brush stroke here. I live in the North but have always used Lunch and Dinner. It's common to hear both used. Can't speak for the South.

And pigeons are clever devils. There are still pigeons in Trafalgar Square and always will be as long as there are tourists feeding them. Fat pigeons at that. :D We get an awful lot of pigeons all over the country, usually where people lunch. I don't think culls have had much impact generally speaking... and it's a touchy subject, culling birds.

And I completely agree about Spinner's End. The general consensus is northern mill town, but the mills stretched across the backbone of the country... anywhere there was a good water supply really. Some places, such as Lancashire and West Yorkshire became huge mill areas because of the water and the hills, but the Midlands had its fair share of industry. Still, having grown up in a mill town I can't help but see it as Lancashire or Yorkshire; the image Jo gives us is so indicative of those areas.

[Nymphadora]

Be wary of a broad brush stroke here. I live in the North but have always used Lunch and Dinner. It's common to hear both used. Can't speak for the South.



I should have mentioned that there are always exceptions, it's very hard to generalise the whole country into two categories. I suppose it depends upon where your family originates from too, people move across the North/South Divide all the time taking their customs and quirks with them. It's something everyone should take into account with all information they are given.

[bewitching]

I was wondering what a good slang word might be for what I'm looking for. I already have a word, but I'm pretty sure that it's american. It is a slightly vulgar word, so highlight between the arrows to see it.

------>Smartass<-------

[Velvet]

This is a tough one. You could perhaps use "know-it-all" or something similar to that and I think you are correct. The word you mentioned is not used very frequently in the UK.

[SiriuslyMental]

Clever dick my granddad says.
Smart arse works as well.
And smartass too.

[Nymphadora]

"Smart alec", "smarty pants", "big head" or perhaps "cocky" (you could always add the words 'git' or 'pratt' for extra effect). You could also use the phrase 'too big for your/his/her boots', I've always loved that one.

It depends if it's description or dialogue and who's saying it, though.

[apollo13]

Smartass wouldn't be English, though - thought I'd clarify that. ;)

~Evie

[SiriuslyMental]

I've heard it. Not quite as common, but used. Though I'd suggest using something else.

[Yellow_Rose]

I agree about the barbecue. The rain in Britain's pretty well constant at that time of year (so it would be kind of hard to do a barbecue. As for traditions, there's fireworks (obviously), and sometimes a bonfire, which people put a dummy stuffed with straw on (known as a guy) to burn, even though the orginal Guy Fawkes was actually hung, drawn and quartered, not burnt at the stake...It isn't really a holiday as such. Just an excuse to explode stuff these days.

[squirrly donut]

Could someone describe to me wht type of trains they have at King's Cross, and the station in general? Also, how do you think the station and trains will look in another ten years or so?

[Magical Maeve]

This will be linked based because a photo is easier than a description.

Kings Cross Passenger Info (http://www.networkrail.co.uk/aspx/867.aspx#access)

General Kings Cross Info (http://www.londontoolkit.com/accommodation/kings_cross_station.htm) (The image of the train half way down is a good example of a local services train.)

Typical Kings Cross to Leeds/Newcastle/Edingburgh Locomotive (http://johnlawontherails.fotopic.net/p43031186.html) (There are many of these locomotives and they all have names. This one is The Samaritans but there are others; The City of Durham always seems to be opposite me when I catch my train at Leeds. They do the main London to North East run from Kings Cross so if your character is coming North then they would probably be on one of these.)

Speaking of which, here is the City of Durham (http://johnlawontherails.fotopic.net/p35309549.html) without carriages.

I can't see there being any significant changes to the trains in the next ten years. much of the current rolling stock is ancient and there seems to be no hurry to update it. That said, the government may be forced to seriously upgrade rail transport if they bring in road pricing, but I can't see that happening soon.

An excellent site for finiding rail routes is the Trainline (http://www.thetrainline.co.uk). You can enter a start point and a destination and it will give you the routes and times. Of course this is current timetables only so won't be relevant if you're going back in time too far, but a lot of it will not be much different to ten years ago and will give you a good idea of routes available.

Also, when writing about King's Cross in the past it has to be remembered that there was a serious fire on the Underground there in 1987 which caused many deaths and seriously impacted on services.

The rain in Britain's pretty well constant at that time of year (so it would be kind of hard to do a barbecue.

We have had no significant rain in October or November thus far this year. It's impossible to generalise about weather in Britain because Britain takes great delight in proving us wrong:D . Last month there were mutterings of hosepipe bans. Our major rainfall fell in June/July this year. Last year June and July presented heatwave conditions. A few years ago we had serious floods throughout October. It's one of the main reasons that weather is such a hot topic, because it's as unpredicable as a Snitch. :)

[Pheonix Tears]

I think what everyone is trying to say, is that the weather around our beloved countries is fairly unpredictable and turbulant.

For example where I live at the moment its just plain cold.

As Evie just said in Wales it has been flooding.


I suppose it all really depends on location! If you want help in weather from the South West, I'm your girl!

- Elle

[Magical Maeve]

Perhaps I should have said sustained rather than significant, that was a poor word choice on my part. There are always weather 'events', a day or two of heavy rain, storms etc, but the notion that it rains continually at any given point in the year is false. As Elle said, unpredictable. :)

[MaiaMadness]

Hello,

I have a question about London. For a one-shot i'm writing about Remus Lupin a year or so after the Potters' death, I would like him to live in a bed-sit in London, close to the Thames in a slummy part of town. I need it to be gloomy, perhaps a little industrial? Anyway, what I need is a name for such a place. I've only been to London twice, once in a b&b near Kensington and another time in a hotel in Tottenham Court Road, so I'm not really that familliar with its geography apart from the locations of a few shops and parks.

Thanks in advance,

Maia

[Horsesbella219]

I could suggest you tried Deptford, Bermondsey or Catford. I think Deptford would be your best bet if you were wanting near the Thames. Generally speaking property near the river is more expensive, but if you got it as maybe above a shop, i think that would probably be less. Alternatively, you could have it a bit away, maybe in a tower block, where you could see the river, and the price would be less.

I did a little research on right move for you, and these are the results, of flats in the areas i suggested:
This one is in deptford
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/viewdetails-17630540.rsp?pa_n=1&tr_t=rent

Bermondsey:
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/viewdetails-17198066.rsp?pa_n=1&tr_t=rent

Catford:
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/viewdetails-17997491.rsp?pa_n=1&tr_t=rent

Obviously, truly grotty houses aren't often found on websites, so i suggest you make one up, but these sort of give you the amount of room, and the amenities, you can get for your money.

[BloodRayne]

Do all Irish have the thick Irish accent?

Is there any particular Irish way to say "hello"? Any particular words the Irish are famous for in general?

And what about Gaelic? What is the percentage of teens and/or adults that can read/speak Gaelic?

[MaiaMadness]

Ooh! I know about Irish! I have a friend who's Irish! *squee* :D

There are actually a lot of different accents in Ireland and Northern Ireland. Some are thicker than others. Generally, I think country people usually have thicker accents than city people, a rule which often goes everywhere. My friend's family is something like middle class, and they have relatively "normal"-sounding accents. They have the pronounced R's (I know there's a word for that, but I can't remember), the airy T's and the round O's, but apart from that it's not too pronounced, although it's very obviously Irish.


Horsesbella219, thanks so much for your help! I was wondering, these places you suggested, are they generally in the east end of London? I'm asking because I remember watching a British soap on TV when I was little called Eastenders, and they lived in the east side of London and were sort of poor and the women were beated by the husbands... Because if they are, would it be correct to speak of the East End and just say that he lives there? A little more general, in a way...

[apollo13]

LOL, Eastenders is pretty stereo-tpical, but yeah, that's roughly the sort of accents and... er, people that live there. ;)

Is there any particular Irish way to say "hello"? Any particular words the Irish are famous for in general?

Well, a lot of people think that the Irish always say "Top 'O' teh morning to yer," and also "to be sure, to be sure" but that's a bit like assuming that all English people saunter about in suits and bowler hats, going "Jolly good day, eh wot? Why don't we play a smashing game of cricket followed by scones and Earl Grey tea?" or that all Australians act like Stever Irwin used to (RIP) and bounce around going, "G'day, mate! Me 'n the Shelia are off to chuck the boomarang about - bonza!"

My point is, it's very stereo-typical, and if you said that in Ireland they'd be sure you were making fun of them.

Generally, they call their mother's "Mam" and sometimes repeat themseleves a bit. If you look at Sheamus in the books, there is no dialect apart from reffering to his Mum as Mam, and his is pretty obviously Irish. ;)

~Evie

[Ellie4Harry]

Yay! Questions that I can answer! I happen to live in Ireland, so I'm glad you're taking an interest in our little (but fabulous) island!

Do all Irish have the thick Irish accent? It really does depend on where you come from. I'll use the capital, Dublin city for an example. On the Northside of the city, they speak what most people asume is the universal Irish accent. They call their mothers Mam and never pronounce their Ts. (e.g. sorry wha?)
However, on the Southside you will hear girls speak like characters from the OC and add 'like' after every word. These are only a few examples there are so many accents for such a small country! Myself, I do not really have an Irish accent at all it's a bit of a cross between American and English (with traces of Irish in there, of course!)

Is there any particular Irish way to say "hello"? Hmmm. Most people just use hello but it is commonly followed by 'How are ya?' even if the person is not expecting an answer.

Any particular words the Irish are famous for in general? Well, we can say 'grand' when we mean something is great. Not really much else I can think of, apart from all that stereotypical stuff.

And what about Gaelic? What is the percentage of teens and/or adults that can read/speak Gaelic? Do you mean Irish? All Primary and Secondary schools teach Irish (although people can be exempt from it) and most take the Junior and Leaving Cert (exams over here) in it. I'm not sure of an exact percentage, but the majority can speak and read it. It is different in Northern Ireland, as it is owned by England and Irish is optional.


Generally, they call their mother's "Mam" and sometimes repeat themseleves a bit. If you look at Sheamus in the books, there is no dialect apart from reffering to his Mum as Mam, and his is pretty obviously Irish. I'm going to have to disagree with you here. I would never, ever call my Mum "Mam" it just sounds wrong. A lot of people do use that but it is, overall, a small percentage of the population. I only know about two people who call their Mums that. Seamus is very Irish but also very stereotypical character. He represents Northside Dubliners and to some people can be seen as quite annoying and unrealistic (not to me though, I love Seamus!)

Anyway, I hope I helped!
Ellie:D

[SiriuslyMental]

The large majority of the Irish population I've ever met/seen on television (Irish programmes) have said "mam", and they're all from round the Limerick area, so I think it's definitely very common, but up to the writer's interpretation.

Another common thing today (I couldn't tell you about Harry's time period, having been about six by the time he was sixteen) is to put "well" in front of things instead of very. I've seen Irish and English do this, and not everyone does, but it's popular with people who'd be round Harry's age. For example, if somene's well fit they're very good-looking, if something is well bad, it's, well, very bad. That's more just a UK thing than an Irish thing, though, so it's really just by what you want to use (because I really don't know how long the well thing has been used).

[Ellie4Harry]

Like all countries and languages, it really depends where you come from!

I do have a few questions:

What general area would the character be from (county or city would be great!)?

And what kind of an upbringing would they have had? (More well-to-do people sound more British and don't have such a strong accent as someone like Seamus)

Irish people also pronounce their T's with a slight 's' sound at the end. It's a little hard to describe the sound. Perhaps you could watch Seamus or Mad Eye (Brendan Gleeson)
in the films and pick up traces of the accent.

Some more information would be great, as it would be easier to help you!:)

Cheers,
Ellie :D

[TyrannoLaurus]

"Mam" isn't just used in Ireland. I call my mum mam all the time, and I tend to associate it primarily with South Yorkshire ... because my dad's side of the family (who are VERY South Yorkshire) use "Mam" rather than mum!

My Grandad, who came from near Belfast, uses "Ma" and "Da" all the time. Although, whether or not this is an Irishism or a Grandadism I couldn't say for sure ... I was having this discussion with Sandy recently about the random Irish catchphrases I seem to have adopted of late (and passed onto her!), some of which from my Grandad, though I never know if they're real or not. *Should actually go to Ireland one day to find out*

So, there. Totally useless information for you.

As for well to-do people sounding more British ... hmm, they might have a more decipherable accent but I wouldn't say they'd sound more 'British'. From an English perspective, they still sound very much Irish. I know Irish folk who have lived most their lives in England and still sound Irish. Also, be cautious of using a phrase like "sounding more British" because of the huge diversity of accents in Britain. I mean, a lot of people associate the south, London area accent as 'British' -- which is a far cry from Geordie, Scouse, Broad Yorkshire etc.

[CakeorDeath]

TyrannoLaurus does your Grandad use the phrase mither? As in "ah hush your mithering". My Mum is from Northen Irland and she uses it often.

Also what about Gomrell hound? As in an idiot.

[BloodRayne]

Hey, guys. I can see there are lots of people here who will help me immensley if supplied with the correct info.:D

My two OCs are from the Irish countryside (like...a farm or something) and are in Harry's era. As for the upbringing, well, I'm not quite sure what you mean here, but I will say that they have had pretty orthodox parents.

By the way, where is Cobh, exactly? I mean, near the city or the country? And what's it like? Is it sort of a suburb or what?

[SiriuslyMental]

Their upbringing as in - where were they raised, what socioeconomic class (working/middle/upper), etc.

[Ellie4Harry]

Sorry to keep posting like this:o If you want me to stop, let me know!

By the way, where is Cobh, exactly? I mean, near the city or the country? And what's it like? Is it sort of a suburb or what? I've been there! *is great*
Cobh is in County Cork (a county in the south of Irelnad) and is on the outskirts of Cork City. It's not really a suburb, it's a harbour town. And the titanic actually sailed from Cobh! (just thought I'd throw in a fun fact!)

If you want anything more specific, feel free to PM me!

As for well to-do people sounding more British ... hmm, they might have a more decipherable accent but I wouldn't say they'd sound more 'British'. From an English perspective, they still sound very much Irish. I know Irish folk who have lived most their lives in England and still sound Irish. I'm sorry, I phrased that badly. Some of the well-to-do people do have less of a thick accent, but they do sound far from British. What I meant to say is, they would sound a bit more normal to British ears.

Anyways, I'll go away now! (Sorry if I bothered anyone with my ramblings and bad phrasing!)
Cheers,
Ellie :D

[MaiaMadness]

My Grandad, who came from near Belfast, uses "Ma" and "Da" all the time.

I've heard that before. "Da" particularly. Not sure if it's an Irishism, but I believe it might at least be a Belfastism. I love the Belfast dialect!

I'd also like to add that it seems like the word "wee", as a term of endearment (whether to a child or a sibling or friend or even a parent) is relatively common, at least in Northern Ireland (as well as Scotland). Am I right in this? As in, people speaking of their mother as "wee mam/mum/ma"? I believe I have heard/read this, perhaps particularly regarding family, spoken with an Irish accent on several occations.

[CopLopARopA]

Just so you know, I have a rather extensive post on the Irish accent at the beggining of this thread (page 1) with audio clips(YAY!).

[SiriuslyMental]

I've heard wee used in Ireland and England, but not ridiculously commonly. Mostly just when speaking to young children, and more Ireland than England.

[MaiaMadness]

Ooh, I have a direct quote to the "wee" thing, now. The Belfast character Kit from the comic book series John Constantine: Hellblazer, more specifically the issues written by Garth Ennis, refers to her mother as "our wee mother" and her brother as "my wee brother" (although he really is her younger brother) as a term of endearment. Same character also calls her father "da".

[Magical Maeve]

I've heard wee used predominantly in the north of Ireland. It's very common amongst the Northern Irish. We use it all the time. I'll have a wee drink, just a wee one, wee lad, in a wee while... Not sure about the extent of its use in the south, although I have heard it. One explanation for the predominance in the north and its use in Scotland is the amount of migration that went on between Scotland and Ireland.

Concur about mam. Not just Irish. It's used a lot on the North East coast of England as well as Yorkshire. I have quite a few friends in Newcastle who call their mothers mam. And Ellie4Harry was also correct in saying that it's not as common as you might think in Ireland. Hubby would never call his mother mam, and I've not heard it used much in the north. It does crop up frequently in novels, however. Usually grittier ones set in Dublin, which may suggest there's a certain social strata that use it. Ma and Da would certainly be acceptable rurally.

As for other Irishisms. You'd need a decent book of slang! Just a couple of the top of my head: Desperate instead of terrible ("that's desperate, so it is"), Chancer for a person trying their luck ("He tried to get an extra portion of chips for nothing, the chancer."), babby with a hard a instead of baby, big man when refering to the boss or as a term of teasing affection ("Go and see the big man." or "Calm down, big man."), Eejit instead of idiot (commonly thought of as one of those stereotypical things, but it is commonly used.), kip for a place that's really scruffy or untidy ("This place is a kip."), Fair play is used a lot to indicate a good result ("He got the job; fair play to him."), a police officer is a guard (South only.), the heel of a loaf of bread is the crust (hubby drives me nuts with this one), mitching is playing truant, a jaggey is anything prickly (nettles/thistles), skiffing is when it's spitting rain, a beach is a strand (never drive a car on to Portstewrart strand or you will have to get a tow out!) and whist means keep quiet (an equvalent of shush). That's realy just the tip of the iceberg. There are slang sites out there, but beware, most of them have the full fruitiness of Irish slang and there is plenty of profanity. Some of my favourite pieces of Irish slang would not be repeatable here. ;)

Mithering: My gran used to say that all of the time and somehow I just assumed that was a Manchester thing, but it could well be Irish because she was, although she'd been a long time in England. Not heard it used especially in either place, but that's quite interesting that it could be Irish in origin. Oh, and Gomrell Hound brings to mind Lurgan Spade. If someone says you have a face like a Lurgan Spade it means you look miserable. This is very localised Northern Irish though.

Howya is a good general greeting, but my favourite Belfast greeting would be 'Bout ye? This is a contraction of what about you?

Some interesting comments here; I love a good slang/accent discussion. We could do with Brosna to stick her head into this thread, I'm sure she'd have something to add.

(Father Ted is an excellent, reasonably contemporary, example of spoken Irish, but it is littered with swear words and adult themes, so I couldn't recommend it if you are underage. Failing that, Ballykissangel, while twee, is also a good source to listen to the general accent.)

[Ginny Weasley Potter]

May I know the British equivalent of the word, 'dude'? (Apart from 'mate', that is)

And could someone please tell me whether there's a train that takes you from London to the North of Scotland? How much time does it take to reach? Are there sleepers in trains or do people just and sleep for overnight journeys? Are the doors automatic?

Thank you in advance!

[TyrannoLaurus]

Hmmm ... Apart from mate we'd use ... *thinks* dude? Man? It is very Americanised nowadays. We use 'bloke' too. But 'Mate' is by far the most popular.


As for trains, I am pretty sure there's not one direct to the Scottish Highlands ... or at least not one on a regular basis. You can get one from London's Kings X that takes you up to Glasgow through the GNER East Coast Mainline ... some may terminate at Newcastle or Edinbrugh, so you'll have to transfer to Glasgow and from there find the local regional train station you want to use. The GNER website (www.gnertickets.co.uk) is very useful. Just key in the information.

Note: trains are very unreliable and often get stopped mid-course. So if you want an authentic story, have your character stuck at York/Darlington/Newcastle/Doncaster for an hour in the freezing cold.

The doors are usually automatic. I was an old GNER train the other day that still used the 'stick your hand out the window and pull the lever' technique, but they're a minority. There's lots of different train companies, don't forget, too. I have only mentioned GNER because I know it has trains going straight up the middle of England and into Scotland.

[mooncalf]

Do all Irish have the thick Irish accent?

Is there any particular Irish way to say "hello"? Any particular words the Irish are famous for in general?

The accent really does vary. The Northern accent is very strong (for me, anyway), and has a Scottish sort of ring to it. People from around Cork have a sing-song voice, and tend to add 'boy' to the end of a sentence (but pronounce it 'bye' -- as in , 'Throw that ball here, bye!').

Are you planning to set it in/near Cobh? If so, the Cork accent is quite distinct and they have lots of slang. For example, meeting (snogging/kissing -- but only for teenagers). To be odd (Cork) or thick (Midlands mostly, I think) with someone means to be annoyed with somebody, generally without a big reason.

If something is 'class' it's great. If you're a sound person, you're basically good to know (I don't know if this is exclusively Irish, but it's used here a lot, anyway). I find lots of people tend to add 'pure' to lots of things, e.g. 'That one's pure sound, she is'. If you're talking about someone you might say 'your one' (woman) or 'your man' instead of saying someone; it's generally kind of negative, like 'your one at the checkout counter gave me the wrong change'.

For hello, we meet say 'Howaya' or 'How are ya'. Most people don't answer the question, but if they do it's usually something like 'Ah sure, I'm grand/not too bad'. We say 'sure' a lot (or at least people do where I live), but it's softer than the American pronunciation; sort of 'shurr'.

Killinskully is an Irish program set in rural Ireland. It'd give you an idea of the sound, though some accents are exaggerated to make it funnier.

Irish teenagers, especially girls, say like a lot, generally stuck onto the end of a sentence. In Dublin they sound kind of American, in Cork it's more 'What are you at, like?'.

And what about Gaelic? What is the percentage of teens and/or adults that can read/speak Gaelic?


We don't say Gaelic, we say Irish. Like Ellie said, you have to do it in school, but to be honest most people can't speak it very well. If you're setting your fic in a Gaeltacht (Irish speaking) area, there'd be a fair bit of Irish, but other than that people don't speak it much.

[Ginny Weasley Potter]

Hmmm... I think I'll let the train go to Glasgow. Actually, my character is going to catch a running train, and she has to have a sudden burst of magic with which the door opens and she gets in. Thanks for the info!

And the tip, I am going to get my leads stranded, but a cold place would be perfect! Thank you so much!

[TyrannoLaurus]

Oh, it's very easy to get stranded on the train station in England. My friend is constantly having to take the bus from Manchester to Liverpool because the trains are down, and my Leeds pal had to get the bus from York the other day. It's slightly ridiculous. Touch wood my train is running on time this Friday. Getting the wrong train would be easy enough too, with so many platform changes and faulty tanoys and every train looking the same.

As for magically opening the door ... there is always a significant pause between when the doors automatically shut and the train sets off, so they could be running up and the door could open ... that's perfectly probable.

And I really am wondering when I became the know-it-all on trains *looks around for Gary*

[Ginny Weasley Potter]

Okay... but no, when my character enters the station ; the train is already leaving. So she runs alongside, and opens the door using magic, holds on and gets in. Hehe, sonds like fun, right? But it's not. My friend always catches running trains (we have open trains here) and I keep warning him about it.

And for going from Glasgow to Edinburgh, is it enough to take a bus? Or is it necessary to catch the local train?

[TyrannoLaurus]

Take the train. Some go direct from London to Glasgow, but I don't they're as frequent. It's a longer journey on the bus :)