Wednesday 19 January 2011

I (heart) TEA - A TASG Production

Me and Charles Darwin



Guys. My video is rubbish - I was balancing my computer on my knee so the screen is wobbly, I accidentally dazzle myself with a tiny torch which I then bang against the keyboard for the rest of the video (without realising that it would be picked up by the mic. I am that stupid). There's also a bit where my phone vibrates and it sounds like a fart. A fart it is not, I promise you.


I am sorry. You deserve better, and are used to higher standards. Allison's video was great - Lauren's a vlog wizard. I have let the team down.


That said, without further ado, I introduce myself, Tom 'The Brit' Read, speaking about British stereotypes.


Good luck. If you get through the whole thing, I owe you a cuppa. Or a pint.





12 comments:

  1. Nicely done sir!
    Love the gloves.

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  2. So! I stumbled on the TASG by accident--
    or, rather, as I was intentionally avoiding doing work for my Women and Gender Studies Capstone by perusing the blogosphere, and I just wanted to say that I think this blog is fantastic.

    I have never commented on a stranger's--let alone three strangers' collective blog before--and I'd usually be totally self-conscious, but the premise seems to be to create cross-cultural connection via electronic medium, so I'm not gonna be bashful.

    Anyways, hello from Athens, Ohio! (Not quite as glamorous as Athens, Greece-- but a beautiful space, enriched by Appalachian foothills/culture). Thanks for making me laugh and distracting me, however momentarily, from the confines of academia!

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  3. Yay Tom! You pretty much got most of the English stereotypes that I know of. Canadians get the politeness thing too...that we're always saying "sorry."

    I will say this about the Queen...I am bias...my Grandma love the Royals and was born a day after the Queen. And my cousin met her when he was working for the Governor-General of Canada.

    Anyways, love the gloves and you made me blush with all those compliments - seriously, my video wasn't that good. You're just being yourself in yours - the real "Brit" - I love it.

    Fish and Chips are awesome. We get ours from a Scottish-style place called The Thistle and I always get halibut.

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  4. Oh, I forgot to say that I love tea too! And I'm surprised you didn't mention "Football" at all.

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  5. Ida - I know this is Tom's post, but whatever - I'm commenting back to you (he's sleeping, as it's pretty late in Britain).

    Not sure how old you are, but we all met because of 20-Something Bloggers. If you're in your 20's and have a blog you can become a member. It's a great place to meet other like-minded bloggers.

    We all followed each other's blogs and in the fall we all seemed to be going through this whole "my life sucks" phase and joked about collectively crying to "Creep" by Radiohead. We got sort serious about the idea and ran with it.

    Hope you stick around!

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  6. I must admit, I am a bit jealous of your gloves.

    Everyone gets nervous in front of the camera, unless they are some kind of super-human with more charisma & skill than the rest of the world. I think you did quite well!

    As far as queueing goes with clubs here (Canada) most places [that I have been] have a big crowd, or sometimes a hidden queue inside a crowd, it can be quite confusing, and irritating frankly.

    A lot of people that I have met DO think all Brits are like/speak like Hugh Grant.. I suppose they've never met anyone with a Cockney accent.

    There is a place in my hometown called "Ye Olde Chip Truck" so fish & chips are quite common here as well.

    In the words of my Granda, "What about the scones!?" haha. Really this was great thanks broadening my horizons. :)

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  7. Lauren - I worry that they make me look like a member of the BNP which is completely not a look that I'm going for.

    Ida - I'm glad you like it! And I'm oddly proud that we were able to drag you away from your studies - not that I have anything against your education - but I remember wanting new ways to avoid doing any actual work while I was studying and like the idea that we're fulfilling this important purpose for somebody. Comment away!

    Allison - FOOTBALL! I knew there was another one. Crap, I could have had a field day with that one.

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  8. Martina - I wasn't ignoring you! I didn't see your comment until after I posted the above.

    Scones is a good one - although a potentially divisive issue, depending on whether you say scones as 'scoans' or 'scons'. The latter is posher, meaning I use the former because I'm no Hugh.

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  9. Stereotypes:

    Stiff upper lip!
    Brit humour!
    Football!
    Hate the French!

    I could go on, but you did an excellent job and I loved the bit where you nearly blinded yourself with the light! Also, in the 2 videos you've done; I haven't heard a hint of chav at all!

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  10. I love tea!! It's so bad for me but I still drink it.

    I mean, alcohol is bad for me but look. :)

    Love your video blogs. Let's win the lottery now and we'll have tea together.

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  11. as an Aussie living in Britain, it made me giggle. Can't think of any others off the top of my head.....

    but I'm also wondering what people's stereotypes of Australia are....I know there's misconceptions about the accent (people either get mine straight away, or pick everything else but).

    oh and with a New Zealand accent, 'fish and chips' can sound like 'fush and chups'

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  12. @ Risha - I knew there were loads that I'd forgotten. Hate the French being a big one. I don't hate them though, not me. I envy their class and sophistication.

    Risha, my friend, I posh up in vlogs. I need to be drunk before letting the chav out - which requires us to go t'pub. Lol.

    @ Gnetch - well, THIS IS OUR YEAR AFTER ALL! Everything that tastes nice is bad for you. If you only ate things that were good for you, your taste buds would wither and die.

    @ Girl from Oz - I CAN'T BELIEVE FUSH AND CHUPS IS TRUE! I accused her of lying. I feel awful. There are loads of Aussie stereotypes, I'm sure. I believe you also enjoy a drink, stick prawns on barbies and call all women Sheila. Of course none of that is true...is it?

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