Northern and Southern divide (england)

[giraffe_02]

I just wondered how the Southern people perceive the Northerners and vice a versa?

I come from a town near Burnley and every time people see or hear about burnley Im worried they percieve us wrong. (thats if anyone has heard of it!!)

[horselady]

As a southerner I can only answer by the northerners that I've met in my life. Always friendly, and I've always got on well with them. A few older Yorkshire people have taken me a while to get used to, very dry sense of humour but hilarious once you know them. Northerners tend to think southerners are stand offish, and I think in the cities they may be but country folk are very friendly.

[carolegif]

I have spent my life moving from north to south & vice versa. There are good and bad in all people, but if you want stereoptypes. The southerners think all northerners are "gorps" and the northerners think all southerner are "spivs" and "wide boys"!

I have found that the southerners take longer to get friendly with, but once you do, they are a friend for life! Come to think of it, I still have lifelong northern friends too, so it must just be people!

carolegif

[dot.hawkes]

Well i was born just outside Mytholmroyd but moved to Ormskirk lancs as a small child, my ex husband was from Southend -on-sea and my in-laws and their relatives spoke funny and called everything by a different name and used to live off the arterial

[dot.hawkes]

Where near Burnley? My aunts live in Tod and Hebden Bridge

[B00]

Hey hi giraffe- I live not far from you then- I live in Rossendale Valley :-)

Anyhoooos back to the question!

The biggest difference i find is humour, we holiday in Cornwall every year and the things which the locals roar laughing about leaves us puzzled and vice versa.

[giraffe_02]

I agree about the humour thing! with out being offensive do southerners understand Peter Kays sense of humour?

The thing that gets me is that people use northenerns to protray unwealthiness.

For e.g. there is a advert on TV, I think by Matalan and they are emphasising that their clothes are cheap and theres a girl at the front who is quite pretty and when she speaks she has a northern accent, has anyone seen that?

[mightyWBA]

Er what about the middle My step dad calls me a "softy southerner" because he's from Newcastle,where as I'm a "northern git" to my cockney brother in law!

[B00]

Or it could mean giraffe that Matalan's stuff is for the penny pinching folks amongst us- everyone knows us Northerners are a thrifty lot- if it's good enough for that Northern lass, it's good enough for the rest of us.

Oh deary me WBA- you're neither here nor there are you? You're knackered mate....lol. ;-)

[Dollie]

My Londoner nephew has come up North to Huddersfield to Uni - not far from me. He smiled when he told me how friendly we all are, and relates tales about standing at bus stops and the people next to you in the queue start talking about anything and everything - something I gather doesn't happen much 'darn sarf' - Oh and by the way Dot - I'm only about six miles away from Mytholmroyd - lovely neck of the woods - lots of friends there.

[minimonkey]

i am a northerner and i lived in southend too!! mostly i think they all think we talk funny.....also it used to amuse when they'd say - 'i've been up north - i went to Norfolk once' hilarious

[unruliejulie]

I'm a midlander, where do i fit in????? i love the Northerners i have met. Very very friendly.

[compman]

Hi Giraffe: at least you know you're a Northerner!

Living just outside Swindon.I'm not certain where I am. My regional news on satellite tv tells me I live in the West of Enland. On the terrestial channels, BBC has me living in the South of England, while ITV has me living in the Midlands by offering me Central (South).

On maps in newspapers etc I live in the Southwest, but Government data has me living in the Southeast.

Anyhow to get back to your question, everybody is individual and it's when you get to know them, then that is the time to make a judgement.

[n00dles]

Not too late to join the thread - I hope!

I'm a Londoner by birth (South coast now), and have always chatted to people on the bus/tube/train / waiters/shop assistants etc. Have probably inherited it from my dad (born London) who was brought up in Leeds. You couldn't meet a more generous and friendly person. Have visited and stayed in Lancashire and Yorkshire - always found everyone very friendly and chatty. On holiday in Scotland (toured around) found all to be most hospitable, wherever we went. Like already mentioned there is good and bad, friendly and standoffish in all walks of life, but generally have found northerners (beyond Watford!!) most approachable [which is good for me cos I love to natter!].

[giraffe_02]

I have never really been down south for a long period of time! All I really know is what other people have said about Southerners and same for up North!

An example is on Eastenders with Bert and the Southerners think he's jumped off another planet!!

But I have heard that a lot of southerners think there is a lot of riots up here all the time. If any of you saw wife swap or any programmes that have been on about Burnley, they only see the deprived parts, where theres ASBOs etc. but not the good parts as there are some lovely parts particularly the Pennines and Pendle Hill.

[giraffe_02]

Sorry to those who live in the middle, but I suppose you could decide which side you like best. Do you either like Lancashire HotPot or Jellied Eels?

[unruliejulie]

do you NEED to ask???????

[n00dles]

I love pie and mash (stewed eels), I also love Haggis, Fish and Chips (cooked in dripping)........

Maybe I should have posted on F+D!!

[opalchick321]

I'm from Liverpool and as most of you know we take a lot of 'stick' over a lot of issues - some of it true, a lot of it not. Anyway, I know so many people who have either come up to Uni here, or just visited friends, and have loved it so much they've stayed for good. Southerners being the vast majority. It does take some of them a while to get to grips with the old lingo (language) but they get there in the end and have a fine time. Welcome.