If there’s one thing we Brits enjoy, it’s judging Americans and their way of living.
The problem is that as much as we love pointing out American quirks, we conveniently ignore the fact that we do exactly the same things, just with different accents and slightly more self-awareness. These are just some of the habits we look down upon, even though they’re just as common on our side of the pond.
1. Being obsessed with reality television
We mock Americans for their obsession with shows like Keeping Up with the Kardashians and The Bachelor, acting like their reality TV culture is somehow beneath our sophisticated British sensibilities. We love to point out how shallow and meaningless these programmes are, while shaking our heads at American viewing habits.
Meanwhile, we’re absolutely glued to Love Island, Made in Chelsea, and The Only Way Is Essex, and we’ve been doing this reality TV thing since Big Brother started in the UK. We created half the formats that America adapted, but somehow when we watch people argue in a villa in Majorca, it’s different from watching them argue in a mansion in Los Angeles.
2. Having terrible eating habits and processed food
Americans get endless grief for their fast food culture, supersized portions, and reliance on processed meals, and we act like we’re horrified by their dietary choices. We love to criticise their McDonald’s obsession and their tendency to eat convenience foods instead of proper home-cooked meals.
And yet, we’re the country that invented fish and chips, beans on toast, and the meal deal, and our high streets are packed with Greggs, McDonald’s, and chicken shops. We eat just as much processed food, we just call it different names and pretend our version is somehow more acceptable because it comes with mushy peas.
3. Being loud and obnoxious when travelling abroad
British people love to complain about loud American tourists who don’t understand local customs and expect everyone to speak English wherever they go. We roll our eyes at their inability to blend in and their tendency to compare everything to how things are done back home.
But anyone who’s been to Benidorm, Magaluf, or literally anywhere in Europe during peak holiday season knows that British tourists can be absolutely horrendous. We get drunk, cause trouble, demand English breakfasts everywhere we go, and act like the entire world should cater to our needs while wearing football shirts in inappropriate places.
4. Having an unhealthy obsession with celebrities
We judge Americans for their celebrity worship culture and their obsession with Hollywood stars, acting like their fascination with famous people’s personal lives is somehow more intense than ours. We love to point out how they treat celebrities like royalty and follow their every move.
Except we literally have actual royalty that we obsess over constantly, plus we’re just as obsessed with our own celebrities through Heat magazine, OK!, and endless tabloid coverage. We follow every detail of celebrity relationships, breakups, and scandals, but somehow when we do it, it’s different because we’re being “cheeky” about it.
5. Being ignorant about geography and other cultures
Americans constantly get mocked for not knowing where countries are on a map or asking ridiculous questions about British culture like whether we all know the Queen personally. We love to share stories about Americans who think England is a city or who are surprised that we have modern technology.
Of course, most Brits couldn’t point out individual American states on a map, and we’re equally clueless about large parts of the world that aren’t Europe or former British colonies. We make assumptions about American culture based on TV shows and movies, and plenty of us think all Americans live in either New York or Texas.
6. Being politically divided and argumentative
We watch American political discourse and shake our heads at how divided and hostile their political conversations have become. We act like their partisan politics and social media arguments are uniquely American problems that we’re somehow above as more civilised people.
However, Brexit nearly tore our country apart, we argue constantly about everything from Scottish independence to which biscuit is best, and our political discussions can get just as heated and personal. We’re just as likely to fall out with family members over politics, but we pretend our arguments are more sophisticated because we use different vocabulary.
7. Having no sense of irony or sarcasm
One of our favourite stereotypes about Americans is that they don’t understand sarcasm or irony and take everything at face value. We act like we invented these forms of humour and that Americans are too literal-minded to appreciate our sophisticated wit.
The thing is, plenty of Brits completely miss sarcasm too, especially online where tone is harder to detect, and we’ve got our share of people who take everything deadly seriously. We’re not all walking around being witty and ironic all the time, and many of us are just as likely to miss subtle jokes as anyone else.
8. Having terrible weather but obsessing over it constantly
We mock Americans for complaining about weather that seems perfectly normal to us, or for making a big deal about snow when they’re not used to it. We act like our ability to cope with rubbish weather makes us somehow superior and more resilient than people from sunnier climates.
Meanwhile, we literally can’t stop talking about the weather, and it’s our go-to conversation starter in every situation. We moan about rain, complain when it’s too hot, and act like a bit of snow is the end of the world despite living in a country where weather is consistently disappointing.
9. Being overly patriotic and nationalistic
American patriotism and flag-waving gets mocked constantly by Brits, who think their nationalism is over the top and their pride in their country is somehow embarrassing. We love to point out how they play their national anthem at sporting events and pledge allegiance to flags.
The thing is, we sing “God Save the Queen” at every opportunity, get incredibly defensive about anything British, and act like we invented everything good in the world from queuing to tea. We’re just as likely to get worked up about perceived slights to our national honour, but we pretend our patriotism is more understated and therefore acceptable.
10. Having an unhealthy relationship with alcohol
We judge American drinking culture and their attitudes towards alcohol, acting like their binge-drinking problems or their overly casual approach to alcohol consumption is somehow different from our own relationship with booze. We love to point out their drinking and driving problems or their party culture.
Britain has one of the worst binge-drinking cultures in Europe, and our relationship with alcohol is absolutely toxic, but we’ve normalised it to the point where we don’t even recognise it as a problem. We drink to celebrate, commiserate, socialise, and cope with stress, but somehow when Americans do similar things, we judge them for it.
11. Being obsessed with convenience and instant gratification
Americans get criticised for wanting everything fast and convenient, from drive-through everything to same-day delivery and instant solutions to complex problems. We act like their impatience and desire for convenience shows a lack of character or appreciation for quality.
Of course, we’re just as obsessed with convenience culture through online shopping, meal deals, contactless payments, and expecting everything to be available instantly. We want our parcels delivered next day, our food ready in minutes, and our entertainment available on demand, but somehow when we do it, it’s just being practical.
12. Having poor dental hygiene and healthcare habits
Americans love to mock British teeth and our supposedly poor dental hygiene, so we respond by criticising their expensive healthcare system and their tendency to ignore health problems until they become serious. We act like our healthcare system makes us naturally healthier and more sensible about medical issues.
Sadly, we’re just as likely to ignore health problems, avoid going to the doctor, and make poor lifestyle choices that affect our well-being. We might have the NHS, but that doesn’t mean we actually use it properly or take better care of ourselves than people in other countries.
13. Being culturally insensitive while claiming to be progressive
We love to point out American cultural insensitivity and their history of problematic attitudes towards other cultures, acting like we’re somehow more enlightened and progressive in our approach to diversity and inclusion. We mock their cultural blindness while positioning ourselves as more worldly.
Britain’s colonial history speaks for itself, and we’re still dealing with plenty of our own cultural insensitivity issues, from casual racism to class prejudice that we’ve just learned to dress up in more polite language. We’re not automatically more progressive just because we use different vocabulary to discuss the same problems.
14. Complaining constantly but doing nothing about it
Americans get mocked for their tendency to complain about everything from politics to customer service while not actually taking action to change things. We act like their complaining culture is uniquely American and that they’re all talk but no action when it comes to solving problems.
However, moaning is practically our national sport, and we complain about everything from the weather to the government to our neighbours while rarely doing anything constructive about our grievances. We’ve elevated complaining to an art form, but somehow when Americans do it, they’re being whiny rather than charmingly grumpy like us.
