Valerie Hill: We like to play the game by our own rules

Nov 14 2008 by Valerie Hill, Liverpool Daily Post

HANDS up who thinks we're a nation of moaners? Yes, and stop complaining that this is a silly question.

Apparently one thing we agree on is being a moaning lot. This is such a deeply ingrained trait that the wartime comedy radio show ITMA even had a character called Mona Lott.

Much has changed in the intervening six decades since then, but not Britain's core natural characteristics.

That's according to the 5,000 adults who were asked to pick out the good and bad characteristics that comprise our national type.

We're as prone as ever to enjoy talking about the weather (58% of those polled), which topped the list.

The rest of the top 10 included queuing, sarcasm, getting drunk, twitching curtains, bargain hunting and even deploying the stiff upper lip.

The only relatively modern activities were watching soap operas and its close cousin, loving to watch everything on television.

Moaning came in at number 10. In spite of it being practically drummed into many generations that sarcasm is the lowest form of humour, those surveyed thought it the highest form of wit.

In other words, just because it isn't good doesn't mean that we're not good at it, according to researchers at www.onepoll.com.

Obsession with class simply won't go away at 11th place, one rung ahead of gossiping. In fact we're great obsessers, obsessing about the traffic, diets and property values.

Never complaining is an interesting entry. That's a public activity, note, which is different from moaning, which is a private indulgence safely behind closed doors among consenting partners.

Not all of these traits are purely British, of course. The Germans also enjoy other people's misfortunes, to the extent of having a word for it schadenfreude.

In English, as Jasper Carrott explained, we call it Crimewatch UK.

But at least, according to one in five polled, we aren't afraid to laugh at ourselves (30th on the list), possibly due to being uncomfortable talking about emotions (21st).

This is pipped to the post by bad dancing, personified by former Daily Post man John Sergeant on Strictly Come Dancing.

I confess to being one of those who have been voting for him. Not because he's a good dancer, in fact, he's appalling.

What I don't like is being bossed by the programme's judges who pompously complain that he shouldn't be there.

But as he explains, he is playing by the rules and they are that this is an entertainment show judged by the public, so I’m subversively showing my support.

And being subversive is one distinctive British characteristic left out by this survey, in spite of being hinted at with our curtain twitching and not saying what we mean.

Yet it's as British as bangers and mash – and almost as satisfying.