North London UK Stereotype Map by reddit user holytriplem

The map above, created by reddit user holytriplem, looks at stereotypes of the UK from one North Londoner’s perspective. If you’re from North London, you may find yourself agreeing with many of the stereotypes.

However, if you’re from elsewhere in the UK you may just be thinking to yourself that this is just one more reason to hate London.

And of course, if you’re not from the UK at all, you might be scratching your head at this map. But don’t worry, holytriplem has provided a few explanations:

Miserable walking holidays:

Cumbria/The Lake District. The closest England gets to actual mountains. Lots of tourists go there on hiking/mountaineering holidays, and to profit from the beautiful scenery. However, it is also one of the rainiest parts of the country, which is why I said ‘miserable’.

Cheryl Cole:

A former member of the girl-band Girls Aloud, who then became a judge on the X factor/Britain’s Got Talent, and who came from that part of England. Known in particular for her Geordie accent. Rumour has it that she was axed from the American X Factor as nobody in the US could understand her accent.

Depressed people who own ferrets:

Yorkshire. People from Yorkshire are viewed as being a bit glum, especially since you get films like Kes/The Full Monty etc (nicely summarised by this sketch) which paint a picture of post-industrial decline and depression. It’s basically characterised by the rest of the North, but for some reason you also have the stereotype about people in flat caps who own ferrets and race whippets. Also lots of brass bands in Yorkshire. Please don’t ask why.

Thieves:

Liverpool. Scousers (natives of Liverpool) and their accent are not popular among other Brits. They live in a city that was once one of the largest ports in the UK, but then it declined dramatically during the 70s/80s. It is basically considered our Detroit, with lots of boarded-up houses/shops etc. Its reputation has been rehabilitated slightly though since it was designated European Capital of Culture a few years back and they built a whole load of art galleries there. Also known for the Beatles.

Massive shithole:

Hull. All the stereotypes of the North rolled into one city.

The North:

Our rust-belt. Former the industrial centre of the UK, until Margaret Thatcher destroyed the manufacturing and mining sectors and left large swathes of the country unemployed and in poverty. Most southerners hold the view that ‘it’s grim up north’. Also the weather’s pretty miserable too.

There’s also an extra element of humour here because the map entirely disregards The Midlands, since Londoners typical regard anything north of the Watford Gap as being the North. Sheeposexuals:

Wales. A hilly, sparsely populated part of the country known for its large number of sheep. For some reason Welsh people are stereotyped as being sheep-shaggers.

Second homes:

Cornwall and the Isle of Wight. Lots of staycationers who go to seaside towns there and price locals out of the market.

Farmers:

The Westcountry. Rural area usually associated with yokels/country bumpkins (what we call hicks) who drink cider and speak with a Hagrid/Pirate-type accent.

People who shop at Waitrose:

The Home Counties/South-East of England. Waitrose is a supermarket which is quite expensive and is known for its posh clientele. People who live in the South-East outside London tend to be thought of as either posh people or middle-class commuters who can’t afford to live in London.

Chavs:

Essex. Uncouth working-class people (I guess our equivalent of rednecks, but not necessarily rural) who moved out of the East End of London as they couldn’t stand to live with all the immigrants there. The Only Way is Essex, which is a bit like our equivalent of Jersey Shore, has entrenched some of these stereotypes about people in Essex. One of them is that they’re into fake tans, hence the orange colour.

Inbred farmers.

East Anglia. Another rural area whose inhabitants talk a bit like their Westcountry counterparts. I have no idea where the ‘inbred’ stereotype comes from though.

San Francisco:

Brighton. Known to be slightly hipster-y and bohemian, and in particular for its LGBT scene. The only place in the country that voted for the Green party.

And for the areas not explained by holytriplem:

Terrorists and Crazy Christians: Refers to the Northern Irish Troubles.

Refers to the Northern Irish Troubles. Their cuisine leads to cardiac arrest: A reference to Scottish cuisine.

A reference to Scottish cuisine. Gang warfare and loan sharks: Refers to Glasgow’s reputation for high crime, including such things as the Glasgow Ice Cream Wars.

Refers to Glasgow’s reputation for high crime, including such things as the Glasgow Ice Cream Wars. Here be dragons: A reference to the fact that North Londoners rarely, if ever, go south of the Thames to South London.

Finally, while not included on the map, holytriplem also gives the following places some honourable mentions:

Oxford:

Ex-public schoolboys with a false sense of entitlement

Durham:

Ex-public schoolboys with a false sense of entitlement but who couldn’t get into Oxford

Luton:

Radical Islamists

Milton Keynes:

Roundabouts with Concrete Cows

Nottingham:

Gun crime

And in case you thought holytriplem was alone in their stereotyping, here’s another map from London reddit user Professional_Bob:

Map by reddit user Professional_Bob

And to show we’re not completely London centric at Brilliant Maps, here’s a stereotype map from reddit user lgf92, from the North-East of England:

Map by reddit user lgf92

You can learn more about the British, English and the UK from:

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