It's because Americans are more bothered about self improvement and "how you, can make YOU a better person". Like you hear that shit on their radio all the time, while in Britain, we accept who we are, if we're shit, we're shit, and we're confident to take the piss out of each other for it. Makes us lot better at friendly banter. You really can't use that with an American, they don;t take jokey insults very well.
That's cause you all are shit and you've made peace with it centuries ago. Jokey insults are best left to people you know. If you don't know someone don't run your gob or you'll get it broken. An old Irish saying goes, a man often cut a stick which beat his own back. You also are joking when you say Britain is all like that. You know damn well there are British people who don't take jokes like that kindly. I know that, we all know that. Let's not tell fibs.
Having lived in the U.S. for 30 years, I can relate.... I cannot tell you how many times I have been in a similar situation where I wanted to "get me coat".. Very trying....
People say that it's just us being mean but most people here wouldn't take offence because they know we aren't being malicious it's just friendly banter. We like to take the piss out of ourselves so naturally we do the same with others and they recognise it's just a joke. It's a great quality to be able to be laugh at yourself.
My mate has a friend from California who took a while to acclimatise to how we speak to each other. She initially particularly found it hard to get how we will say the most horrible things to our very best friends and find it hilarious. To her how the language we used was flat-out bullying, sexist, homophobic, misogynist and ableist and she found it hard to tally that up with the fact we were all educated, fairly drippy, inoffensive middle-class types saying these horrendous things and laughing about it. It took her a while to get the context of these jokes and realise it’s because we are all hideously repressed emotional cripples and the only way we can express emotions to each other in public is through insults and piss-taking. I haven’t seen her for a while but hopefully she has now got it and is now as emotionally unhealthy as the rest of us. As I don’t want to again explain how two able-bodied men in their 40s who have been friends since the 80s calling each other spastics in a North London pub after not seeing each other for a couple of years is not really oppressing anyone.
"emotional cripples?!?" Speak for yourself i would say we have it spot on and the REST of the world is emotionally crippled. get on board or do one is my advice coz we will carry on insulting each other.....with a smile.
A real conversation I had in america (Englishman, American and Canadian at a table.) American: What good have the english ever done? Englishman: What language are you speaking mate?! American: American!! The canadian and Englishman laugh. Englishman to Canadian: What language do you speak? Canadian: English, Obviously! American: Still didn't get it!!
I dont see why any American would get upset he's complimenting you. Read between the lines, he''s not stupid, he's doing a routine. He perfectly understands the value of being positve and saying that you guys are.
I’m ex Uk Navy 45 commando, spent many weeks in the desert in Helmand province, occasionally I’d get fly kicked in the head , occasionally I’d get super glued to my bed , occasionally I’d wake up with a new haircut, occasionally , it’s what we do , the yanks didn’t have a clue, yet was my brothers in arms n I love them , not our fault there abit thick ,
“Oh have a look at him will you”. That’s exactly what my old east end Nan used to say when she saw someone with a dodgy wig or tragic dress sense. Sad thing is, you can’t take the piss anymore. Rather than laugh and give it back, too many people want to run off to their safe spaces and just ‘be’.
I once showed my best mate's American wife a Billy Connolly video, she would even believe he was speaking English, so I translated and all she could say was "what's funny about that?"
To any Yanks watching, I should let you know, the comedian was largely joking, as Brits don't say stuff to strangers, we just ignore them. Although east-Londoners, like him, when drunk, probably act like as spoke about. It's their lairy attitude.
I'm American and love British humor. I hate college humor which is what most adult American revel in. It's like trying to compare Patrick Stewart to Homer Simpson.
Here's a transcript for you challenged Americans and non-native English speakers out there, with explanations in brackets: Back to where I was. I'm a very professional comedian. They don't take the piss (make fun of people) properly, either. Now we take the piss properly in the UK, we're trained as children. My nan (grandma) trained me up. She said "Come down the pub, we'll take the piss out of people, come on. As long as they don't hear, it don't matter." She'd sit me in the corner. Geezer (a guy) would come in with an eye-patch on. She'd go "Aye aye, Lord Nelson's turned up over here, look!" (Lord Nelson was a famous British naval captain who lost an eye in battle and had to wear an eye-patch) But the Americans, not so much, and it's quite trying (challenging). And I'll tell you an example of why I couldn't live there. I'm out with the Americans. They're eating too much, of course they're eating too much. A bloke (guy) came in with a wig on, a catastrophe of a wig. Bastard of a wig. Provocative. The wig is a very provocative garment. It's a bloke saying "I've lost me (my) hair. But I'm not having it. (I don't accept that) No. I'm gonna put this on me (my) head. And I'm gonna have a walk about. And you lot are gonna collude in the illusion that I've still got a barnet (a head of hair), alright? We're all on board." So the wig came in, hovered in like some sort of spaceship with a man underneath it. So I thought "At least we'll have a laugh". So I leant into the Americans and I said "Have a look. Have a look at the geezer's (guy's) wig. Have a look. Have a look at the syrup (syrup is short for 'syrup and figs' which is Cockney rhyming slang for a wig. Look up cockney rhyming slang for more information). Nothing. Nothing! They didn't join in, didn't laugh, they had no idea what I was trying to achieve. The woman got a bit upset. She said "Oh, how scathing! How scathing!" She said "Why are you attacking that man? He's obviously got issues with the loss of his hair. But he's taking positive steps." I said "Have a look at his head, love. How is walking about with a bit of old carpet on your nut (head) a positive step?" I said "I'm going home. I'm going back to the UK where sanity prevails. A bloke (guy) walks in looking like that, we all turn around as one and we go "Ha ha ha! Oh, have a look at him, will you? What a complete cunt!""
And Mickey, with humour, explains the key difference between American and UK humour, and why American remakes of UK comedies don't work (e.g. Fawlty Towers, Inbetweeners)
+Lori Maner I am also an American but I can't agree with him... not because I don't agree but because I have absolutely no idea what he just said. (no disrespect to where ever he's from, I like the sound of his accent, but it's mostly just sound it me)
went to new york few years ago and found the same. they dont know how to take the piss,and when i did,i got confused and angry looks. micky is right,we are trained from small kids to 'take the piss' its a national sport over here. i love our humour but its not for everyone.
True story. In the sixties my uncle Jimmy had a wig, and not a very good one. I was around six, my brother was around eleven. He caught me staring at my uncle, and said “ that’s not uncle Jimmys hair” I said “ who’s is it” my brother nearly peed himself laughing!
I would say the same of Brits hating Americans. lol Specially all of the vitriol spewed when people say they can't understand him. I especially like the rebuttal that we can't understand him because we're all uneducated twats. Yes, because an education in general will teach us Cockney slang. That makes so much sense. What I don't understand is how it's lost on these people that you will never really get the context of slang from any country unless you have lived there; education be damned. Personally, I didn't have too much trouble understanding the accent, but i'm sure I missed a lot of the jokes just from the slang. Like, what is a syrup?
Jessica Kalinowski I'm sure Ayy Lmao meant the British on here hating the Americans. What they fail to see is that half of the hatred they see is actually the piss taking humour featured in the video. Most Brits don't "hate" Americans with true vitriol, we "hate" you the way kids argue with their siblings. As for education... well, that doesn't just come from a school or even by being absorbed into a culture. If someone has any interest in understanding a different set slang it wouldn't be difficult with the Internet to learn, but you have to want to learn. So yes, an American saying they can't understand an English man speaking English is very extremely ignorant.
Jessica Kalinowski oh yeah, I forgot, "syrup", syrup of figs = wigs. Cockney rhyming slang. What is strange is that growing up England, not london, and being exposed to these words means that everything he said had total clarity for me, and yes I guess you take it for granted that everyone knows these every day English phrases. Because make no mistake, the words he uses are common everyday parlance in England, which is obviously where English comes from, so everything he says *is* by default, perfect English.
+purpleanex when did I ever say his English wasn't perfect? And what is perfect English anyway? It's such a mishmash of words and phrases taken from other languages. Language in general evolves, so what you speak now (no longer 17th century English) is perfect English, just like what I speak (American style English) is perfect English as well. To say that just because it originated in England therefore makes it the only true way is pretty mute at this point. It would be like saying Mexican Spanish is not true Spanish because it's not from Spain. Also, your description of what syrup, which thank you for trying, still makes little sense to an American. By wigs do you mean the political party? And what is a syrup of figs? This description looks like a jacked up math problem without any cultural clues. Not everyone knows everything about UK history, culture, and politics, so why act like it and be all butt hurt? Which, you all seem to love to mock us for but are doing the same damn thing. And simple internet searches could help, but not when you're having a conversation in person. Or, you know, y'all can just answer questions without being a dick about it. lol
Jessica Kalinowski no. The English language comes from England. The clue is in the name. Anything spoken by an English man is perfect English. What you speak isn't English. It's *American english*. Language is indeed fluid, so the English of 1700 is irelevent, as is any argument given by Americans about how they speak a version closer to old English. It's bollocks. English is defined by a geographical location. It's all it can be defined by.
+HighFlyer96 Thats what I remarked and it opened this conversation. I am flattered. What is interesting are the insults from one to the other. Also, the remarks about beer. Hilarious. I don't drink beer that much. Where I am located quality Mexican Tequila is my drink of choice. Cheers Gentlemen!
Sorry. I am sure SOMEONE would find that sticker to be offensive. And then they would call in the local chapter of RUOS - Rid us of Offensive Stickers. They would come to my house demanding the removal of said sticker under the pain of law. If I refused the local police would get involved, as well as Social Services. They would threaten to take away my kids because the sticker would "create a hostile environment" for them. Local television news would get involved as well. Finally the FBI.
You are now generalizing, which can be seen as offensive =P Saying that something offends you is just the lazy way to deal with things or people that are inconvenient or unpleasant to you. If you say it offends you, you don't have to explain anything or analyze why it's so. It's almost self-justified. Plus you can express your "wounded" ego that way. Subjectivity and ego FTW =] But that aside, I just learned a new idiom. =] Thanks.
Yes you can, what planet are you from? Louis CK, Anthony Jeselnik, and every comedian who is apart of comedy central roast. If anything Europe is far more politically correct, many people have been arrested for criticizing Islam and racial minorities. much less devoting comedy routines to it. I think I smell a troll...
There was a poor basterd worked in the labour exchange, he had a bastard of a wig; it was bright yellow but had been darned back together with a mess of black thread. He sat there all day, looking up asking q`s and then showing everyone the top of his head, 1000s of times a day. Poor sod.
Jesus! i came here to see Micky and have a laugh and now its turned from a comedy segment into a History debate about who won or helped during WW1 and WW2...ps don't get me confused with the other John Wick in the comments..cheers!
@@Isleofskye When using rhyming slang, you do not use the part that rhymes. So for example, a "Berkeley Hunt" is rhyming slang for "cunt". You do not use the rhyming part, so it's just a "Berkeley".
The thing is no one in england looks weird because if you do look strange you will be told if you are in public looking strange it means you are lonely because no has told you
If donald trump walked into any boozer in england you can guarantee someone would bet someone else to nick his wig, especially as president of the USA.
That's an interesting name for a man, especially one with M.A. =P Nice, nice... though I hope you know some bit more about Latvia than just the Soviet Union part. It's a bit annoying that USSR is the first (and pretty much only) association to many.
I am a man. Colorado. I have a B.A. in European History, a M.A. in International Studies and a J.D. in International Law. I read extensively on the history of the Soviet Union, so it naturally included the Baltic States.
And there we go people: this is how internet relationships are born! But don't you forget, children: use the webcam to verify the other person's identity. And make sure you can see them well and it's not a recording you are watching.
