20 Things British People Just Can't Do

Channel 4Existing as a Briton is a strange state of affairs. Thanks to the wonders of cultural and geographical stereotyping, it's well-documented how being British differentiates one from the rest of the known universe. From our national penchant for cricket to our ubiquitous Cockney accents to our weekly tea dates with Her Majesty, being British must look like a hoot and a half to the wider world. Thing is, such expectations of character have left out a couple of idiosyncrasies native to this quaint little island. In the worldwide consciousness, the state of being British has been recently restricted to mere trinkets and the most prominent of eccentricities. These days, we effectively exist only to embody the spirit engendered by those 'Keep Calm and Carry On' collectibles. (Which may be true, but only to a point.) This list is made not to condense the wealth of British attitudes into a single roster, but rather to acknowledge the fact that, as has been attested in the likes of Peep Show and the Cornetto Trilogy, we are a bit set in some of our ways. Many of us share internal monologues which hinge on a particularly Britannic strain of awkwardness, as our lives are governed by a number of national rules, which vary in terms of how conscious we are of them. In a nutshell, here are 20 struggles which most Britons grapple with on a day-to-day basis.