Acceptable Behaviour in England

Interesting project on the subject done by the students at Woodlands Junior School!

http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/behaviour.html

ETA: My favorite one is at the very bottom: "It is ok for women to drink beer."

Do not pick your nose in public.

What a neat little site!  I sent it to my 10 yo granddaughter who loves all things British after her visit here this past summer

They answered a few questions I have especially about men wearing a hat inside a house. Onslow does it in "Keeping up appearances"

Do people drink from a bowl, say when having cereal? It is faster than using a spoon. I would never do it outside my home. I don't think my mother would have allowed it even at home.

I think a lot of Brits would find it entertaining watching Americans eat their food with a fork.
Equally Americans would find it interesting to watch Brits eat with a knife and fork and only putting small portions of food in their mouth.

Peacemaker, what do you mean by only putting small portions of food in their mouths?

Americans use knives and forks to eat their food, they just hold them in different hands than British people.

From your post, it sounds like Americans don't cut their food with a knife, they just shove it whole into their mouths.

I think a lot of Brits would find it entertaining watching Americans eat their food with a fork.
Equally Americans would find it interesting to watch Brits eat with a knife and fork and only putting small portions of food in their mouth.

 

I've never mentioned my boyfriend's way of eating (tines up) to him as I recognise it's my problem not his, there's nothing wrong with what he's doing, it's just different to how I was taught , he eats perfectly neatly.  Have you ever met any British people Jim? Or been to England? Your comments on the British are like no British people I've ever met in my whole life as a British person living in England.

Your post make it sound like all Americans shovel down giant forkfuls, I don't believe that at all. Neither do I believe all people in the UK hold their fork tines down and their knife not like a pen. I do, as we had lessons on it in school, but I don't think many of my contemporaries do, I don't see it as a problem unless food is falling from your mouth, then it can be quite off putting to other diners.

Your cereal bowl comment is just odd, I'm not sure what you're getting at, are you implying that it's acceptable in the US, not acceptable, acceptable in the UK, or is it like most things, something that people would probably do in their own home but not something they'd do in a posh hotel, regardless of country?

I understood it to mean that Americans usually just use their forks to eat and cut the food. My parents (born and bred Americans) often just use their forks to cut softer food. They might use a knife for steak or something tougher, but cutting one bite at a time, then laying down the knife and switching the fork back to the dominant hand and eating. It is quite cumbersome, even just to watch!

I understood it to mean that Americans usually just use their forks to eat and cut the food. My parents (born and bred Americans) often just use their forks to cut softer food. They might use a knife for steak or something tougher, but cutting one bite at a time, then laying down the knife and switching the fork back to the dominant hand and eating. It is quite cumbersome, even just to watch!

This is how I was taught to use a knife. Now when I eat, I use my knife a lot more and actually hold my cutlery the British way. I'm too lazy to do all the hand switching! I get more comments from Americans about how I use my cutlery than I ever got from Brits watching me eat the 'American' way.

This is how I was taught to use a knife. Now when I eat, I use my knife a lot more and actually hold my cutlery the British way. I'm too lazy to do all the hand switching! I get more comments from Americans about how I use my cutlery than I ever got from Brits watching me eat the 'American' way.

Me, too! I learned to eat this way when I was 17 and in France for the first time as an exchange student with a French family. I still remember them (the hot older brother! ) showing me how to eat without switching hands all the time! I never went back to the other way, but I still get comments today 20 years later about it when I'm here in the US. Odd!

I understood it to mean that Americans usually just use their forks to eat and cut the food. My parents (born and bred Americans) often just use their forks to cut softer food. They might use a knife for steak or something tougher, but cutting one bite at a time, then laying down the knife and switching the fork back to the dominant hand and eating. It is quite cumbersome, even just to watch!

That's new to me.

I've always cut all of my food with a knife, although using the switching back and forth method till I moved here.

I understood it to mean that Americans usually just use their forks to eat and cut the food. My parents (born and bred Americans) often just use their forks to cut softer food. They might use a knife for steak or something tougher, but cutting one bite at a time, then laying down the knife and switching the fork back to the dominant hand and eating. It is quite cumbersome, even just to watch!

That's what I meant.

That's what I meant.

That's what I thought you meant as well. I do that all the time - I usually give my hubby a knife and don't bother with one for myself as a lot of things I just use a fork to cut... Sometimes I eat in the British fashion, depending what I'm eating.

That's what I thought you meant as well. I do that all the time - I usually give my hubby a knife and don't bother with one for myself as a lot of things I just use a fork to cut... Sometimes I eat in the British fashion, depending what I'm eating.

Same here!  Except I always thought it was more of a "casual" at home eating style, meaning if we were out to dinner in a restaurant, I'd use the knife.  But I'd do it the cumbersome American way of putting the fork down, switching hands, picking up the knife to cut, etc.

Hey we forgot to mention 'fish and chips' and using our fingers.

Hot-dogs, hamburgers, chicken, corn on the cob and pizza. All good with the fingers.

Yeah, I just thought it was cute what the kids felt were "essential" rules. You can hear the echos of their parents in those rules!!

Oh, and Peacemaker- now I want chips!