Monday, August 07, 2006

Translation

It's been a while since I dropped in on the good folk at Television Without Pity. Having scaled things back a while ago, they seem to have upped their coverage with enthusiasm and picked up on the New Who Eccles-cake (TM*) series.

(* not sure that is TM to MediumRob but it does sound good.
UPDATE: Seems I owe a debt of gratitude to Stu_N according to MediumRob. Apologies!)

ANYWAY, I was wandering its merry street when I found this thread in their forums on UK/US language problems. I'm not sure whether it is meant to be as much fun as I found it, but whether you come from the UK side of the Atlantic, or the USA side, or are just generally confused by BritSpeak, you should at least find it informative if not down-right hilarious...

I often forget just how strange our phrasing, our habits and our manner can be...

3 comments:

Rob Buckley said...

Obviously I'd like to claim it was mine and cake is usually not a million miles from the surface of my mind, but it was Stu N who got there first, I think.

Lisa Rullsenberg said...

I'll update!

Rob Buckley said...

Okey doke. The whole thing, incidentally, reminds me that perhaps Travels without the TARDIS is in dire need of republishing and updating for the people on that forum.

It was written by a couple of US fans who frequently came over to visit the UK to find locations where Doctor Who episodes were filled. But most of the book was concerned with explaining to US inhabitants what all those English words and differences meant.

I remember one bit explaining the difference between a US intersection and a UK roundabout: "think of an octopus that someone has stood on..." Those chapters were far more entertaining than the location guides themselves.