Latest news with #culturaldifferences
Daily Mail
23-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
American mother living in the UK reveals the things she finds 'wild' about the British school system
An American mother living in the UK has revealed three things that she finds shocking about the British school system. Molly, who goes by @strangecapers on TikTok, where she has almost 50,000 followers, moved to Birmingham, England, from Texas, US, and frequently posts about the cultural differences between the two countries. In a recent post, the mother identified three features of UK schooling that she finds 'wild' as an American. Taking to TikTok, the US-born mother was shocked that 'free' schools in the UK might be religious, expressed surprise at the 'formal' uniforms worn by children and noted that far more pupils are able to walk to school than in the States. Molly's first 'shock' was that, in the UK, 'schools the public can attend for free can be religious'. Clarifying that 'state schools' in the UK are the equivalent of 'public schools' in the US, she said: 'A school that's designated for the public - not a private school - can give priority to students based on religion.' She added: 'The idea that If you want to go to school in your neighbourhood but you can't get in because kids from further away will have priority because they belong to the faith of the school blows my American mind.' Branding faith schools 'fascinating', Molly appeared to believe that such institutions 'discriminate on the basis of religion', something that would never happen in her home country. The American mother was also surprised by the prevalence of school uniforms in the UK. She acknowledged: 'I know the statistics are overwhelming - like 95 per cent of schools in the UK wear school uniforms - and it's so embedded in the culture to wear school uniform.' Yet, it's 'much less normalised' to wear a uniform in the US, she added. Laughing, she joked: 'Smart shoes... the very formal nature of going to school is new to me.' The third thing in Molly's list was, however, something that she said she's 'really excited' about. She elaborated: 'The number of children in the UK that can walk to school is just so much higher than in the US. 'The idea that you could walk to school is just, like, so exciting to me.' Adding that she was genuinely 'thrilled' that her child will have the opportunity to walk to school, Molly ended the video on a positive note. For the most part, TikTok users failed to share in the American mother's excitement, instead focusing on her two previous points. TikTokers largely disagreed with Molly's characterisation of faith schools in the UK A number of TikTokers took the opportunity to share their own experience of attending faith schools, defending this particular feature of the British school system. One commenter said: 'Don't worry Mrs American, if you're in a religious school they will still accept people not of that faith. 'I went to a Christian school and only around 20 per cent of the students were Christian.' Another said: 'When we see US kids pledging allegiance every morning, that blows our UK minds.' A third person sought to give further insight into the British school system, adding: 'They can be religious. They aren't really, though. There is a school near me called the "Church" in "place name". Not a single person who attends is religious.' A fourth said: 'They don't really discriminate based on religion though - you will see children of all faiths at a Christian-based school. Sometimes, it's the only choice in the catchment area.' A fifth recalled: 'I went to a Christian school while not being religious. Most of my friends weren't religious. I'd say it was 50/50.' Someone else sought to reassure Molly by writing: 'My kids both went to a Catholic school. We are atheist - no issue getting either [child] into this school'. Other people were more sympathetic to Molly's critique of the UK school system Others, however, appeared to share the American mother's dismay that some state schools in the UK have a religious leaning. One person said: 'Really hate how they're allowed to indoctrinate children. Even state schools in Scotland have mandatory religious observance that has to be opted out of.' While a second agreed: 'I completely agree that it's insane that in a basically secular country, we have state-funded religious schools. Religion has no place in education full stop.' A third person was more lighthearted when they commented: 'Also, many non-Church schools still have hymn practice at assembly in the morning - which I've never thought of as weird but upon reflection, it probably is a little!' Others still sought to defend the UK's uniform policy, with one person explaining: 'Uniform stops kids with less money standing out from kids that have expensive designer clothes, so they're less likely to be made fun of.' The same TikTok user added: 'Also good for discipline and standards'. A second person agreed: 'I was always told that one of the reasons we had to wear uniforms was to stop discrimination against people who are poorer based on their clothes'.
Daily Mail
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
American man living in the UK shocked by common British habit
An American living in the UK revealed the British cultural habit of being 'over-polite' is sometimes confusing for visitors. Kobie Jordan, who is from the US but now living in London, took to his TikTok @kjordyyy to reveal one culture difference he's noticed since moving across the pond. The TikToker admitted he's still adapting to the famously apologetic and overly polite nature of British culture. In the clip, which racked up more than 45,000 views, he revealed one train journey in particular left him completely stumped. He said: 'As much as I love living in the UK, there's just one thing I have to talk about. 'Their over politeness almost to a fault. It's no secret they have a huge apologising culture. Always saying sorry, sorry all the time. But boy, do I have a story for y'all.' Kobie explained he was on a 'super packed train' from Birmingham to London when an older gentleman boarded the train and began eyeing the seat beside him, but wouldn't take it. He said: 'Every single seat was taken except for one. Right next to me, there's an older gentleman that just got on the train. 'He kept looking at me. Cause it's not my job to tell you to come sit if he wants to sit. He's a grown man, he can come sit. 'He would even look, look at me and look away. His wife had found a seat, but he was kind of looking at me like I was doing something wrong.' The American admitted he was tempted to offer the free seat to the man but he hesitated as he claimed the man could just grab the seat if he wanted it. He said: 'Part of me wanted me to offer my seat next to me to him, but I was like, wait a minute, it's an open seat, he can just come grab it if he wants to sit there. 'And me being from the US, it's hard for me to judge these type of situations here because, one, I don't know if he's actually just being too polite, maybe he's not too fond of me, or it just doesn't make sense.' He concluded: 'If y'all know me, y'all know I love the UK. And this is just my opinion and I Gotta see how it is. 'As much as I love it, that's one thing that I just can't really get my head around.' Many British commenters quickly weighed in, offering their own interpretations of what the elderly gentleman may have been thinking. Many British commenters quickly weighed in, offering their own interpretations of what the elderly gentleman may have been thinking One person said: 'I think he wanted you to give up your seat so him and his wife could sit together.' To which Kobie responded: 'Very true, why didn't he ask?' Another added: 'It polite to offer the seat… especially to pregnant or older people. He may not have wanted to have assumed he should squeeze past you.' Kobie added: 'Again that's so British. If you want to sit. Sit.' Someone else added: 'We're just polite to a fault. There's an unwritten rule about sitting next to people, although in PACKED situations usually doesn't apply. 'The 'look' would typically be inferred as a request to sit there and then the other party obliges.' A fourth added: 'I'm English. if he wanted the seat he would have either taken it or asked' Another added: 'As a old English lady who loves good manners, you acted in the correct manner. the choice was his to stand.' It comes after Kobie made another video highlighting the three things he finds 'weird' in Britain. Firstly, he discusses the commonly used greeting of 'You alright?' - which he admits he initially mistook for passive aggression. He said: 'When I first moved here, I thought it was just British people being passive-aggressive, being like: 'Are you alright' after I just had a bad day. Of course I'm not alright.' Secondly, Kobie also claimed that Brits walk more than their trans-Atlantic cousins. According to the content creator, American drive or take public transportation for any distances that exceed ten minutes. He explained: 'We'll be done filming and I'll be like, "Let's get some food somewhere," and they're like: "Oh, it's only 35 minutes away." 35 minutes away? Back home, if it's more than 10 minutes, you're whipping [driving].' However, the most bewildering revelation to the American came regarding university culture. Kobie pointed out how surprising it was to find bars or pubs on many British university campuses. He said: 'They have bars and clubs on their campus. And, even weirder than that, the teacher will literally be like, "Are y'all [you all] ready for a pint after class?'' Kobie concludes his observations by claiming that drinking is normalised among British students due to the legal drinking age being 18 - with many drinking even before then - compared to 21 in the U.S. He claimed that Brits have been 'drinking since they're 15years-old, so by the time they get to college, it's nothing to them' while Americans 'go buck wild and start acting crazy' in college due to the national drinking age being 21. A number of Brits hilariously confirmed Jordan's observations in the comments, with one writing, 'As a Brit that has moved abroad, I miss walking everywhere,' while another said, 'Drinking for 15? What part of the UK in? We start from birth haha.' Meanwhile, one individual pointed out: 'Don't you guys say 'what's up' as a greeting? Isn't that pretty much the same as 'you alright?''
Irish Times
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
‘I'm really starting to dislike my husband... I am exasperated and I dread spending time with him'
Question I'm really starting to dislike my husband. We are nearly a decade married and have small children. We have always got on so well – similar sense of humour, seeing the lighter side of life, and our values used to align in terms of raising our children. I know he's very unhappy in his job and I have been encouraging him to leave, but he presents with an attitude of, 'why should I'. He has become so negative that I am completely drained. He's bitter and resentful. What is really troubling me and causing me to dislike him is that he has become extremely interested in and angry about immigration/emigration issues. He is constantly sending me videos from dubious sites with the most negative accounts of asylum seekers, many of which I'm sure are fake. He is subscribing to all sorts of conspiracy theories around matters not being reported in the media and the dangers of people seeking international protection. He also is harbouring all this stuff about male roles and that I emasculated him by not taking a married name. This has never come up before now. We travelled extensively in our 20s, we lived and worked abroad (sometimes illegally). We weren't fleeing war, we were travelling and improving economic circumstances. He has always loved meeting people of different cultures and travelling. I don't agree with his new views on matters, I feel quite strongly about helping others when they need it and being compassionate. He used to feel the same. I know this is a massive topic at present, I just don't want this topic in my home where I raise my kids. I used to debate with him on this and I've given up because I was becoming upset. I have asked him not to bring up his views with me or the children and he has kept to this with the exception of online and when we have company. He enjoys nothing more than sparking a debate when friends and family are over. It is mortifying. A number of my friends have stopped visiting because they find the debates awkward. I should be ashamed to admit, but I'm not that I have blocked my husband off all of my social media because he kept tagging me in ridiculously fake discriminatory tripe. READ MORE I am exasperated and I dread spending time with him. I married a gorgeous, funny, kind, adventurous man and over the past two years he has developed into something else. I love him so much and keep drumming into myself that he's not himself and [is] feeling resentful because he's unhappy at work. I'm exhausted, I don't want my children exposed to such views and, honestly, I'm ready to walk out. How do I get through to him? I can live with agreeing to disagree, I can't cope with the goading and, to be frank, I find his online presence an embarrassment. Where is my lovely man gone? Answer Your husband is unhappy at work and perhaps his confidence and self worth has suffered as a result. He seems to be finding support and meaning in groups that are blaming others for all the ills of the world and this points to his need for validation and purpose. We all need this and perhaps he feels very let down by what he believed would provide structure in his life, namely his career. However, it is very hard to live with someone who has very opposite views to you on fundamental issues and two years is a long time for patterns and habits to form and become solid. Can you ask him to come to couple counselling with you? He probably agrees with you that your relationship needs attention and you could offer him the option of choosing the therapist you might see (only chose from accredited sites such as the Irish Council for Psychotherapy , the Psychological Society of Ireland or the Irish Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy ). He may refuse and, if so, you know that your relationship is in serious trouble. [ 'My sister-in-law will never organise or contribute to family events, she won't offer to help in any way' Opens in new window ] Your resentment will fuel his protective mechanisms, which at the moment are to identify even more with reactive groups and this will create an even bigger rift in your relationship. Seeking support from your wider system is another option to consider. Could you speak to his family or old friendship group and see if there is anyone he might have respect for and listen to? You may also be able to appeal to his parenting role, ask him how his parents influenced him and which parts he wants to implement in his own parenting. If you are taking this route (of talking), you will need to take all the accusation and bewilderment out of your voice, so that he is not triggered into defensiveness. This is extremely hard to do so you might need your own support system (individual counselling, friends, relatives) to back you up in this endeavour. You have a long history of connection, love and adventure in this relationship and you might invoke these memories as a stable backdrop to your future together. You might talk about how to source career advice for your husband to see a bigger picture in terms of his career, and this might shift the focus of his attention. If he sees you are genuine in your interest in, and your support for, his future he may be more open to hearing what your concerns are. However, there may also come a time when nothing can be salvaged and you need to separate. If it comes to this, try to use a mediation service to help you through what is a very difficult process (see Citizens Information for more on these services). To send your question to Trish Murphy, fill in the form below, click here or email tellmeaboutit@ .form-group {width:100% !important;}
Daily Mail
13-07-2025
- Lifestyle
- Daily Mail
American woman living in the UK reveals British household features that would send US natives 'into a coma'
An American woman living in the UK has ruffled feathers after revealing four features of British households that send her 'into a coma'. Known as @yorkshireyank on TikTok, she often comments on the cultural differences between her adopted home and the US. In a video that has been viewed more than 200,000 times, the woman identifies four facets of UK homes that baffle her - and would similarly send her fellow Americans into a spin. The woman, who has almost 15,000 followers on the platform, starts with plug sockets, which she calls 'outlets'. She explains that she has been caught out by the on/off switches that control the power used by appliances. 'I can't tell you the number of times I've actually tried to make toast and that darn thing was not on,' she says. The second common characteristic of UK homes that she believes would alienate those living in small apartments in major US cities is the space available. 'Space is a premium - now I have lots of it,' she says. Third on her list is timekeeping, specifically, the 24-hour clock which is widely used in Britain, especially on digital alarm clocks and appliances like ovens. 'Yorkshire Yank' refers to this as 'military time', adding that 'most people' in her home country wouldn't be able to interpret a screen displaying 17:16. She says: 'Most people would see this and go, "I don't know what time that is," when it's really 5:18.' By using the 24-hour clock, Brits 'overcomplicate it,' she adds. But, the feature of UK homes that she appears to find most frustrating is the lack of 'closets'. It would seem that she expected to find fitted wardrobes in her Yorkshire house. She says to viewers: 'Why does my house not have any closets?' The US national explains that there was 'an empty cupboard with nothing in it' which she transformed by adding shelves. She elaborates: 'There's no other closets in the whole house - just an under stair [closet] and I turned that into a pantry.' To remedy this, she turned her spare bedroom into a walk-in wardrobe, adding that it would have cost her £10,000 to have one built in a new-build home. 'When we were looking at new builds, one of the new builds actually quoted me £10,000 to build a closet,' she says. 'And it was just glass doors on rails, and that was it. I don't get it.' The video attracted a lot of attention online, amassing almost 450 comments - but the majority of these were not sympathetic to the US woman. One person wrote: 'You're telling me America really doesn't know what the 24 [hour] clock is?' Another appeared to agree when they said: 'Calling [the] 24-hour clock "overcomplicated" has absolutely sent me'. The US woman's video amassed almost 450 comments - but very few of these were sympathetic to her A third person was similarly critical when they commented: 'Outlet? It's a plug socket! And it's for safety - our electricity runs at 240V, American [electricity] is only 120V.' A fourth TikToker was left confused by the US woman's video - but not in the way she had expected. They said: 'I'm sure toasters won't even click down if they're not plugged in.' While a firth person explained: 'Yup, we buy standalone wardrobes. Not sure why we don't have built-in cupboards - maybe space?' A sixth user was so incensed by the woman's critique of UK homes that she wrote: 'If it's so bad, you can choose to leave'. Yet, not everyone was disappointed by Yorkshire Yank's appraisal of British households. One person admitted: 'I'm British and these things annoy me also'.
Daily Mail
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Macron makes another faux pas: French president pats the back of the King's Guard while inspecting the troops with Charles
Emmanuel Macron came under fire yesterday for walking in front of King Charles during a ceremonial inspection at Windsor Castle. Now the French President, who is on a three-day state visit to the UK with his wife Brigitte, appears to have broken yet another royal protocol while he was inspecting the troops in the Upper Ward of Windsor on Wednesday. While Macron walking alongside the Grenadier Guard, and ahead of the King, the president patted the guards captain on the back. People are not supposed to touch the guards, especially while they are on ceremonial duty, if a guard is touched they are thought to shout 'hands off the King's guard!' In a clip, the guards captain can be seen quickly wiping his head around to see who had touched him. Lucky, he decided to bite his tongue on this occasion and continued the walk through with the French president. The moment caused a brief pause in the otherwise smooth procession, as the unexpected gesture took the guard by surprise. Royal fans claimed that while the president's move was likely intended as friendly, it subtly underscored the cultural differences in formal ceremony. It comes after royal fans noticed another protocol breach after Macron walked in front of King Charles during the ceremonial inspection- prompting comparisons to US President Donald Trump. In a GB News livestream of the event, Royal Correspondent Cameron Walker noted the potential breach and drew a pointed comparison. He said: 'On your screens now you'll see the King is walking behind the President of France. 'If you remember a few years ago where Queen Elizabeth II invited President Trump of the United States, during his first term of office, to inspect a guard of honour, President Trump was heavily criticised for walking in front of Her Majesty the Queen. 'And as you can see on your screens here, President Macron is walking in front of His Majesty the King. 'Now, I understand that there shouldn't really have been perhaps so much of a hoo-haa with what President Trump did, as this is perhaps custom - that the King, as the host, gives way to the foreign head of state which is the honoured guest at Windsor Castle.' Despite Walker's attempt to clarify the tradition, many viewers were unimpressed by the optics of the French President striding ahead of Britain's sovereign. Social media erupted with criticism, with some users suggesting Macron's behaviour was a deliberate snub. One furious commenter wrote: 'He's doing it on purpose. He's French, he doesn't believe in monarchy and he's an absolute narcissist trying to feel like Napoleon for 5 minutes.' Others echoed the suspicion, with one saying: 'I bet Macron is doing it on purpose. I bet he won't get as much criticism as Trump did.' Another added: 'At least Trump corrected his error by waiting for the Queen to catch up, Macron thinks he is the supreme ruler there.' In the video clip, Macron is seen conversing with members of the King's Guard as King Charles walks a few paces behind - a detail not missed by eagle-eyed royal fans. One remarked: 'And conversing with the King's Guard, as though the King was not even there! Unbelievable.' Some royal watchers placed the onus on the monarch himself, suggesting King Charles had failed to assert his position during the formal proceedings. One commenter argued: 'I don't like it but The King has not asserted himself or held any position. 'By speaking at the WEF, he is basically a pawn in the game and positions himself on par with people like Macron… the King should not be aligning himself with such degeneracy.' Avid royal fans took to social media with a flurry of opinions, with speculations emerging of tension between the King and Macron While criticism of Macron dominated much of the online chatter, a few more diplomatic voices suggested that the order of walking may have simply followed longstanding custom in which the host monarch steps back to allow the guest head of state to lead during troop inspections. One person said: 'I think he is leading the way as he is the host.' Another agreed: 'He knows royal protocol.' But the spectacle struck a nerve with many royalists, who viewed it as an example of a foreign leader failing to respect British traditions. Though there is no evidence of any personal tension between the King and the French President, the moment added fuel to the reactions, with critics keen to draw links between Macron's perceived arrogance and what they view as a lack of deference to the Crown. Whether Macron's move was a diplomatic faux pas or a customary gesture remains up for debate but, for many, the optics alone were enough to spark outrage.
