Classy British stuff

This is a last minute post - partly because I was thinking about this all day and I am at home unexpectedly.  I thought I was meant to go to see Helen Mirren in The Audience  tonight. But due to my head space not being compos mentis and the false pride I have in mentally filing as opposed to having a diary, I missed the play I had tickets to last night.  Insult to injury, I turned down an invitation to the hottest ticket in town for The Book of Mormon because I thought I was otherwise engaged...Argh.

Anyway, the papers had the usual smattering of different headlines today but the one that quite a lot of front page coverage was this.

Apparently, there are now more social classes in the U.K. than one previously thought.

It used to be this.

bbc.co.uk

One upper, one middle, and one working class man.
Looking up and down upon each other.

This is based on a very famous sketch which for those of you who are not familiar with it can watch here.

But apparently now there are seven different classes.


  
I don't know whether to sigh or yawn.

You see, I am not British.

I am half Australian, half Korean with an American accent that is a vestige of my international school days.  So by default and by virtue of this, the laws of gravitas in such social matters seem to escape myself along with other non Brits. 

But I am still a bit bewildered at the constant reminder of the class system in this country.

The accents are subtle enough, can't they just let it rest?

I'm sorry that I can't find it but there was a great interview with the dowager Duchess of Devonshire when she explained 
the difference between U and non-U.( Upper and aspiring middle classes )

She explained that  really posh people pronounced "Oh" in 
two syllables whilst the rest pronounced it with just the one.

The nuances in social hierarchy for a snob is like the nuances in choosing white paint for a house decor obsessive like me so I do understand somewhat.

White paint swatches.
Image viz merrypad.com

I don't know why this is even an issue in this current political and economic climate.

Do you remember those made up games that one played during childhood ? The ones that were made up as you went along and then the minute your sibling or friend started winning then you would made an exception or an amendment?

via mugglenet.com

Well, this seems very much like that.

It may be because most of Europe is flat broke.

Yet now girls from Essex and Liverpool are carrying fake tan stained, fake nail scratched, real leather Birkins. 

image via baglady.tv

The lines needed to be redrawn.

I am not going to say that I don't have my own social code - 

I think we all do.

But mine just doesn't revolve around an accent and 

who your ancestors were.

If that were the case, 

then even the Royal family wouldn't pass the social test.  

( I would be embarrassed being related to the Plantagenets. ) 

Best thing about Richard the Third was
being found in a carpark.
( Image via the telegraph.co.uk)

But the British way of class is so confusing and from an outsider's view is kind of strange.

I was thinking about this and there actually are not that many differences between the posh and ...

I am trying to find a word of saying the opposite of posh.

image via mirror.co.uk

So to be polite, I shall say the non working class.

They both live on estates.

images via countrylife and manchestercouncil / you guess which 

They both tend to have holes in their sweaters.

ehow.com

They both tend not to have central heating.

They both will never know what it is like to buy and choose new curtains.

Via alternative-windows.com

The women from both classes rarely go to university.

Image via fanpop.com

image via yahoo images

They both don't really have "proper" jobs.

image via americanlendersclub.com

But the BBC must have gotten some think tanks together because they have come up with...Presto!

If you want to take the test for fun and curiousity, click here.

Now I am off to find an audience with the Queen for another night...

Fingers crossed.