A Guide to England
This page includes some information about England to help the members of this RPG. It is up to you how much you incoporate this information into your roleplaying. It is quite a long list so please use the quick links below to go to each section if you don't wish to scroll.
Quick Links: Dialects, Words, Travel, Religion, Retail, Seasons & Holidays, Ages, Miscellaneous.
Dialects
Universities have a variety of people of different ages and from difference places. Most will be from somewhere in the UK, while others may be foreign exchange students. Here is some information about dialects:
• Asian/African Caribbean: A lot of people from these cultures have now developed their own mix of Asian/African Carribean and Londoner dialect.
• Other English Accents/Dialects: People commonly assume that there are only two English accents; Cockney and Posh/proper speech. This is not true. Every area in England produces it's own accent and dialect. Generally you can describe English accents as Northern or Southern and they will say things differently, and will generally laugh at people from the opposite area i.e. a Northerner will laugh at a Southerner.
• Other area accents are also referred to by names depending on the area. Some examples are;
Geordie - People from Newcastle
Brummie - People from Birmingham
Scouser - People from Liverpool
Manchunian - People from Manchester
• Certain areas also have a reputation. For example; Northerns have the reputation for drinking a lot of bear and girls from Essex (a borough of London) have a reputation for being 'loose' and slutty.
• For more information about how people in England speak see here.
Words
English people have sayings and words have different meanings to other places in the world, here are some examples:
• Fags - Fag = a cigarette, and a pack of fags = a pack of cigarettes
• Bird/Chick - Both words are used to describe a woman, especially an attractive one.
• Curse words - Profanity/swear words
• "Taking the piss/Taking the mick" - This refers to when someone is having a laugh, laughing at someone or making a joke out of someone. Example; 'She's taking the piss out of me' or 'she's taking the piss'.
• Slag/Trollop/tart - Another word for slut
• Arse - Same as ass, but the English spelling.
• "Slagging me off" - This means the same as bitching/insulting. Example; 'She has been slagging me off to him' or 'he really slagged her off'.
• Chavs/townies/Pikeys - These are all words to describe people, usually young people, who wear designer labels, hoodies and gold chains. They usually think they are very cool and are usually the ones in trouble/in fights.
• Pikeys - This word also refers to gypsies and travellers.
• Pissed - This still means being angry, but also means to be drunk and acting foolish.
• Wicked/bad/sick - Both of these words mean that something is very good, or cool. Example; 'Last night was so bad' or 'That's so wicked'
• Bof/Boffin - Someone who is geeky or very intelligent. Can be used as an insult, especially when at school.
• Sad - Means pathetic, lame. Example; 'She's so sad'
• Beef - Means to have a problem with someone/something. Example; 'Do you have beef with me?' or 'What's your beef?'. This word is usually only used by African Caribbean men, although some white men do use it when they are a part of the 'in' crowd.
• Safe - This can be used as a greeting, Example; 'Safe, Ben, how are you?' or to mean that someone or something is excepted/exceptable, Example; 'That's safe' or 'Ben's safe'. This word is usually only used by African Caribbean men, although some white men do use it when they are a part of the 'in' crowd.
• Manky/Minging - Disgusting, horrible. Example; 'That's so manky!' or 'She's minging!'
• Manks - Not to get confused with Manky, this refers to fans of the Manchester United Football Club
• Football - This differs greatly to American football and is basically the same as soccer, although in England it has a very big following.
• Rugby - Similar to American Football, and has quite a big following especially in Northern England, but is not as popular as football.
• Ruddy Hell - Ruddy is used in the same way as bloody. And is considered profanity.
• Geezar - A Man. The term originally came from a man who did a lot of odd jobs, it's now just used as a slang term to mean 'a man'.
• Bloke - A man
• Trousers - Pants
• Knickers - Panties
• Tea - Also known as 'tea time', tea refers to the drink as well as dinner.
• Supper - Supper is a snack after dinner and before bed.
• Mobile Phone/Mobile - A Cell phone
• Sweets - Candy. Sweets are usually defined by their type so chocolate, gum, sweets, etc. instead of all being called candy.
• Trainers - Sports shoes
• Cheers/Ta - Thanks. Example; Cheers, love.
Travel
Cabs: Cabs (not usually referred to as taxies) can be used, but the underground trains come a lot faster and are a lot more effective due to rush hour (see below). The traditional Black Cab is mainly used in central London and it is only in that area (the busiest part) that you can find them sitting around waiting for customers. Any where else you can still find black cabs, but mini-cabs are more common and you will have to call a phone number to arrange a cab.
Rush Hour: This happens in the morning when people go to work and school, and in the evening when people come home from work/school and go out for the evening. The roads get extremely congested and queues can last for hours. That is why a lot of people rely on public transport to get them to and from work and school. Most people who work outside of Reading will commute there every morning. Please note that at these times of the day buses and trains will be very full.
Buses: Bus stops are spaced evenly along the route and to signal for a bus to stop you just stick out your hand. The bus should stop, but it isn't uncommon for a bus driver to go past you or for buses to be late. To get off a bus you need to press the 'stop' button that is on the bus; otherwise the bus won't stop.
Trains: There are train stops every few minutes along the route and they are faster than buses for two reasons; no traffic and faster speeds. Tickets for trains can be purchsed at the train station using a ticket machine or going to the ticket desk.
Car Travel: Cars are used a lot, and most houses now have a driveway (a space in front of the house where a car is parked). There are some garages around, but not many at all, so please keep this in mind. The legal age for driving is 17 and you can start learning when you are 16. In England drivers drive on the left side of the road.
Motorways: Motorways are highways designed to carry a large volume of traffic where a normal road would not suffice or would be unsafe, usually between cities." (from here) While a motorway is a type of highway you won't find any English person call them highways.
The M25 is a ring road or an orbital motorway. It goes around the whole of London and is traditionally known for being heavily congested. If you need to get to another area of London the best route is to hop onto the M25 and drive around to the juction where you want to get off. Other ways of getting from an area south of the river to somewhere north of the river are two tunnels (the blackwall tunnel and the dartford crossing - this a part of the M25). A good source of information on the M25 is here.More information on Motorways is on this site. If you want to get really technical and use directions in a post, this wikipedia site has a list of all the motorways and A-Roads in the UK and their destinations.
Religion
Christianity is the dominant religion in England, specifically Protestantism (the Church of England), although catholicism is widely practised as well. People do go to church regularly and there are an abundance of churches in London, so everyone has a local church, but sundays are no longer about going to church. The Church of England does have an influence on politics in the UK but it is no where near as powerful as it once was. London has a strong Jewish and Islamic presense as well. Religions do have an influence on politics, but not as great as it is in other countries. An example of this is homosexuality; legally binding unions are now allowed in the UK for homosexual couples despite religious opposition.
Retail
There are not many grocery stores around now. People do their food shopping and every day shopping at supermarkets. The most common ones include Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Waitrose, Marks and Spencers, Somerfield, Kwik Save, Iceland and Co-op. The last 4 are much smaller shops than the others. Most supermarkets now offer a range of products, not just food, such as clothes, insurance, internet supplier, alcohol, ciggarettes, cosmetics, greeting cards/wrapping paper, flowers and much more. For more information on supermarkets and specific shops please use this page. Other information on supermarkets (and pictures) can be found here.
Most towns will have their own high street full of small shops and usually one supermarket. In one area there will be 3-4 supermarkets within driving distance. There will be local shops as well as larger companies.Here's a list of commonly found shops in London (Listings with a / = two seperate stores that cover the same products):
Boots - Pharmacy, cosmetics, opticians
Superdrug - Pharmacy, cosmetics
Marks and Spencers - Mentioned above as a supermarket, they also have a large clothes section (all ages/genders), lingerie, household items, bedding
BHS - clothes (all ages/genders), lingerie, household items, bedding
Thorntons - Chocolates
Birthdays / Clintons - Greeting cards, wrapping paper, special occasions
WH Smith - Stationery, magazines, newspapers, books, DVDs, music, Computer Games
Waterstones / Ottakar's - Books
Jessops - Cameras, digital equipment, printers, photos
Virgin Megastores / HMV - Music, posters, DVDs, Videos, Computer Games
Pizza Hutt / Dominoes Pizza - Pizza resturants and takeaways
Primark - Cheaper prices; clothes (all ages/genders), lingerie, household items, bedding
Millets / Blacks / O'Neill / Free Spirit- Outdoor; camping, activity, clothes, hiking and more. O'Niel
JD sports / JJB sports / Lillywhites / Soccer world / All Sports - Sports, including clothing and 'team' kits.
Debenhams - A Large store catering for clothes, ball gowns, shoes, house hold items, bedding, bathroom
Clarks / Jones / Foot Locker- Shoe shops
Game / Gamestation - Computer Games
Games Workshop - Models, tabletop games, hobby shop
Disney Store / Gamleys / Toys R us - Toy Stores (Disney Store = just disney products). Toys R us is a very big store and is usually part of a retail part, and not in a town.
Pilot / H & M / New Look / Etams / Bay Trading Company / Top Shop / Dortothy Perkins / River Island - Clothes shops specialising in women's clothing
H & M / Top Shop / Top Man / River Island / Burtons - Clothes shops specialising in men's clothing
Anne Summers - Lingerie and adult products
Morgan / French Connection - Designer clothes
La Senenza - Lingerie
Lush / Body Shop - Natural cosmetics
Woolworths - Music, DVDs, posters, toys, childrens clothes, sweets and bits and pieces
Maplin / Dixons / Currys - Technical and electrical items
PC World - Computers
Argos - Does a bit of everything apart from food and clothes. They have a large catalogue of stock, and you go to the desk to collect the items. You cannot pick them off the shelves.
O2, Orange, Phones 4 U, Carphone warehouse - Mobile Phones
DFS / Ikea - Large furniture stores, usually found on a retail park
Staples - Large officer supplier, usually found on a retail park.
Home base / BNQ - Garden products, garden furniture, bathrooms, decorating, DIY, wood, stone etc.
Clothes Sizes: Women's clothes sizes start with 6 as the smallest; 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22. 14 is the average size, so size 6 is pretty tiny. A lot of shops now do plus and petite ranges. Men's clothes are done differently; small, medium, large, x-large, xx-large and xxx-large.
Opening Times: Most shops open at 9am and close at 5:30pm. It is not unusual for town centres to be open late nights, usually on Thursdays, until 9pm. Supermarkets open earlier and stay open until about 10pm, some are also sometimes open 24 hours.
Retail Parks: These are a collection of larger stores outside a town that can be reached by bus or car. There are car parks surrounding the stores.
Take-Aways/Resturants: Resturants vary, and most take-away places are Pizzas (Pizza Hutt and Domino's Pizza), fish and chips, Indian, or burgers (Macdonalds, Burger King). There are resturants for every type of cusine in England now, and you can find a few specific English resturants around now,, There are also Carveries which serve carved meat and other meals.
Pubs: "A public house, usually known as a pub, is a drinking establishment" (from here; see for more information and pictures). Pubs sometimes also serve meals now, or just packets of crisps and peanuts. There are also bars dotted around as well, some bars will have themes and many have theme nights. Around the University, but off Campus, there will be a lot of bars that cater just for students. These are refered to as 'student bars.'
Seasons & Holidays
Winter - December to February; the weather can range from wet and windy, to hail and snow. It has been known for snow to be as later as February and March. During the winter the sun is very low in the sky, and can be blinding when it is out. Daylight begins at around 7:30am, and ends at about 4pm in December and January. Towards the end of January and in February it begins to get lighter at about 6:30/7am and then gets dark about 5pm-6pm.
Spring - March to May; The weather begins to get warmer, and apart from some snow occasionally at the beginning of March, the weather is usually just wet. April is especially known for it's April Showers.
Summer - June to August; From late July and all the way through August expect blistering heat. It's too hot to do anything really. In England there is NO Air conditioning. Also expect a lot of thunderstorms because it gets so hot, these can build up or just suddenly happen.
Autumn - September to November; The weather is quite warm for September, and still for the beginning of October and then it starts getting chilly, wetter and windier again.
British Summer Time - On the last sunday of March, British Summer time begins and the clock goes forward one hour. It ends on the last Sunday in October, when the clock goes back an hour. Reasons and History for this can be found here.
Holidays: There are several holidays throughout the year that are only celebrated in England:
Shrove Tuesday: Known in Britain as Pancake day, it has lost a lot of it's relevant religious reasons and is now usually a day you have pancakes on. Date; 28th February, details here.
St David's Day: Feast day for the patron Saint of Wales. There may be celebrating done in pubs or in Wales on this day, but not many people take notice of it. Date; 1st March, details here.
St Patrick's Day: Feast Day for the patron Saint of Ireland and the most popular saint's day, and is usually celebrated a lot. It's usually celebrated by students with special nights at pubs and bars. Date; 17th March, details here.
Mothers Day/Mothering Sunday: The celebration and appreciation of mothers and grandmothers. This is usually spent visiting them and with a greeting card and present.Date; last Sunday in March, details here.
St George's Day: Feast Day for the paron Saint of England, which once again is only celebrated by a few and is suprisingly ignored. Date; 23rd April, details here.
May Day: A bank holiday; most people have this day off work. Date; 1st May, details here.
Father's Day: The celebration and appreciation of fathers and grandfathers. This is usually spent visiting them and with a greeting card and present. Date; 3rd Sunday in February, details here.
Guy Fawkes Night: A night of firework displays and bonfires to celebrate the end of a plot to kill the king. Date; 5th November, details here.
Rememberance Day and Rememberance Sunday: A day to commemorate World War I and other wars. This day is taken notice by the majority of people and weeks before poppies can be bought to pin to your coat in memory. Rememberance Day is 11th of November, and Rememberance Sunday is the Sunday closest to that day and there are usually Church services on that Sunday. On November 11th, at 11:11am, there is a minute of silence that is usually observed. Details are here.
St Andrew's Day: Feast day for the patron Saint of Scotland. There may be celebrating done in pubs or in Scotland on this day, but not many people take notice of it. Date; 17th November, details here.
Boxing Day: The day after Christmas Day, a nationaly holiday although some companies open their stores and offer double/triple pay to staff. The day is usually spent with family like Christmas Day. Date; December 26th, details here.
Bank Holidays: Bank Holidays are public holidays where most people have the day of work. Nowadays, some people work on a bank holiday for double or triple pay at work. See here for more details.
Ages
16 and 18 are important ages in the UK. At 16 you can leave school, leave home, legally have sex, drink alcohol (cannot buy), smoke, play the lottery. At 18 you can buy alcohol, enter pubs and bars and enter/buy any other adult products/establishments. Some bars and pubs are over 21. The Ratings for films are U (General), PG (Parental Guidance), 12A (Can be watched by under 12's with parental Guidance), 12 (Over 12's only), 15 (Over 15's only) and 18 (adult).
Miscellaneous
Suppliers: Phone companties; BT, NTL, Telewest. BT is the most common. Internet suppliers; BT, NTL, telewest, AOL - broardband is common.Electricity & Gas; British Gas, NPower, powergen. Water; Thames Water, Three Valleys Water, Sutton & East Surrey Water, Essex & Suffolk Water.
Telephone Numbers: All numbers begin with the area code. When in the area you can leave off the area code, but on mobiles/cell phones you must include the full number and it's area code.
Air Conditioning/Heating: All housing in the UK has a boiler and has a heating system. In older houses this will make lots of noises, such as clonk when the water/heating is turning itself on. There is no air conditioning system, so in the summer people rely on portable fans and keeping windows wide open. Most windows will also have double glazing to keep heat in and sound out.
Emergency Services: To call the emergency services you call 999 NOT 911. Calling 911 in the UK will get you know where. Most police stations have a non-emergency contact number as well now so that the emergency line does not get too busy. Please also note that unless armed forces, police will not carry guns.
Smoking: Since July 2007 it has been illegal to smoke in public buildings or around the entrances of them. (Note; the current RPG time is September 2007, so this ban has been in effect for several months.)