Not The Queen's English

This week we're talking about politics in the UK. Don't worry though, we're not talking about anything serious or miserable; instead, we're focusing on some of the famous moments of madness that are a frequent feature of politics here and have become a big part of popular culture, even for people who don't follow politics. We've picked out a few key bits of British English to frame our discussion: 'to lose one's rag', 'to take the p*ss', 'brass neck', and 'sick to the back teeth'. In the episode you'll find out what these mean, how to use them, and how they relate to British politics.For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Remember our course 'British English through TV Shows' is now live on Patreon - check it out at the link below!Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we're talking about television in the UK, looking at some of the most-watched shows in recent decades and how they fit into wider UK culture. We discuss some iconic TV moments that everyone in the UK knows about (even if they weren't even born when they first aired!) and explain a bit about the different cultural connotations attached to various UK TV channels and broadcasters (you're not gonna want to miss the Cheat Sheet for this episode - it's a veritable treasure trove of clips!)We're also making a very exciting announcement about the launch of our course, British English through TV Shows. You can find out more and try the first lesson for free (no sign up required) here.For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we're talking about the British Royal Family and their place in popular culture: commemorative plates, scandalous remarks, linguistic quirks... the lot!As usual, we're also looking in depth at some key bits of British English. This week it's the verb 'to flog' and the phrases 'posh totty', 'the done thing', 'to drop a clanger' and 'to raise a few eyebrows'.For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the first episode of the new series we're talking all things Eurovision ahead of the grand final in Liverpool this weekend. We discuss how Eurovision is seen in the UK and how this has changed radically in the past couple of years, as well as looking back on some of the many famous cringey moments that define the UK's recent history in the competition. As usual, we've also picked out a few key bits of British English we wanted to teach in the context of Eurovision. These are 'to play a blinder', 'to be in with a shout', 'to (not) touch something with a barge pole', and 'it'll be alright on the night'.For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week's episode we're talking about swearing in the UK; how people feel about it, how it's dealt with on TV, and why sometimes mentioning a brand name feels like swearing to British people.In 'current affairs' this week we're chatting about the new Great British Bake Off presenter and why she might actually persuade us to start watching the show again (as well as a certain infamous incident involving her, a weather map, and a model in a sailor costume...)We've picked swearing to coincide with the launch of our 40-page PDF guide to swearing in British English. If you're a Culture Club tier member on Patreon then you'll already have access to it; if not, you can join that tier or head over to our Ko-fi shop and buy it with a 50% discount - just enter the code BLOODYGOODDEAL at checkout (offer ends midnight 2nd April 2023).For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we’re talking about what it’s like to go to university in the UK and how that experience fits into UK culture as a whole. We cover the trauma of UCAS applications, Freshers Week and getting a Desmond, and share a little bit of our experience of attending one of the UK’s poshest universities.In what we’ll loosely call our ‘current affairs’ segment, we discuss the recent announcement of the UK’s entry for this year’s Eurovision song contest, which we use as an excuse to briefly revisit the UK’s dubious record in the contest (don’t worry; we’ll go into all that in much, much more detail on the podcast nearer the time of the final).The phrases we’re looking at in detail this week are: the be all and end all, Billy No Mates, piss money up the wall* and take the biscuit.*Actually, we don't make the meaning of 'pissing money up the wall' totally clear (we got too distracted talking about Desmonds!); it's basically just a somewhat vulgar way of saying 'waste money'.For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we’re chatting about the gorgeous city we call home: Edinburgh. First though, as usual, we’re covering something that people in the UK have been talking a lot about this week, namely the possible return of ‘the Beast from the East’. This leads us into a discussion of some big pop culture moments relating to weather forecasts in the UK (you’d be surprised how many there are!).When it comes to our main theme, we’re approaching things a little bit differently this week, choosing some specific British English words and phrases that we want to teach you and putting these into example sentences which we then use to guide our discussion. The ones we’ve chosen this week are: 'tourist tat', 'hard done by', 'it's like painting the Forth Bridge' and 'swizz'.For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we’re talking about music in the UK; that is, not only British music, but also the popular culture surrounding music: how we talk about it here, how people in the UK find new music, things like that. You’ll find out all about early-noughties bangers, Top of the Pops, and the bizarre sex symbol who outsold the Beatles in the 1960s… We picked this topic because it fits so well with this week’s bit of pop culture news, namely the 25-year reunion of a pop group who provided a big part of the soundtrack to our childhood: S Club 7. If you remember S Club 7, we hope this news makes you feel as ancient as it makes us feel!For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we're talking about going to school in the UK. Join us as we discuss the joys of egg-and-spoon races, Jamie's School Dinners, and playground chants about smoking. In what we'll loosely call our 'current affairs' segment, we talk about a recent UK news story that leads us into a discussion of one of our favourite topics: puns!For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shopHappy listening,Holly and Murray x Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week's podcast is about weddings. Join us as we talk you through a typical British wedding, from receiving a 'save the date' to drunkenly singing along to the Grease Megamix at the reception. As usual, we also cover some current events that have people talking in the UK at the moment. This time it's a new judge on Britain's Got Talent, an event which gives us an excuse to tell you all about Murray's (tenuous) connection to Susan Boyle, as well as the joys of 'Chico Time', and much, much more. For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Series Two of Not the Queen’s English! In this, our second Brexit episode, we talk about the way different countries of the UK voted in the referendum, the role culture played in the result and the epidemic of people accidentally saying 'Brexit means Breakfast'. We also discuss the current scandal surrounding the Tory party and late tax returns. For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Series Two of Not the Queen’s English! In this episode, we talk about Brexit. Learn out about the events leading up to the Brexit vote and discover the meaning of words like 'Remoaner', and 'Lexit'. Plus, we discuss one of the hot topics in the UK right now - Prince Harry's autobiography. For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Not the Queen’s English! This episode deals with the tricky period between Christmas and New Year's Eve. We discuss Hogmanay, the elusive Twelve Days of Christmas and some regional New Year's Eve traditions ranging from the wholesome to the absolutely terrifying. For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Not the Queen’s English! In this episode, we talk about Christmas in the UK. Learn about the mysterious world of panto and the cultural significance of getting a satsuma in your stocking. We are so sorry for the mobile phone interference you can hear in this episode - one of us (mentioning no names) forgot to turn their phone off during the recording...For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Not the Queen’s English! In this episode, we talk about drinking culture in the UK. Learn the difference between 'going out' and 'going out out' and find out why you should never go into a pub that doesn't have windows. For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Not the Queen’s English! In this episode, we talk about linguistic pedantry - that is, the obsession some people have with being correct, rather than allowing for what sounds natural. We cover the linguistic minefield of asking to go to the toilet at primary school, the surprising problem of paninis, and our own guilty irritation at incorrect 'Shakespearean' English. For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Not the Queen’s English! In this episode, we talk about the quintessentially British concept of poshness. We cover such essential vocabulary as 'plummy', 'horsey' and 'jolly hockey sticks', and discuss an infamous pop culture moment in which a guest stormed off a panel show during a disagreement about the meaning of the word 'classy'. For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Not the Queen’s English! In this episode, we talk about where British people go on holiday, both in the UK and abroad, and how they behave when they get there. Find out about Murray's childhood hols in Blackpool - including a very literal experience of the expression 'being bored to tears' - and learn what happens on a classic lads' holiday.We explain what a Butlin's Redcoat is, talk about learning languages at school in the UK and discuss the surprising impact of the Queen's funeral on holidaymakers at Center Parcs.For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Not the Queen’s English! In this episode, we talk about the culture of politeness in the UK, and some of the bizarre situations that can arise when politeness goes too far. Listen to find out about the time Holly and Murray lost half a bottle of wine due to sheer British awkwardness, discover detours we have taken to avoid small talk, and learn the only acceptable response to the question 'how are you?'. We teach you such useful phrases as 'I'll let you get on' and other versatile but meaningless British niceties. For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page. Patreon supporters also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. Cultural guides, including the accent guide, are also available to buy individually from our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/podcastKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Not the Queen’s English!This is an extended edition of our episode about UK accents. Normally, extended editions will only be available through our Patreon, but this first one is on us.In this episode, we talk you through some of the many different accents of the UK and how they are seen in popular culture here. We also talk about our own accents, so that you can start recognising the differences between Holly’s English accent and Murray’s Scottish one.The terms we explain in this episode include: plummy, Geordie, Scouse, Weegie, and RP. For all the things we mention but don’t fully explain, check out the Cheat Sheet for this episode, which you can download from our Patreon page, even if you do not subscribe to our Patreon. Cheat sheets for future episodes will only be available to Patreon supporters, who also get access to our 35-page PDF accent guide. If you’d rather buy this (for just £7.50!), you can head over to our Ko-fi shop.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/notthequeensenglishWebsite: https://notthequeensenglish.wixsite.com/notthequeensenglish/general-cleanKo-fi: https://ko-fi.com/notthequeensenglish/shop Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.