The English : Arrogant, unfriendly and no sense of humour
Arrogant, unfriendly and no sense of humour: what foreign tourists think of the English - Telegraph
Much as we may try to be welcoming, visitors from abroad remain distinctly unimpressed, according to VisitBritain, the organisation responsible for promoting Britain overseas.
They love our Royal family, our ancient traditions and our historic buildings. But if there is one thing the foreign tourist does not like, it is the character of the British people. Much as we may try to be welcoming, visitors from abroad remain distinctly unimpressed, according to the organisation responsible for promoting Britain overseas.
In the eyes of the world, the British people – and in particular the English – are arrogant, unfriendly and have almost no sense of humour.
Research carried out by VisitBritain found that visitors from 35 different nations listed Britain a poor 16th overall on a list of countries likely to offer the most friendly welcome. And it is some of our nearest European neighbours who are particularly scathing about our national character.
The French had particular problems with the English – rather than the Scots and the Welsh – and were the least likely of any of the countries surveyed to visit the United Kingdom, despite their close proximity.
"The French do not perceive they would receive a warm welcome if they visited the UK," the report revealed.
"The attributes relating to human aspects are the weakest, with low mean scores for being welcoming, having a good sense of humour or friendliness. Most of the negativity towards Britain was towards the English people, and what was described as their reserve or arrogance."
VisitBritain carried out the private polling exercise to discover how Britain is perceived overseas. The figures follow research carried out in May but have yet to be made available to the travel industry.
Up to 1,000 respondents in each of the countries surveyed were asked to rate Britain and the British in terms of 16 different categories which included historical legacy, scenic beauty and vibrancy.
The British sense of humour received the lowest scores of any category and the Italians rated us the second least funny people in the world.
Perhaps not surprisingly, countries with a history of political conflict with Britain were particularly dismissive.
German respondents believed that only the Russians were less friendly than the British, with the perception of us also being neither "creative, lively or innovative".
Argentina, meanwhile, ranked Britain 31st in terms of friendliness. "Improving Argentines' perceptions of the welcome is a key challenge for the industry," the VisitBritain report acknowledged.
Many of the respondents surveyed were similarly unimpressed by Britain's system of government, its record on human rights and its foreign policy stances. Tony Blair's support for American foreign policy and the invasion of Iraq appeared to have damaged Britain's standing.
Italian respondents ranked the UK eighth in the category of being honestly and fairly governed despite their own country's history of political turmoil and sleaze.
According to VisitBritain: "We are let down somewhat by perceptions about behaving responsibly in areas of international peace and security – but not as badly as the USA in 22nd position." (The UK comes in at a relatively respectable 12th).
Overall, the Canadians, the Australians and the Spanish were perceived to be the friendliest people.
Despite the poor image, Britain remains the sixth most popular tourist destination for tourists around the world, behind France, Spain, the United States, China and Italy. And, according to VisitBritain, English-speaking nations such as America, Australia and New Zealand still perceive the British to be welcoming, as did the people of Malaysia. Britain also scored highly in terms of its cultural history and architectural legacy.
Britain ranked fourth for being an interesting place for contemporary culture, and came eighth for its rich cultural heritage.
But there was, however, a lack of appreciation for the country's scenic beauty. Britain came 19th in the rankings for scenery and landscape.
Eliott Frisby, the corporate PR manager for VisitBritain, said it was vital that the tourist industry addressed the concerns of overseas visitors.
"If we are going to continue to be a competitive destination, we have to work on how we treat people there is still a long way to go.
"Our sense of humour is very different. It's dry and quirky. That is one of the things that makes us such a unique destination – we have to get that message across."
Obesity danger 'rivals smoking'
Being severely obese is as hazardous to health as a lifetime of smoking, shortening life by a decade, a group of Oxford University experts has warned.Even moderate obesity cuts life expectancy by about three years, says the Clinical Trial Service Unit.The findings, published in The Lancet, come from data on almost a million people from around the world.
In the UK, a quarter of adults are now considered obese, with a body mass index (BMI) above 30.
BMI is useful for assessing the extent to which fatty tissue causes ill health.
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Dr Gary Whitlock of Oxford University
It is calculated by dividing a person's weight in kilograms by the square of their height in metres.
A person 1.70m (5 ft 7") tall would be considered moderately obese if they weighed 90kg (14 stone) rather than the ideal 70kg (11 stone).
Each incremental rise in BMI above the healthy zone of 20-25 increased premature death risk, the Clinical Trial Service Unit concluded.
Severe obesity - a BMI of 40 to 50, which applies to about 2% of the UK population - reduced life expectancy by about 10 years.
Moderate obesity - a BMI of 30-39, which applies to one in four UK adults - reduced life expectancy by three years.
Much of the obesity-related risk is down to heart disease and stroke, and to a lesser extent cancer.
Amongst middle-aged people in the UK, as many as one in four deaths from heart attack or stroke and one in 16 cancer deaths are due to being overweight or obese, the researchers estimate.
