1970: England's NORTH-SOUTH divide | Man Alive | Voice of the People | BBC Archive

[@catgladwell5684]

Another depiction of the "working class" north vs the "middle class" south. They never compare a wealthy northern area with a poor one in the south - and there are many examples of both.

[@jamesswindley9599]

So true. I’m a southerner, and my northern family is posher and more stuck up than anyone I know near me 🤣😂🇬🇧

[@LRC92]

Especially in the South West, the poorest county in England is Cornwall.

[@paulhunter123]

thats true

[@oddities-whatnot]

The media has always liked to depict the north as poor because the media has always been biased towards the south.

[@catgladwell5684]

@Funky Monk Not at all. The premise of the Man Alive episode was the north-south divide, and they chose somewhere that looked like Coronation Street as a paradigm of the north of England. They could have used some leafy Cheshire village. Or a Corry equivalent in the south. In fact, as I am sure we all realise, you can't prove anything anecdotally.

[@dannyward673]

I’m a east end cockney and my step father was from Hull or as he said it Ull. One thing that I noticed was the humour up north it’s a dry sense of humour which I absolutely love and makes me laugh no end. Working class is working class no matter north or south. Both the salts of the earth.

[@MrNanomonkey]

Ah when I lived in London one of the things I really missed was the Yorkshire wit.

[@dannyward673]

@DnB and Psy Production I don’t eat ells and besides the traditional pie houses serve steamed ells not jellied. I see you have DnB as your name ? Actually the sound that you affiliate too began in a warehouse club in Marshgate Lane, Stratford east London called telepathy back in 1990/91 I was a early raver to it. Funny how we southerners adopted the pies from northern dockers back in the day and now you have adopted a sound that started from the very council estates I grew up on. 👍🏼

[@adailydaughter6196]

Northerners are a great antidote to people who take themselves too seriously 😅 and I'm a southerner 🤣

[@joesmith8701]

@DnB and Psy Production pie and mash is lovely dispite how horrible it looks but sod jellied eeles

[@Jmf1190]

Northern comedians are just funnier. It’s the delivery and accent (I’m a southerner)

[@BlackStar-yk7iz]

The interviewer is a blatant troublemaker, running back to the northerners to tell tales on the southerner just to stir up a bit of hate lol 🤣

[@sidvyas8549]

Gotta stir the pot lmao

[@pdillon1987]

@@sidvyas8549 then eat from the lid ;-)

[@harryf1ashman]

Agreed. Why not go to Bristol or Plymouth. The reality is that this is london/surrey vs the rest

[@overlordnat]

That must be his Northern sense of humour as Melvyn Bragg is Northern himself!

[@AMPProf]

but was it true?

[@ummmusa162]

As a bury ‘lass’ I very much enjoyed listening to this- their voices reminded me of my grandparents who have both now passed away. All my family in past generations have worked the cotton mills. Was lovely to listen and look in on their lives ❤

[@mariabolt3881]

N'ther Bury Lass, born 'n bred. Am still 'ere, n' all!

[@gwdesign1]

Broadcast a week after I was born, in Bury.

[@bessofhardwick9311]

This reminds me of my childhood in the 70s in the North. Never saw or heard of anyone eating off saucepan lids LOL Fish and chips were a once-a-week treat on Fridays to give my gran an evening off cooking for 5 people.

[@Freedom4Palestine3672]

Much like what most people do now with a Friday night takeaway.

[@fidelismcall6890]

Was it pot noodles the rest of the week😂

[@aliorr9356]

You say that like pot noodles are cheap 😆

[@danielle5360]

Exactly 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻✌🏻❤️❤️✌🏻🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧 I'm northan from Yorkshire, born in the 70s and totally agree with you 100% 8 neither new of anyone who ate off sauce pan lids never thats a right load of rubbish, thay must of bin proper poor if thay couldn't afford to eat l off a plate, never met a family yet5at did have plates. 🤬🤬🤬

[@pizzamad3334]

i go camping and eat off the saucepan lid .. bread and jam will do !

[@lauraswann5543]

What I was thinking during this was; if the Northerners all cooked everything in one pot, then how did they have so many saucepan lids to all eat from?

[@stuffandfaff]

Exactly! 😂

[@northfolk6991]

🤣😂👍

[@valeriemcwilliam7933]

Hahaha that's great , I love that

[@sammuddel7751]

Lmao! Nice one

[@Tester-sh1mn]

Saucepan lids are forever, pots are temporary.

[@williamwilson6499]

As a Yank, I had the privilege of living in North Yorkshire for five years, 85-90, and I dearly loved it.

[@Joanna7428]

Ooh some parts in North Yorkshire are beautiful - it's quite expensive to live there these days.

[@phillipl2267]

Menwith Hill I presume. I was there in the 80s and 90s, great place.

[@williamwilson6499]

@@phillipl2267 I will neither confirm nor deny.

[@alisonmckie3818]

We.r a friendly bunch 🎉

[@emmajanewatts4388]

@@williamwilson6499not far from me at all

[@elenae3876]

The interviewing was really stirring the pot. "She said this and she said that". Oh lord.

[@carolcr4024]

I was brought up in Bury in the 50s - 70s and we had proper meals and NEVER ate off pan lids!

[@carbonblade1]

I must say watching this is fascinating and I really like the lady in the factory who does most of the talking. Looking at clips like this makes me wonder what the rest of their lives were like. Now I find myself thinking if they were 25 then they’d be nearly 80 now if they’re still alive. These are like a time machine.

[@Freedom4Palestine3672]

It'd be nice if they managed to track anyone down from the episode, if they're still around.

[@LuPoj]

This channel is underrated. For a lifelong language learner like me, these glimpses into the UK's past are THE BOMB.

[@claredavies21]

Amazing to be honest.

[@t.castro4493]

For sure. I'm Brazilian and it's cool to see the evolution of British dialects and the cultures of the countries in the UK.

[@Helen-vb3nh]

I’m sure you’ll soon realise British people never think to slow down, speak clearly or try to tone down the accent! I’m a northerner who’s lived abroad and I really realised how people’s expectations of us is not often the reality, unfortunately! Is this north/ south divide something your country has too?!

[@LuPoj]

@@Helen-vb3nh It was a thing before the war. Now: Definitely not. After WW2 borders were reshaped, which forced massive exodus westwards. Those who lived on the eastern frontier had a specific sway and soft ring. However, forced to relocate to different parts of the country, plus massive job-seeking movement, people reduced the differences over time.

[@al1665]

"These glimpses into the UK's past are THE BOMB". Any resemblance to real events is merely coincidental.

[@ruboo8053]

Lol not the reporter going back to the mill with the gossip 😂

[@annawithaj1]

🤣 you're sharp

[@Humble_abode-k2h]

Yes. Must of been like " guess what she said"😂

[@pizzamad3334]

we've not got over it still haha. immigration is so bad right now here in Yorkshire. 2024.

[@Bombabingbong66]

Yes he did. 😂😂😂

[@julianhermanubis6800]

As an American, it took me a while to realize that the English North is treated like the American South in the national media of each country.

[@aaanawaleh]

Yes, the working class and neglected portion of society is often thought of as the north. The south (with London and the posh countryside) is often thought of as posher and a bit snobbish. Of course, this is the general stereotype and it’s changed a bit over time. Nowadays, London is well known for the roadman culture and isn’t thought of as being as posh.

[@tommiatkins3443]

Not exactly. There are many racists in the North, but very few white supremacist. The North is also very similar to the south as in belief in fairy tales such as religion. The UK doesn't have guns, except in Manchester they have a few, and of course that's where the deaths happen.. About five a year. Northerners in the UK don't tend to drive pick up trucks shooting fully automatic weapons into the sky. They never turned traitor to the UK so they could enslave humans and fought a war over it. Generally they vote left wing, because being stupidly rich is seen in the UK as something seedy and disgusting. There IS more obesity in the North, such as you get in your South. Education is poorer like your South, but decency is still a value there unlike the southern states. There is also more homophobic bigotry in the North of England. People tend to rage about pathetic childish stuff like a man wearing a dress and other meaningless trivial things , and our media is set up to fuel this rage, but even that's different. Almost nobody is beaten to death or no go areas for sections of the public. We went very different directions when your revolt succeeded. We progressed. Taken a few steps back since trump made being awful acceptable, but still Generally a land of peace and freedom.

[@emilydavison2053]

In Italy, the north is the posh part. Watch the end of laurel and hardy's 'way out west'. 'Shut my mouth, I'm from the south!' Although Stan Laurel was from the north of England.

[@tkokflux6322]

@@aaanawaleh quite frankly its sad that London is getting that kind of a rep considering that its a capital city in usa being capital city doesnt have that much influence but here over europe due to our small size capital cities usually r representative of our nations

[@jennytaylor3324]

This is an astute observation.

[@hermanmunster3358]

My family were/are working class Northerners from the North East, and my Mother ALWAYS cooked, for NINE of us. Sometimes in one pan, if she made a stew or cassetole. But often we had meat and three or four veg. So my memories are quite different to that Southern bint In The glasses, a typical Southern SNOB! Fish and Chips was a rare treat in our house, even though my mum worked part time during school hours, and my Dad worked full time, always. I live in the South now, and the Coffee and Gossip culture is WAY more prevalent down here, than it ever was where I was brought up.

[@UKGeezer]

When we moved from Kent to Cornwall in the early 80s, I remember everyone at school thought my accent was Australian, lol. I had a real hard time understanding the Cornish accent, it was like learning a foreign language. So many accents for such a small country.

[@sgabig]

I needed to read the closed captioning of this video

[@kubhlaikhan2015]

That's funny. I moved in the reverse direction and everyone thought I was American.

[@deserteagle-nx1hl]

Medieval England's serfs were confined to their villages by their aristocratic lords so every village developed its own accent. Such is one theory.

[@cycillak4918]

Its really weird cos when i moved up to York everyone thought i was australian too

[@christschool]

@@kubhlaikhan2015 Cornwall contributed much of America's Anglo population. As an American, I understand people from Cornwall better than any other region of Britain.

[@bluejeanmeanie]

I’m seventeen and American and I can’t get enough of stuff like this 👍

[@JustDaniel6764]

🤣 Absolute mad lad

[@jayveebloggs9057]

wow what do you make of it? Pray tell...

[@Belfastboi]

How brilliant

[@richardg5942]

Then you should watch Spring and Port Wine (1970)!

[@iamgod6464]

Yes these people are where your ancestors came from.😂🇺🇸🇬🇧

[@StrudelShaft]

You can see the light going out in the husband’s eyes with every word the wife speaks 😂

[@1969Kismet]

He must have thought of the welcome commitee he would be getting if he so much as dared crossed that North/South divide.

[@zacmumblethunder7466]

Watching them play cribbage is one of the most dismal things I've ever seen. It's like slow euthanasia.

[@baabaabaa2293]

Yeah, poor man married Dame Edna!

[@Patrick3183]

He’s handsome AF

[@MrGoneTroppo]

Game of cribbage, dear? Yes love 😀

[@hoisin75]

I'm a south Londoner now living in Grimsby. People are people. Some good, some bad...just different accents. It's all perception.

[@swaneknoctic9555]

I have said this for years. People are people, the same the world over, they cry they laugh etc.

[@carolineridlington5010]

Good old Grimsby...am from Grimsby and moved south...🥰... l do lunch with the southern dwags....dog walking ladies..who do lunch...gossip just the same....😂

[@paulcarruthers8646]

Just how the government planned it they don't want a united England it's easier to control fighting eachother

[@GuessMyName234]

I'm from the North but I think Grimsby is a miserable place clues in the name

[@carolineridlington5010]

@@GuessMyName234 it wasn't when I lived there...Great Grimsby...clue is in the name..🥰

[@neitan6891]

Lady: “None of them cooked” 20 seconds later: “Yes, they worked in the factory” Um, maybe that’s why they don’t have the time or energy to cook an elaborate meal from scratch?

[@janebaker4912]

Exactly!

[@annnee6818]

Yeah really

[@peezebeuponyou3774]

Lasted literally five minutes in t'mill.😂

[@danielsmith5143]

@@peezebeuponyou3774 aye, she were buggered after one day! Bet she didn't do any cooking when she got home that day either. Probably why she married a chef a nall

[@Jkk55]

My mother worked in the mill all day then came home and cooked for all the family fish and chips on a Friday (payday)

[@Miller4866]

That meal in the saucepan, my dear, is called a stewpot. It's arguably the best meal ever created in the UK. Plus, it's full of goodness, so give it a try, my old duck. You might enjoy it. 😋

[@Ravenswalk]

Doesn't sound like my Mum I was brought up in West Yorkshire and Mum had a cooked meal on the table every night if we had Fish and Chips it was on a Saturday after doing the shopping. My parents both worked hard as did all the parents on our street it was a warm wonderful place to grow up.

[@SenorTucano]

British fish and chips is simply awful. Heavy batter, soggy chips and all soaked in grease.

[@kanderson4417]

Fish and chips was the only tae away back then.

[@hho200812345]

Sounds just like my upbringing.. 3 square meals a day and both my mum and dad worked. My dad ran 20 looms and when someone on his shift was off sick he ran 40. He never stopped.. my mum was a spinner but then went to work in the local school kitchen so that she could be at home when it was school holidays. I miss those streets and that feeling of community.. gone forever I’m afraid..

[@kashd4668]

@@SenorTucano Aaahhh! Lovely! That's made me feel hungry. Can't wait for the Chippy to open later today! Yummy!😊😊❤❤

[@Iazzaboyce]

I was born in the south, but my parents were from the north. When I visited Gateshead in the 70s I went out for a walk on my own - next thing there was ten kids after me - I reckoned I was in for a hiding - they just wanted to know who I was and did I want to play football. Where I came from it was usually 'If I don't want someone to play - I'll take my ball in'..

[@Stevenhamer82]

I'm from the south and moved up to Geordie land, never regretted it. Love living in the Northeast

[@jayveebloggs9057]

Great to have you here!

[@angelofthenorthgirl]

Aye we're a canny bunch

[@fellspoint9364]

What’s the rent up north? I’m trying to flee Baltimore before I get shot. The murder rate is crazy .

[@tytube3001]

you must be a coffee addict

[@Stevenhamer82]

@@tytube3001 you're right 😂

[@davechristian7543]

Loved the 70s n 80s growing up best years ever.simple but also exiting.theses ladys r my mum n dads age.fun to watch especially for an Aussie.

[@thewickedpixie63]

Chippy Friday 🙌 Friendliest ,most down to earth people. No fuss, no frills but bloody good hearts.

[@elizabethsheffield6609]

.........yes but that won't pay the Bills.

[@jamesroyle6888]

Working class is working class. Whether its North, south, scottish Welsh, or English. We're all under the same boot.

[@darynweir97]

Being Scottish is better but & any english man and Irishman would agree

[@tub19]

Here you for got us in the Midlands lol.

[@bethhague8470]

Statistically not really. Northern working class children do much worse at school and have a lower age expectancy in comparison to Southern working class children. Funding for free buses, schools and sports programmes overwhelmingly afforded to southern children improves their quality of life

[@jessrabbit1877]

do not resign yourself to your parents classage. you can be whatever you want to be. class terminology is nobody's friend.

[@Sigma-xb6kn]

@@jessrabbit1877 Well, that's just an excuse to ignore the systemic problems poor people face.

[@donnanew6129]

Aw I loved this my mum was from Rochdale. Moved south when I was small in 1970. My aunt still Lives in Bury. My mum used to say. As you go north the weather gets colder but the hearts get warmer 🥰

[@MePeterNicholls]

No one can afford fish n chips for a family more than once a week now

[@gooderspitman8052]

We couldn’t then.

[@Saltine_the_clown]

​@@gooderspitman8052Debatable

[@heatherives8646]

So true and also the fish 🐟 always taste better in the 70's wrapped in newspaper.

[@jacko717]

Family of 3, no change out of £20 for fish chips and peas now!

[@petermilburn1214]

Last time my wife and I had fish and chips it was £25, not cheap.

[@RichPickingsBT41]

As a Salford lad living down south , this had me going down memory lane from the 70's. Loves the man in the mill summing up the southerners, he's bang on by the way.

[@rozdoyle8872]

As an Irish Woman who lived in Irlam of the Heights for 10 years ,I absolutely loved the place , the people were good old fashioned down to earth decent souls . Bury Market was one of my favourite haunts .

[@CarlHoare]

When I watch old interviews with the working class or otherwise, there is literally never any umming and arring as a means pausing or thinking of what to say next, everyone doesn't now!

[@vicesquadpunk]

The Southern lady didn’t appear to be very happy…. Happiness can’t be bought! ❤️

[@Wagoo]

Not a peep out of 'er poor old long sufferin' 'usband 'n' all

[@johnp8131]

She doesn't sound very Southern though? If you listen carefully she has a mild Mildland twang?

[@Darthshearer]

That is southern to us northerners

[@paul64774]

No she didn’t look happy. Probably mentally damaged form her time up North.

[@MrGroganmeister]

Sad bitter woman with an inferiority complex and a bad attitude. Poor hubby.

[@johnp8131]

I was born in the late fifties in rural Hertfordshire, before most of the "New Towns" were built. In the sixties, every Easter we would drive, up to see my "posh" Aunt in Co Durham. That was pretty much the opposite of what's shown here?

[@PTD2023]

Lived both north and south - and I do miss that northern hospitality. A spades a spade as it should be.

[@ajs41]

Have you lived in the Midlands? There are about 10 million of us here.

[@Bonypart]

Except you might be accused of being of a certain leaning if you used that expression these days. Got to be so careful in this woke world.

[@AMPProf]

not a sheep wolf.. but the crimes

[@stevenwyatt1670]

Live in the north west I’m from Hong Kong and I love it here.

[@Ras6200]

As a Southerner I always love the North for the reasons the male worker said! Less pretentious and much more friendly. Cosy feeling of being part of things when you're out and about. Like in a pub. I know the North are supposed to dislike southerners but that's probably those who don't respond to the warm ambience and set themselves apart.

[@ajs41]

Don't you think those are stereotypes? I've encountered plenty of rude people in the north, and plenty of friendly people in the south. I'm from the Midlands myself.

[@richardboswell9306]

​@@ajs41that explains it you don't know where you belong north Derbyshire, North Nottinghamshire ,North Lincolnshire all will say they are northern

[@holdtightadele8017]

But it’s hard to draw parallels. I’m from the south east in what used to be a humble little town. Pretence is not something g I’ve seen an abundance of.

[@RichPickingsBT41]

😂👍@@richardboswell9306

[@nigelreardon7535]

My mate said that Northerners are more laid back than Southerners and Channel Islanders

[@RudeSkaBoy007]

Absolutely love these types of documentaries. A wee snapshot into the not so distant past. Plenty of work but conditions and pay were terrible.

[@icydsting6037]

has much changed? lol

[@CJ-ji1pq]

Takes me back to my childhood, when about 8 or 9 of us family members from Fife would travel down to stay with our Yorkshire relatives in Donnie & Barnsley during the summer holidays. I remember running in and out of the smoky, loud Working Mens Clubs (just like the one shown) with my cousins while all my family, grandparents, great aunts and uncles, drank and laughed inside. Those people and time, just a memory now.................

[@gitsurfer27]

£3.50 for a 4 bedroom house....conditions we're terrible in certain areas in certain times, but in general they didn't have it worse than we do now.

[@valuetraveler2026]

face it it was far better then

[@oliverhendrick393]

@@icydsting6037plenty of work maybe?

[@tehf00n]

It was tough growing up with a class divide when as an intelligent northern lad I couldn't get a second look from a southern company as soon as I spoke my stereotypical accent. The best thing about the internet is that divide is being whittled away. Game of Thrones helped a bit too :D

[@al201103]

Pretty disgusted to read about your experience. Born and raised in the South and wouldn't dream of judging someone on their accent. Shame on those that overlooked you for such a ridiculous bias. Hope you're hugely successful in whatever you do!!

[@tehf00n]

@@al201103 I am now. I work for myself as a freelance game developer where accents mean nothing and skill experience is everything.

[@al201103]

@@tehf00n Fantastic!!

[@stephenhumphrey7935]

E by gum lad.

[@tehf00n]

@@stephenhumphrey7935 bit right of norf tho. I drink PG Tips not Yorkshire tea. :D

[@jessrosefawkes2721]

I’m from Wakefield , a Yorkshire lass born and bred and proud and I’ve got family from Barnsley too. Leeds united till I die!!xx

[@AkiraGuitar777]

Sexy northern lass never change..... To a Londoner like me your more exotic then any bird from the other side of the world ❤❤❤

[@micheledibenedetto7780]

Im a cockney and burds from wakey are tip top bang on , love a rump and up the gary too plus you get a nice slap up pie n chips after youve done the bizzo . Bootiful

[@deelatham5080]

I’m from Bury now living in the south and I can’t wait to retire so I can go home back to my friendly welcoming people … it makes me proud to be northern!

[@ConfusedAlien-th1ls]

I live in bury, never met people so lazy, everyone thinks they are part of green street

[@Bogna1]

@@ConfusedAlien-th1ls lazy or unemployed?

[@ConfusedAlien-th1ls]

@Bogna1 both unfortunately

[@annemariecandyflip6531]

@@ConfusedAlien-th1ls Blame Margareth Thatcher for it

[@Me-xp3ts]

I'm 100% with you! There's newt like folk! I really hope you manage to retire & go home, if you haven't already done it, if/when you read this reply 🎉

[@SMWalkerAtelierDeCouture]

I come from wigan. Im proud of it. Love the northerners they are the friendliest people you will ever meet. I live in France now.

[@davidwhite4874]

Ha ha!

[@PCamb1234]

Not even for thirty quid? By heck,he had some principles on him that lad

[@stormy3307]

😂

[@rooneye]

1:37 Man i miss workmans clubs like that. Used to go on trips and that. All dead now. If you see one still open and go in they're depressing places now. You can see the past remnants of old glory days. Theres one near me thats huge and has a whole floor with its own bar and snooker hall and everything never has a single sole in it apart from maybe a couple people will play snooker once in a while. Its very like grand victorian and a huge ornate space with high ceilings etc. and you can imagine it being packed and full of life. but its totally dead 😔even the bar downstairs doesnt fill up even on a weekend. years back would have been full every night.

[@MahiTanMazy]

What changed to make it empty?

[@qxqp]

You can just feel how much calmer and content people were back then just by watching these videos. If they time travelled forward to today I'm pretty sure they'd have a heart attack within a week.

[@TrueFilter]

Yes so much more content. Hiding their sexuality. Open racism. Feeling pressured to live as a housewife.

[@maskedavenger2578]

I lived back then & I am still around today ,the difference back then working people didn’t expect the luxury’s that those even unemployed enjoy today They also called things out for what it is & none of that political correct nonsense or victimhood . People just got on with it .this lot today would have a heart attack if they ever had to go back to our times ,now they get offended by comedy .

[@scottw.3258]

@@maskedavenger2578 You hit the nail on the head!!

[@maskedavenger2578]

@@scottw.3258 Funny you should mention that . I have been hitting nails on the head most of my life ,as I am a retired Joiner 👍

[@nektekket852]

I was around then too, and in my opinion people were just more docile and uneducated back then, readier to tug the forelock for the ruling classes, which it seems northerners these days are keen to get back to. And if by "political correctness" , you mean "not being a rude a***hole" , I'm all for it!

[@knuteboy3778]

I like the talkative lady in the factory. She's sassy and cute lol. As an American I just love these old school British women

[@AkiraGuitar777]

I'm born and raised in London and I LOVE northern birds, they are just different to girls around here, quality girl's ❤😊

[@Greenpoloboy3]

7:25 "We sleep in beds you know, we're quite normal" This lady is hilarious. I live in the South. There are 2 places I'd love to of lived at this time: East London, and the North. People just seem so funny and interesting. I could imagine having a cup of tea with these people and a good ol' chat

[@pureboxofscartcables]

I think I am in love with her..

[@spudwish]

*have

[@richardsawyer5428]

The same with the North East and South West. It's definitely the people that make the place.

[@Greenpoloboy3]

@spud spuddy All adds to the flavour

[@Greenpoloboy3]

@@richardsawyer5428 Exactly!

[@robertsmith5970]

I find you can have a good chat with people you don't know when out and about up north more so than down south ,not to say it never happens in the south .I always think the northern attitude comes from the industrial revolution when large numbers of people leaving villages and small towns to work in the big industrial places had to get on as incomers together , rather than the south where though its changed a lot more recently, more people stayed in the same small towns and villages and were a bit untrusting of outsiders.

[@Alfred5555]

@@aduantas Only London has a much higher population density, the North as a whole has more and larger cities than the South. Of the top 10 most populated cities in Britain right now, 6 are in the North, 1 in Scotland, 1 in the Midlands, and 2 in the South, one of which is London. Excluding London the North is much more densely populated than the South.

[@thedarkness111]

People always say that as if southerners are somehow missing out. I don't want random people talking to me on the bus etc. I literally can't imagine anything worse...

[@BrightSeaStar]

@@thedarkness111 I'm an American, and I find it rather fun.

[@mattdns162]

This channel is a time machine. Great content.

[@adrianh332]

My dad was from Bury and he married a southern girl (my mum) we lived in the south but my dad and I took a holiday to Bury to see my aunt every year so I'm half northern and saw both sides of the divide and it's true what they say people in the north are much more relaxed and friendly than southerners but prejudices run deep my mother still believes to this days that northerners eat nothing but fish and chips pies etc etc inspite of being married to my dad for 50 years before he died and being repeatedly told the stereotypes were false.

[@thomasranjit7781]

Pity women can't get into kitchen and prepare some lovely meals for family due to work...

[@reddragon3163]

Very interesting comment. Translate that over to how people must of viewed foreigners then and you can see why so many old people hold so many illogical racists views.

[@robertclive491]

You spread false stereotypes about southerners so you're hardly immune.

[@DaniG.German883]

@@reddragon3163hop off

[@adrianh332]

​@@robertclive491 And what false stereotype would that be because I can't see it. All I said was people from the north are more relaxed and generally friendlier that's my subjective lived experience of the north south divide.

[@besidestheobvious666]

I'm originally from east London and when i moved to Newcastle just over 10 years ago everyone told me it was grim up north, but I don't see a problem with eating fish and chips everyday, it's delicious. And I have a lot more free time now I've stopped brushing my teeth and started drinking larger in bed. I couldn't be happier.

[@mokisan]

😂

[@judegrindvoll8467]

🤣🤣🤣 that’s hilarious

[@johncaygill878]

You have probably stopped being a bender also.

[@buckfastdead5989]

I'm a northerner and I feel that since we've been able to communicate and travel more the divide is less than what it was. We're all flesh and blood and I'll always welcome my southern brothers and sisters.

[@jaxcoss5790]

Spot on!

[@adonaiyah2196]

I got family up north and ive lived in London for a lot of my life

[@oo--7714]

No just look at job opportunities, or placements, all in the south

[@carltonlambert7608]

Definitely and I totally agree. People aren't funny like that anymore unless your quite old or super rural.

[@oasis4life014]

Im from the midlands I wouldn’t ever wanna live down south

[@soundseeker63]

I think today its more of a class / income divide than an actual North/South thing. But it is definitely still true to say that northerners are generally more friendly and open towards others. Spend half an hour listening to people at a bus stop in Leeds, then do the same in London, and you'll see exactly what I mean. As for eating off pan lids, what a load of tosh! I feel a bit sorry for the bloke in that clip being married to such a snooty old madam! He looks proper miserable..

[@josephcole8046]

I'd say its more of a community, but a community that don't like outsiders so I certainly wouldn't say northerners are more open to others as a general rule. I'm basing this on my experience living in Liverpool where one would constantly be called a 'wool' etc.

[@chubbec]

London isn't the entire south and isn't really comparable to Leeds

[@Alfred5555]

@@josephcole8046 Liverpool is particularly and increasingly insular area haha. Scouser has for over 100 years practically been it's own ethnicity.

[@Alfred5555]

@@josephcole8046 That probabaly plays a role. But most people in England would absolutely recognise a difference between the North and South as being a real and fair distinction to make. There's just different layers and resolutions you can look at the cultures of Britain, but in England the main distinction is North and South.

[@josephcole8046]

@@Alfred5555 Yep, although I'm sure it stems more from economic factors. It just so happens that, in England, that fits perfectly with the North and South divide. Although, London, Manchester etc are fast becoming essentially the same place, but in different locations. Very little community, identity or cultural differences outside of architecture these days from my experience. There are subtle differences, but when a city is built for tourists, they all become the same and the people living there follow the same trajectory.

[@beeniemen]

How everything changed . I cannot imagine in 30 years from now

[@karlosthejackel69]

In 30 years, the BBC will say this footage is fiction

[@claireproctor1353]

The Lady from the South reminds me of Mrs Bucket character from the comedy Keeping Up Appearances 😅

[@theurbancrystalhealer6952]

Even to this day people up north are warm, genuine and friendly, they give you everything they got- down south it’s all about survival

[@AMPProf]

It is/they are right up.. till ya get stabbed

[@pollyparrot8759]

The southern woman seems to be fighting a one woman battle to prove the north's contention that southerners are snobs. She seems to have totally mixed up dire poverty with lack of standards and as for her children refusing to eat food given to them as a guest, well a few lessons in good manners wouldn't have gone astray. I live in the south and am glad to say that she is not really representative of southerners and her examples are not representative of northerners and they never were. I know this is an old video but even when it was made it was rubbish.

[@ticketyboo2456]

Polly Parrot I think northerners are more likely to get their knickers in a twist over stereotypes than southerners.... you for instance....

[@pollyparrot8759]

@@ticketyboo2456 You are of course welcome to think what you like, my own thinking is that the producers of the original programme had deliberately looked for and found a southerner with ridiculous stereotypical views. Anyway, I can't waste time lollygagging with you I have a whippet to walk, a flat hat to clean and the pigeons to feed before cracking on and making hisself's snap for work tomorrow. By eck a wuman's wurk is never dun!

[@queeniegreengrass3513]

As ever the BBC spends time dividing people rather than uniting them, over petty or indeed real differences...

[@pollyparrot8759]

@@queeniegreengrass3513 Yes they've been doing it for decades.

[@mattylamb9194]

She actually sounds like she is from the Midlands anyway

[@Plbay335]

Look as an Anglophile Irish man, I love ‘em all, however as a tourist, the North has always felt more at peace with itself.

[@usarugbyleagueunionfan]

Me too as a Yank.

[@dylanmurphy9389]

Me Three

[@chillijoe8264]

can’t stand the place.

[@chillijoe8264]

@Lily Wood it’s towns are dire, the weather is awful, and they seem to have this childlike belief that everyone from the south is wealthy.

[@aimée_sao]

i've lived in ireland, south england, north england, and wales. ireland wins, closely followed by wales. 😂

[@booth2710]

My dad was Yorkshire through and through and he always used to say 'Huh London ... ya can keep it!"

[@bettyprice6316]

Oh my gosh look at the social clubs, look how happy people were even though they thought they had it tough. Now days there is no social clubs and pups are going fast. I would love to go back to those days.

[@seansmith445]

There are still quite a few social clubs left actually.

[@lavettacannon3138]

I LOVED these salt of the Earth Northern accents. Especially the brown haired lady in the light blue smock!❤

[@user-jq7di9pz8m]

Even to this day, im a southerner living in liverpool and I been asked by a person since I been up here if I had a golf course near me and what it's like living in a poorer area now 😄 I grew up on a council estate in Portsmouth, some northerners think we all live in Downton Abbey or something

[@SallySturman]

🤣 Some people love their sweeping generalisations

[@molimolinana]

As an English teacher in Spain I have heard endless, often hilarious stereotypes about English/British/Londoners... Not only does most of the world seem to believe we *all* live off fish and chips (and it's tough to convince them otherwise 😅), most people thought my freckles were a skin disease like ezcma, and once I was even asked - straight-up - if I'm a hooligan 🤣🤣🤣 Often comments and questions are down to innocent ignorance though, and we all do it in our different ways wherever we are in the world... That's why it's important to communicate with people of all backgrounds, and to travel as much as possible - including within one's own country of birth.

[@jdlc903]

@@molimolinana deary me, those Spaniards.

[@molimolinana]

@@jdlc903 well, to be fair, the Brits (and people from all over the world) make their fair share of stereotyping clangers too! 😉 This is one reason reason why being a teacher is a fun and creative opportunity to break /down/ barriers and open up people's minds :)

[@jdlc903]

@@molimolinana yo pienso que los Españoles tiene un prejudicia anti ingles muy fuerte.en general puede ser algo simpatico y buen educado pero tambien solo tienen cosas negativo que dice sobre los ingleses .he vivido en España por mucho años.pero tambien me gusta España mucho.

[@painfulsilence316]

How sad that woman is like "oh in the north they just hang out drinking coffee and socializing, how terrible!". The way we've been beaten into thinking that not working for one second is sinful...

[@edp3202]

Exactly. Women demonized all around.

[@happyuk06]

Or eating fish and chips?? I've never understood the snobbery associated with eating fish and potatoes (which man has been eating for millennia).

[@edp3202]

@@happyuk06 it's seen as poor man's meal?

[@happyuk06]

@@edp3202 Yes, it traditionally has been, though fish is much more expensive now. The people doing the denigrating of working class diets were not scientific in any way, merely snobbish.

[@painfulsilence316]

@@happyuk06 I've never been to the UK but I say keep that snobbery alive and well, lest it become like lobster in the USA. Nobody should be paying $30 for "fancy" fish and chips

[@Betterthantelly]

Harry Enfield is a genius with the make up you can’t tell it’s him. 6:50 what a great lady. Brilliant snapshot of a past reality.

[@Musika1321]

I am originally from 70s West Yorkshire where my mum never went to coffee mornings (though she was far from antisocial) and all our meals were home cooked. I don't know if she was typical but most folk I knew from the north are hard working and down to earth.

[@joannamillan8882]

My mam cooked all are meals too.

[@TA-kp4bk]

At 7:42 when he mentions drinking so much beer her hand rubs her neck in guilt uh oh 😭

[@dawn5227]

I'm from the South and I've visited the North and people are just generally so much nicer up north, it feels like it's more of a community up north. Down here everyone has there heads down with grim looks on their faces. We certainly are not all snobby rich people though.

[@summerrr1]

You’ll get sick of everyone knowing your business after a while.

[@Cordelia-again]

I'm a Southerner living up North - I'm peeing myself laughing - funniest thing I've watched in years.

[@AMPProf]

Why?

[@sutty8526]

Why?

[@nancydupuis8083]

I love these videos showing England as it was. I'm from the US and even as foreigner I feel a sad nostalgia for the disappearing culture. I love hearing the people talk. I know England has many different accents but I have trouble telling them apart.

[@TeaLuck1]

Incredible. Such a small country and So much clanishness !

[@EMD1792]

What a shame to see England disappear in front of our own eyes

[@docmarten8382]

Wish the BBC would make quality programmes like this now!

[@illstuffamattresswithyou5657]

People change and making a show like this now just wouldn’t work with the way people are

[@Greenpoloboy3]

They can't . It might upset someone

[@GEricG]

@@illstuffamattresswithyou5657 that's true but most people's reason for having a go at the BBC is for cultural reasons. Of course the BBC has changed over the years just like a lot of media and of course it has had to become more representative. One cannot ignore the fact that we live in a more diverse society - like it or not.

[@paulhunter123]

@@illstuffamattresswithyou5657 why wouldnt it people are still people just in a later time

[@spritesheets]

@@Greenpoloboy3 I bet you get upset about a lot on TV...

[@CessBee123]

I'm from Essex and a proud southerner, but working class is working class isn't it? The north south divide is real, but really the bedrock of the country is the same, apart from accents. This feels like the BBC trying to create differences, but for the life of me I don't know why seeing as we're all in this together.

[@meditationforgrowth]

You do realise that this was recorded back in the 70s. Time was very different back then

[@hmu05366]

@@meditationforgrowththey are from Essex lol.

[@RMetsy]

COYS

[@TheOtherDerek]

I have no idea what the old dude at the end is saying but he definitely drinks beer every day.

[@HaiLsKuNkY]

that is the local accent

[@OliverTrist]

I have lived in Surrey (for our friends in the US, Surrey is a leafy commuter county on the Southwest side of London), and in a ‘nice’ part of Surrey, at that, for years. Here, the value of a detached home is now approximately £400k ($500k) per bedroom. However, on Cornwall Road in Harrogate (a medium-sized town in the Northeast of England) a SEMI-detached home will cost you the same. Meanwhile, in Surrey, there are several sh1thole, over-crowded concrete-jungle towns, like Croydon, Chertsey, Redhill and New Malden where you wouldn’t take a dog to die, let alone live there. I have visited and revisited or worked or lived in pretty much every corner of England. They all have good and bad towns. Speaking as someone who has actually experienced more of our nation than most other English people, I can safely say this; whilst there are exceptions to every rule, once you get out of the inner cities, in any region, the atmosphere and the can-do, friendly outlook of the people in the North and the lack of overcrowding and queueing stands out a mile.

[@steveodonoghue2772]

Fish and chips is bloody expensive these days.

[@normanpearson8753]

Lancashire Oct '24 . Fish and chips , mushy peas ,£9.4 0 . 1960 was 1/6 d .

[@thaskoobz]

This is absolute gold! 🤣🤣

[@Matt-vp6eq]

Everyone in this video looks around 40, but I can guarantee the vast majority were in their 20's!

[@sarahjones-jf4pr]

Matt It is the hard graft for putrid wages that ages these down to earth souls.

[@Canyouseeanypartofme]

Bc you think there style is old

[@karenbaker7168]

Quite correct, this type of reporting only creates a wider divide between working people.

[@Voyager...2]

The mass media is always up to no good.

[@gkidd1963]

I’m from Midlothian Scotland this reminds me of our community before all the pits were closed

[@jasondowtychristianmusic9401]

"It's rough, it will probably smell of beer but its warm, and thats what the North's about": pure gold.

[@foylad4862]

I find it strange how our accents are so different, when we're all on the same relativley small island. From scouse, to cockney, geordie and brummy.

[@booth2710]

due to centuries of multiple invasions ..

[@sandrafinbar]

Due to villagers not moving far from their home in years gone by.

[@rscoops3986]

Yet in the US (albeit a relatively new country) the UK is the same size of Kansas which I doubt has much variation at all.

[@karlosthejackel69]

@@booth2710 it is due to the industrial revolution, not invasion

[@urmum3773]

​@@booth2710 Many places have been invaded far more than Britain, but don't have such a variety of accents.

[@matthewpayne42]

As a southerner from eastern England I have been told its grim up north. But there's no doubt the best music comes from up north.

[@neil8194]

I’m an American and stayed in Yorkshire for two months where my girl lives. York is a beautiful city. You’re right about the music. The Beatles are everything. 👊

[@Gray504]

As someone’s who’s travelled lots in Britain I think you will soon find that it’s grim everywhere. North straight to Lands End, they all have there nice points, they all have their grim points. But I am from Liverpool and I am proud that our city has kind of shaped modern music 🎵

[@williamtoner8674]

tbf the south has plenty of good bands too eg pink floyd, led zeppelin, rolling stones, kinks, queen etc

[@GuessMyName234]

I'm from the Lake District it's a beautiful place

[@sim6699]

Depression provides more creativity and being on the dole gives them time to practice

[@wagwanbennydj6003]

As someone from the South I've never harboured any hate for anyone and wouldn't discriminate anyone due to tone of voice accent dialect etc anything... how far we've come 💪

[@BrightSeaStar]

That's good news.

[@BrightSeaStar]

@Rooskie J Not fair to say this. You don't know this person !

[@BrightSeaStar]

@Rooskie J Indeed. And you did.

[@BrightSeaStar]

@Rooskie J 😄👍

[@EricJacobson1990]

1:14: Nobody thought to plant trees beside those row houses eh?

[@steveneardley7541]

As an American the main thing that hits me is how entrenched everyone is. The north and south of England are SO close together. The journey would take just a few hours by train or a bus. But I get the impression that there is very little travel. The fact that you travel 50 miles and the accent is totally different suggests the same thing--that the English stay where they were born.

[@orangemanGB]

And each half of England thinks the other is a breed apart.

[@fredkay6743]

Because traditionally, that's how life was for the vast majority of people. Forget England, pretty much everyone in the whole world before the invention of trains would live and die within the same area because travel was difficult, dangerous and often expensive. This is why we have accents within a relatively short distance by modern standards, because there was once a time when pockets of people were living isolated from the rest of the world and were only mixing with people within their own community.

[@davidconcannon5927]

Back in days gone by, your perception would be true. However, this video was filmed 53 years ago. It's nothing like the same now. Even the accents are very much diluting now. The idea that English all stay where they are born is very much outdated.

[@ethelthecat1]

You're right to extent, but the rich, young and marginalised have always travelled. Hence the British Empire & Navy that colonised a quarter of the world including the US. The entrenchment has more to do with class. It was waged slavery, for both the north and south, but because the British are so class and hierarchy obsessed, the Southern poor liked to think they were superior to the north, mainly due to their accent. For those who couldn't stand it, they left and moved to the colonies.

[@ianmuir3640]

You can travel a couple of miles in Scotland and the accents are completely different

[@eddionrodanronnie]

My childhood was in North London & then disaster I went up North I absolutely hated it Depressing & I was home sick But it could have been the other way around I think it’s where you start your life There’s wonderful people in the North & the South, we’re just a small island

[@edp3202]

Those childhood memories stay with you.

[@moaningpheromones]

Try moving UK to NZ age 8. Yikes.

[@edp3202]

@@moaningpheromones you hated NZ?

[@TheZumph]

He loves being surrounded by foreigners now

[@mick4247]

No we're not. We're the 9th biggest island in the world.

[@winstonchurchhill3264]

My parents came from Staffordshire,so my dad was in Portsmouth navel base ,so we ended up staying in the south. My mother has passed now but she never seemed happy here in the south an I can remember her always saying that people in the south are ignorant. We moved to Portsmouth late sixties as I was born in Portsmouth in 1968 . Greetings from Portsmouth England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

[@jorgelodwick4429]

Play,UP....POMPEY!!!!

[@winstonchurchhill3264]

@@jorgelodwick4429 play up son !!

[@mateuszmattias]

"...I was born in Portsmouth in 1968..." don't lie, you were born in 1874 at Blenheim Palace. Everbody knows that.

[@winstonchurchhill3264]

@@mateuszmattias yeah you got me ,I’m getting a bit creaky now a days as I’m getting on 148 years young! Greetings from Portsmouth England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

[@ronwhite8503]

"navel" base?

[@alicelight2633]

As a southerner who moved north growing up, I was badly bullied for years just because of my accent. I trained my voice so I could fit in. Everyone assumed i was rich because I sounded 'posh'.

[@ALBUMOF2008]

Aww that must’ve been so hard for u 🥺👉🏻👈🏻 try being a northerner in the south.

[@alicelight2633]

@@ALBUMOF2008 what was that like for you?

[@ajs41]

Not talking about you, but, say, an Estuary accent doesn't sound posh at all despite being from the south.

[@ommk9650]

Yeah, the idea southerners are all horrible and northerners are all lovely is one of the most enduring British bullshit myths.

[@TheZumph]

Good

[@infohound41]

Time is so weird - it goes by so fast and so slow at the same time!

[@en4216]

This used to be the real England good old day

[@11UncleBooker22]

"Keep them divided and we'll continue to rule over both sides." .... Every national leader.

[@Mark12367]

5:56 The way other girls went quiet when Nosey Nora said she doesn’t like to gossip…

[@catnior]

Such an accurate depection of woman-hood. When your bestie is clearly lying so u gotta stay quiet.

[@TheAwesomeCookielord]

The woman who started "Coughing" lmaooo

[@andrewmarsden1970]

I was born in Manchester in 1970. Lived in the south since 1977. Cannot say which would be best, but happy to be near London.

[@MarniLondon]

Eating from sauce pan lids old is gold loved this. I'm a British born Pakistani origin living my whole life in London

[@hondac7028]

Mlim north east born and bred my dad was born north London seven sisters road Holloway he moved up here in 1962 as a thirteen year old my grandparents were from canning town they stayed up here till they died my dad's 74 now he says London has changed so much he would never go back and he still has the accent never lost it.

[@TheGodParticle]

Fish and chips used to be cheap here in the south, bloody expensive now. Great doc btw.

[@scottw.3258]

Chippies are expensive everywhere now. Long gone are the days when the Chippie was the refuge of the working class. If you have a family of four you'll be lucky to change out of £25.

[@Embracing01]

@@scottw.3258 Go to Harry Ramsden's and see how much fish and chips cost lol. I agree they are expensive now, but I suppose that can't be a bad thing as it will encourage people to eat healthily, in theory lol.

[@samhirst2830]

It's still £5.25 for fish and chips where I live. But I do prefer going to a particular chippy run by a Chinese couple who charge £6.30 but the haddock is absolutely massive and they pile on loads of chips.

[@Embracing01]

@@samhirst2830 I popped round to my local chippy the other day for a portion of ships, carton of BBQ sauce, 3 meat & potato pies, egg fried rice and a fishcake and it came to about 14 quid lol. Imagine the people back then paying that.

[@TheLifeEvents]

Look at the place now! Buryi-stan!

[@PlaidPenguinGaming]

I love the feisty woman in the factory, she’s fantastic.

[@colinmccarthy7921]

I was born in the Bonny City of Newcastle upon Tyne.I am proud to be a Geordie.Most of my life I have lived in the South.I have found there is a devision between the North and the South.I am from the North. Howay my Lads and Lasses.❤️

[@Mrhokey]

'its rough, it will probably smell of beer, but its warm. thats what the north is about.' had my dying