What is it with drinking in the UK?

Sorry I'm late...

Just wanted to give my two cents, if I may...   

First of all, in MY opinion, I don't really think Brits drink more or less than Americans, but then again I am from Wisconsin, which happens to be the state that consumes the most alcohol than any other.  (Plenty of Breweries, and not much to do I suppose...)

But, what I wanted to add was that in the TWO + YEARS that I have been living in England, I have not even heard of a single DRUNK DRIVING accident.  Not to say that there haven't been any, as there may have been, but its obvious that the British people are a bit more responsible when consuming over the legal limit of alcohol.  This is something that we Americans can learn from our British friends.

So, I say...  CHEERS!!!   Let's have another and call a taxi!!! 

~Angel

Well, I don't really know you or how well or quickly you adjusted... but in my personal experience, drinking IS slightly more pervasive and part of life. You seem very defensive about that. The fact is, the Brits even admit to their "drinking culture" and see it light-heartedly. I'm sorry my posts have driven you to drink, expat.

But there's a big difference between saying "in my personal experience, drinking IS slightly more pervasive and part of life", which I think many people would agree with, and stating as fact that every single person in any city centre in the UK on any weekend night is drunk, which even you have to admit couldn't possibly be the case.  (If so, remind me never to get a taxi, never to need a policeman, never to go into any business whatsoever, etc.)  Nobody is questioning your right to post about your experiences, but exagerations and generalizations are bound to get people's backs up....whether it's about life in the UK or in the US.

So, I say...  CHEERS!!!   Let's have another and call a taxi!!! 

~Angel

Thats exactley what i said yesterday 

I think that when you are in a large crowd where there are a lot of inebriated people, it is just more difficult to see that some are not drunk! Case in point: ever been to the French Quarter in New Orleans? I know that not everyone there is drunk (because I have often been there not drunk!) but it's tough to pick out the sober ones as the drunks are soooo overwhelming!

Is it really that there is more of a drinking culture in the Uk or is it just that's it's more obvious? I live in a small town in NC and am constantly amazed by how much drinking goes on here! It's just that it tends to be more private because it is less socially acceptable here.

I think that when you are in a large crowd where there are a lot of inebriated people, it is just more difficult to see that some are not drunk! Case in point: ever been to the French Quarter in New Orleans? I know that not everyone there is drunk (because I have often been there not drunk!) but it's tough to pick out the sober ones as the drunks are soooo overwhelming!

Cough cough....that's where i met my husband and sadly we were easy to pick out as we were the drunk ones!  lol.

hehehehehehehehehe

Sorry I'm late...

Just wanted to give my two cents, if I may...   

But, what I wanted to add was that in the TWO + YEARS that I have been living in England, I have not even heard of a single DRUNK DRIVING accident.  Not to say that there haven't been any, as there may have been, but its obvious that the British people are a bit more responsible when consuming over the legal limit of alcohol.  This is something that we Americans can learn from our British friends.
~Angel

There is loads of drink driving accidents  in newspapers.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/tyne/4735189.stm#
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/south_west/4123328.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/kent/4610285.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cambridgeshire/4582947.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4572663.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/north_east/4508553.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4490875.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/kent/4467757.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cumbria/4469127.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/4389859.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4376009.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4311609.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4297871.stm

And the list of newspaper articles on drink driving goes on and on. So there are articles in newspapers on alcohol related driving and crashes.
The idea of....So, I say...  CHEERS!!!   Let's have another and call a taxi!!!  ...is excellent.
 

RE: drunk driving, US v UK

I think it's rather important consider the size of the countries, the availability of public transport, and the fact that pubs are frequently in and around residential neighbourhoods.

If there is good availability of public transport (or taxis) or there are pubs within walking distance of homes, then I should think it would help to reduce drunk driving.  For the most part, this appears to describe much of the UK.

But for the US, distances between homes and drinking establishments can sometimes be quite far.  While many little villages in the UK have pubs, that's not always the case in the US and as many have noted, once you get out of larger cities, public transport is non-existent in the US.  Not to mention that taxis are hard to come by (at least they were in my area -- again, almost non-existent).

I am in no way justifying drunk driving, rather pointing out that there are mitigating factors in the UK which help to minimize drunk driving.

if you wanna start comparing the drink and drive habits then try going to the national statistis for the UK

http://www.statistics.gov.uk/CCI/SearchRes.asp?term=drink+driving&x=30&y=10


and go to US :

http://www.alcoholalert.com/drunk-driving-statistics.html


but as Cait said there is other factors that come into play most of my friends don't have driving lisences because there's been no need to own a car * shrugs*


where's my Mojito btw...aww nevermind I gonna have a root beer float instead....

I've given this a bit of thought on the drive home.

On the subject of "binge drinking", it was ever thus. There's nothing new about it. The classification of binge drinking in 3 pints. Barely a warm up

 The reason there's more visibility about it is:

• The british press love their moral panics. These's always something, "lager louts", "juvenial deliquency", 19th century gin palaces. In a class-ridden society they're useful for the rich to feel morally superior to the poor. At the moment it's this
• There is noticable more heavy drinking now than in the 90s (but not the 80s). This is because Alcohol doesn't mix with Ecstasy (the preferred narcotic of the 90s under 25s). Not unless you want do die.
• The good Rev Blair's desperate attempts to rebuild our lifestyle.

I'm afraid Tony believes that we should all be sitting on the terrace, eating focaccia and having a jolly good time.

Probably is, Ton, this is Britain, not Tuscany. And its raining, a lot, in August.

nice one, Cait  

and LOL @ Bluerose's homework!  well done!    

It's true, having "locals" is a reason why its probably not as frequent. I know it happens here, (drunk driving), but its just that in my hometown, there was always lists of DWI's in the daily local papers, many on their 2nd, 3rd, 4th offence!  It was a much more common occurance.   I'd watch so many people stumble out of bars, then get into a driver's seat and drive away.  

My friends in England always sort out transportation before we get out.. (taxis, trains, busses...) none of them would even DREAM about driving after drinking more than one drink.  I just think the British culture is a bit more responsible about it.  But that's just my own experience.  I moved from a U.S. city of about 400,000 to a city here of about 20,000, so thats what I have to compare..   *lol*

Nothing ever happens here.  

I think of it this way : Some Americans may find the UK drinking culture as boggling as some Brittons may find the US gun culture.....I remember my ex when he visited FL and found guns for sale at Target (can't remember if he said Target or Walmart) and I remember my first travel to UK and seeing a teenager drinking with their dad at the pub and possibly being just as shocked as my ex was about the guns for sale...

I have zero tollerance when it comes to drinking and driving.  My ex would drive home in a black out and literally fall out of the car in the driveway, nearly unconscious - God only knows how he would make it home alive and not killing himself or someone else. 

If someone wants to tie one on that's fine, have a good time BUT DO NOT GET BEHIND THE WHEEL OF ANYTHING!  Car, motorcycle, or boat!!

My mother tends to drink too much - who am I kidding, she DOES drink too much.  I'm very sensitive about drinking because I've been surrounded by bad experiences for too many years.  Simon and I have talked about it and he knows I'm sensitive to it.  He doesn't drink "too much" but if it were to become a problem we would have to address it right away.  My concern is that I have a super sensitive threshold for tollerance and I might be a bit too picky about it.  I do realize that there is a cultural difference that I need to keep in mind and realize that just because he may go for a pint at lunch with his mates from work, doesn't mean he's going to come home in a black out - which would have been my previous experience.  It's all about re-wiring how I respond to drinking and being understanding of my new environment. 

Not saying it's going to be easy - but I'll work on it. 

~Liza

My God! This thread is huge!

Since I started this thread, I wanted to clarify, I also haven't had any personal problems with other workers; I'm just making an observation. Regarding having the time to notice and make comments about other people; isn't what this forum is about--noticing the differences between British and American culture. I also notice that British and Americans use utensils differently, I don't have a problem with that.


I don't think there is anything wrong with having a drink at lunch or after work, to celebrate a birthday or a promotion,or just to Thank God It's Friday or to celebrate an exceptionally beautiful afternoon.

By the way, I grew up in a household where we drank beer with meals, and I drank beer and wine as a small child. But we didn't drink so that we could get drunk, vomit and pass out.

At my job in the US, we were given champagne to celebrate business successes.

I am not talking about having a pint with a meal.  These are adult women who talk about drinking so much they get themselves sick.During the week. More than once.

It's hard to believe that someone can go out drinking every night (and from the way it's described, it seems like they are usually drinking more than just a pint), come to work early in the morning the next day and function at their best. I too find it a bit childish for 40-ish women to talk about barfing the night before. I did all that when  was 14.

And what happens if they have small children? Do they have a child minder watching their kids when they come home staggering to the toilet? (This goes for men who drink as well; I'm not saying that women are the only ones responsible for caring for children, it's just that the people at my job who I was discussing happen to be women.)

I also agree that pub culture is about socializing, and that you can have a soft drink or some tonic water if you don't want to drink, and you won't be ostracized. But the women  I work with go to the pub for the express purpose of getting themselves drunk.

My definition of an alcoholic doesn't have to do with the amount drunk. It is someone who's drinking interferes with their life--who has lost jobs, had failed relationships, possibly a failed marriage, isn't on speaking terms with family, and so forth because of alcohol.

My God! This thread is huge!

Since I started this thread, I wanted to clarify, I also haven't had any personal problems with other workers; I'm just making an observation. Regarding having the time to notice and make comments about other people; isn't what this forum is about--noticing the differences between British and American culture. I also notice that British and Americans use utensils differently, I don't have a problem with that.


I don't think there is anything wrong with having a drink at lunch or after work, to celebrate a birthday or a promotion,or just to Thank God It's Friday or to celebrate an exceptionally beautiful afternoon.

By the way, I grew up in a household where we drank beer with meals, and I drank beer and wine as a small child. But we didn't drink so that we could get drunk, vomit and pass out.

At my job in the US, we were given champagne to celebrate business successes.

I am not talking about having a pint with a meal.  These are adult women who talk about drinking so much they get themselves sick.During the week. More than once.

It's hard to believe that someone can go out drinking every night (and from the way it's described, it seems like they are usually drinking more than just a pint), come to work early in the morning the next day and function at their best. I too find it a bit childish for 40-ish women to talk about barfing the night before. I did all that when  was 14.

And what happens if they have small children? Do they have a child minder watching their kids when they come home staggering to the toilet?

My definition of an alcoholic doesn't have to do with the amount drunk. It is someone who's drinking interferes with their life--who has lost jobs, had failed relationships, possibly a failed marriage, isn't on speaking terms with family, and so forth because of alcohol. I've only been living here for three months, and I already know a number of people who fit this category.

Your initial post is what prompted my first reply. I agree with you whole-heartedly. I won't change my opinion of that type of behavior (no matter what culture I'm living in), and expect this forum to be a place where I can voice my opinion just as the rest of the users can post theirs.

On a positive note (I said I would post positively when given the opportunity) I've had the total enjoyment of having a couple of glasses of wine tonight and thank god I'm in a country that doesn't frown on me doing that on a Monday night...........now that said, I don't have to work tomorrow nor do I have children at home to look after. DH is 33 and can damn sure look after himself....he has done it for the past 6 years and I dare say can do it for another night. In other words, I'm not subjecting anybody to my drinking other than you wonderful ladies and gentlemen on this forum. *Smooch*

*EDIT* Spelling errors corrected to compensate for the wine consumed.

I am not talking about having a pint with a meal.  These are adult women who talk about drinking so much they get themselves sick.During the week. More than once.

It's hard to believe that someone can go out drinking every night (and from the way it's described, it seems like they are usually drinking more than just a pint), come to work early in the morning the next day and function at their best. I too find it a bit childish for 40-ish women to talk about barfing the night before. I did all that when  was 14.

And what happens if they have small children? Do they have a child minder watching their kids when they come home staggering to the toilet?

I really do not mind the drinking culture either, but this is what I was trying to get across earlier, and why I originally said that life seems to revolve more around drinking here: people of all ages talking about getting pished and bragging about it. In my first post, I said I don't mind so much because I'm in my 20s, but when you get to a certain age going out to clubs and drinking til you get sick is a different thing. I've read recently they are now installing creches in clubs so that mothers can still go out and get pished without having to pay for a babysitter... yes, there's a demand for that kind of thing. There are many many cases of parents here going out to clubs and getting drunk while they leave their kids at home because they put their need for fun before their responsibilities. I'm all for getting drunk as much as you like-- it's your life and your body to abuse -- but that's just wrong.