Anglo-Saxon Attitudes

"What is a Primary?" You Ask

2008-01-27T00:41:59-05:00

This one's for you, Mr Rumcove! Rumcove plaintively asked during a telephone chat last week, "What the fuck's a primary?" Where to begin? I told him I'd get back to him. Luckily, BBC News has...

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Best Answerphone Message Ever: Just One of the Reasons to Love "Murphy's Law"

2008-01-14T10:56:37-05:00

The Jekyll thing was exciting in that sick adrenaline-fueled way that leaves you feeling exhausted and a bit in need of a good brain bleaching afterward, but my real James Nesbitt love is reserved...

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An Englishman Weighs in on this Whole God Business

2008-01-14T08:51:44-05:00

Having badly offended a British reader who proved too timid to leave a functioning email address, I was naturally cheered to receive the following comment on my post concerning this Yank's perception...

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Harry Enfield, The Indispensable Mr. Cholmondely-Warner (on "Conjugal Relations)," & the Late Great Douglas Adams

2008-01-08T15:54:37-05:00

In England, Harry Enfield----tragically, you may know him only as the voice of the Travelocity Gnome--- had a hit comedy show (described in more detail here) in the 1990's which he---supported by the...

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Steven Coogan: "Is This Cool?" Something You Wouldn't See Over Here

2008-01-04T22:27:54-05:00

I love Steve Coogan. Alan Partidge, Duncan Thickett, Tony Ferrino, Paul Calf, Pauline Calf, Tristram Shandy....I don't care. I will watch anything with Steve Coogan in it that I can get my hands on....

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The Last Hangman: A Must-See for the Dedicated Anglophile

2008-01-02T19:08:08-05:00

Cross-Posted at JUST EAT THE DAMN PEACH. | If you're not in need of light-hearted fun or something upbeat to take your mind off this, that, or the other, I would strongly recommend this film: the...

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Why Everyone in the Whole USA Needs BBC America: Life on Mars

2008-01-02T14:46:50-05:00

Read more here.....

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"King Arthur"

2007-12-31T15:00:00-05:00

(Cross-posted to just Eat the Damn Peach) I watched this film over and over. You could say I'm an addict. And yet: this is not the best film I've ever seen. Or put it this way: I have my own...

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Why You Need BBC America NOW: Gordon Ramsay + Jonathan Ross = AWESOME

2007-12-30T17:36:00-05:00

It's a heaping spoon full of awesome. To see and hear for yourself, click this link.

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No Soup for London's Homeless?

2007-12-26T14:34:41-05:00

Courtesy of a bit of a push from my co-blogger (at Buck Naked Politics) Cockney Robin, I wrote this post on a recent push by a Conservative MP to ban soup kitchens from Westminster. Scrooging...

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Morris Dancing & the Full Monty

2007-12-24T18:36:55-05:00

(Cross-posted in The Flatland Chronicles) I always thought it was a May Day fertility dance dating back to pagan times, but Wikipedia begs to differ. Shut up, Wikipedia. Brilliant. Note to the Brits:...

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Spongebob: "Sailor Mouth" (the British parody)

2007-12-22T11:04:24-05:00

CROSS-POSTED (ANGLO-SAXON ATTITUDES). The British parody of "Spongebob" adds a whole new dimension to the cartoon. Far from challenging this as "fair use"Viacom really need to get JokeComics4001 on...

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International Relations: W Royally Entertains the Queen (and The Daily Mail).

2007-05-08T20:18:30-04:00

Shades of Martin Chuzzlewit!. W winks---yes, winks--at the Queen at his very first white tie white house gala. To read my note, go to Versus/Reversus.

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The Sour Taste of Diplomacy? Brits "Humiliated" by Iran?

2007-04-10T16:06:29-04:00

It beats the hell out of me why, when an international incident and the need for military action is averted, all the Brits join with American neocons and hawks in bemoaning the rancid aftertaste. The...

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More Lessons in British Culture from an American in England. Instructive!

2007-04-03T06:06:45-04:00

More funny if rather unkind observations on English culture by Jon Tillman.... As a follow-up to his previous note, "Thirteen Things I Have Learned About America from the British," Jon Tillman has...

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One American's British Education: 13 Valuable Lessons (at Jon Tillman.Com).

2007-03-24T16:15:36-04:00

This is the most interesting entry I read in last week's meme game, the Thursday 13. It's called "Thirteen Things I Have Learned About America from the British," and it's posted at Jon Tillman.Com...

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The Mil Millington Website and Related Millington-Based Goodness.

2007-02-19T16:12:09-05:00

If you call yourself an Anglophile, test out your understanding of the English and your tolerance for the British love of light-hearted irony even in the most sacred relationships by reading what...

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The Flatland Almanack Honors List: Ricky Gervais.

2007-01-15T23:21:11-05:00

Ricky Gervais is one of my heroes. You can't help sensing if you're paying attention that behind the cherubic smile and squeaky giggle beats a dark, cynical spirit and that behind that is a mind with...

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The Flatland Almanack Honors List: A Tribute to Simon Schama.

2006-12-21T02:44:21-05:00

I have referred a number of times to Simon Schama's A History of Britain. Try as you might, you will not find a history series that succeeds in the same fashion in bringing to the past and its people...

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The Flatland Almanack Honors List: Emmy Winner Ray Winstone.

2006-12-16T03:47:35-05:00

= Ray Winstone, the charismatic actor, recently won the international Emmy for best actor based on his role in Vincent. We are Winstone fans from way before, but we're happy to see him properly...

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Good Old Norman the Conqueror vs. William the Bastard

2006-12-15T02:25:26-05:00

While considering Simon Schama's History of Britain in my television/entertainment blog, "Just Eat the Damn Peach," I was reminded of my archenemy "Norman the Conqueror," who got me ridiculed...

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The Flatland Almanack Honors list: Big Love for Gordon Ramsay.

2006-12-13T00:08:50-05:00

I've actually written quite a few tributes to Gordon Ramsay, but they seemed to belong better in my television blog than here. Let's face it, Ramsay---consummately...

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The Office (US): A tribute & a retraction.

2006-10-10T05:38:39-04:00

I live to eat my words. Like the original, it's a great show. And like the original, completely original (in a different way).

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The Flatland Almanack Honors List: The Master Chef.

2006-08-20T17:31:34-04:00

1. Why I'm Writing This. Words cannot express my adoration and reverence for Gordon Ramsay. But I intend to try. My initial title for this posting was "Gordon Ramsay: My TV Boyfriend," a bit of...

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English food, American tourist (Part 2): English candy

2006-08-14T03:54:00-04:00

My sister-in-law Sarah ruined American candy for me with two fell sentences. "All you can taste is sugar," she said. "It's too sweet." I'm sure I've heard people say that before, but I guess I never...

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An update on the Cirencester problem.

2006-08-09T16:39:00-04:00

If the Cirencester town council thinks they can shut down the debate over the correct pronunciation of their town name with this, they have another think coming. I will never give in. I get far more...

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English food, American tourist (Part 1)

2006-07-29T16:39:00-04:00

[published in "The Flatland Oracles" on July 29, 2006] * CAVEAT: not designed for people interested in fine dining. If that's you, check out this site. [1] The myth. Years ago, when I was first a...

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Wandering Scribe?

2006-07-24T16:38:00-04:00

[published on July 24, 2006 in "The Flatland Oracles"] In a posting on 15 July, I talked a bit about homeless bloggers who had used blogging as a means to re-connect with the world. One of the...

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Estuary Englishman.

2006-07-05T16:38:00-04:00

[published on July 5, 2006 in "The Flatland Oracles"] For Rumcove's amendment, click here. 1. The Estuary Beat As I have mentioned elsewhere, Mr. Rumcove and I met over the internet in 1997. We...

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The Very Cruel Poll & Mr. Rumcove's 4th of July

2006-07-04T16:37:00-04:00

[published on July 4, 2006] Actually the title of the Yahoo.com article from which I am preparing to quote says it all: "Britons Tire of Cruel, Vulgar US: poll." The results of the poll, published in...

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