OK I give in.......re Little England

[Sprogster]

For a programme called Little England, a bit strange that the women running the tea shop had an antipodean accent and the lady involved in the 500 year war re-enactment had a South African accent!

Geoffrey Palmer's tongue in cheek narration turns the programme into a bit of a p*** take of most of the participants, who in many cases are presented as a caricature of unintegrated little englanders abroad.

Interestingly the introduction refers to 20,000 Brits living in the Dordogne area compared to 30,000 mentioned in the opening credits of the last series.

[woolybanana]

Aw, come on guys, don't be cruel. When and here is this feast of a programme?

[Cendrillon]

[quote user="just john "][quote user="sweet 17"] When and where exactly is this marvellous programme on?

Have pity on me, somebody, and tell me, will you?

Nevermind whether I speak French or not, the question is, can I possibly survive in France without watching Little England?

And why "little"?  It's not that small?  England, that is..... [/quote]

http://www.radiotimes.com/programme/mvxpz/little-england

http://www.itv.com/itvplayer/video/?Filter=327636

Enjoy [:D]

 

[/quote]

WB do try and keep up!

[woolybanana]

Thank you, Cinders. Must be getting old. Or maybe distracted by all this Xmas shoppering.

[mint]

[quote user="Sprogster"]

Interestingly the introduction refers to 20,000 Brits living in the Dordogne area compared to 30,000 mentioned in the opening credits of the last series.

[/quote]

So, 10,000 have left since last year?

No wonder I hardly ever bump into a Brit whilst I'm out and about these days![:P]

Wools, JJ gave the answer to that one.....however many pages ago it was and I can't now be bothered to look it up; so just go and do your homework, eh?

[Chancer]

[quote user="idun"]

 if I was with non english speakers, I would have spoken to them in french and not english. It wouldn't matter if it was poor french, if any one understands what a hard language it is to learn, I do. But I would have applauded the effort.

[/quote]

That is what I have done from day one in France, at first it was terribly difficult because despite a couple of years of evening classes I could not make myself understood at all, my learning was helped by not having contact with any English in the area and the people that did speak a bit of English understanding my desire and need and never ever using English to me, including my good friend whom I had known before moving here, he had some English and we had beforehand communicated albeit badly using both languages, from my first day here he has never spoken a word of English and he tells me that he has all but forgotten all of it now.

I have other friends who after several years I had no clue had any english at all until I had English visitors who spoke no French, people like that I have the utmost respect for.  My ex girlfriend,  I realised she had studied English to a high level and did seem to know quite a few English words that I didnt in French, she never spoke to me in English and I never wanted her to, we took a holiday in England, speaking French all the time, at church the vicar asked her if she understood the service and she replied at length in good English using several tenses and without hesitation, I was gob-smacked to say the least but pleased in equal measure, not dissapointed.

I know a young English girl a teaching assistant at the lycée, she shares a flat with two others, a Spanish and a German girl, French is our common language and we have never spoken a word of English between us although I do know that they all speak it to some degree, they are here to improve their French like I am and I respect that even though it would probably be easier to speak in English.

[NormanH]

"in 91% of all households in the UK, everyone speaks English. That's

despite the fact that in London alone, 37% of residents are not UK born.

And, regrettably, that is a thing upon which far too many native

English speakers rely as they travel or relocate across the globe. What I

can't understand is why those who can't won't or simply don't make the

effort are so bloody proud of the fact."

Come on betty, we all know that these people are immigrants so they bl**dy well should learn English!

Brits in France on the other hand are 'expats', so the French should bl**dy well speak English to them.

[6]

[Loiseau]

Oooh, curiosity got the better of me and i just watched an episode on ITV player! or whatever it's called. I thought it was rather affectionately done, Brits gently sending themselves up.

Angela

PS. Why does everyone assume that the incomers don't speak French? I got the impression that the reenactment lady did, and certainly the cakeshop owner did. Maybe the grapepicking man didn't, but he seemed to have a very warm relationship with the locals he was helping.

[Ivor Nidea]

I hope this expat had French lessons before coming here to socialise or people will be furious!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-wiltshire-20692049

[mint]

Well then, I suggest we keep a close eye on the Forum to see who's bragging about spending mega euros over Christmas!

Also, just so we know whom to cosey up to......[I]

[bettyboop]

My french is getting better (being deaf doesnt help,try next time lip-reading the local farmer delivering your wood!!!),as I rarely understand the reply,but I do believe that we should make every effort to learn. We have a second home in a small hamlet and I always carry pen and paper as I can read/write French pretty well, My hubby and our neighbour converse for ages in franglaise and both seem to understand each other (lots of hand motions help)

Was amused on our last visit, we had to visit the Mairie, there was a note on the door.

'If you require assistance in this Mairie, please ensure you either fully understand/speak french, or bring someone along with you who does'

[Chancer]

Written in English?? [blink]

[YCCMB]

[quote user="NormanH"]"in 91% of all households in the UK, everyone speaks English. That's

despite the fact that in London alone, 37% of residents are not UK born.

And, regrettably, that is a thing upon which far too many native

English speakers rely as they travel or relocate across the globe. What I

can't understand is why those who can't won't or simply don't make the

effort are so bloody proud of the fact."

Come on betty, we all know that these people are immigrants so they bl**dy well should learn English!

Brits in France on the other hand are 'expats', so the French should bl**dy well speak English to them.

[6]

[/quote]

At the risk of treading a well-worn furrow...Do people ever wonder what happens if a Chinese person arrives in France, or a Russian, or a Swede? Is there, somewhere, a corner of cyberspace with forums for these people, where they go to ask if anyone in Trou Perdu knows Chinese/Russian/Swedish speaking dentist/doctor/hairdresser/car mechanic? Or do they perhaps simply heave a sigh, and get busy learning French?

[Rabbie]

Is it not possible that the program makers have asked the english people on the program to speak english so as to avoid the need for subtitles. Remember the program is being made for transmission in the UK where surprise surprise there are a lot more English speakers than French speakers

[Pommier]

I don't think that the programme makers thought that anyone would take it this seriously.

[YCCMB]

[quote user="Pommier"]I don't think that the programme makers thought that anyone would take it this seriously.[/quote]

Or even watch it. I know I never have, and judging from some of the questions on this thread, I'm not alone.

[idun]

Loiseau, the grape picking man is called John Franklin, or so they say on the program, and he has been on several episodes and seems to know the odd word of french, but I have never heard him even string a half sentence together in french even when surrounded by quite a lot of french people. And his bestest friend, Michele, always speaks to him in english. John Franklin, so they say, has been in France for 6 years. With such a good french friend/neighbour I would hope that John Franklin has decided to simply not speak french for the show, if not............well..........

And gently taking the michael out of themselves.......... I remember being jumped on, on here, for saying anything contrary to the sort of comment, people appear to be happily making on the show, because that is how this board used to be. So I do not believe for one instant that they do not believe in what they are saying...... what a cynic I sound[:D]

And where are the missing ten thousand? Dead or fled?????

 

 

[sid]

I really can't see what all the fuss is about. I watch the programme and enjoy poking fun at some aspects of life in Little England, but some of the characters seem to have made an effort to settle. If you live in an area with a high Brit population isn't it inevetable that you'll get drawn into some of the Brit-things? What's the problem? Are you worried about being tarred with the same brush? If they want to live as if it's an extended holiday, why not?

I don't know why we can't live where we please and not have to socialise if we don't want to. I love the climate here and that alone is almost enough justification for being here. Not having a bad chest every winter is a great improvement.

I was never a great socialiser in the UK, so why would I be any different here? As it happens, I have A-level French, so it's been relatively easy to brush up, even though that was nearly 50 years ago. I meet other Brits who don't do very well with the lingo, but they're mostly older, often older than me, and it becomes increasingly difficult with age to learn anything properly; old dogs and new tricks, and all that.

I have an added advantage of music; I play in several groups, and this is great for meeting "my sort of people", British and French. Ha ha, that's only my idea of who I want to be with. I certainly don't want to mix with other Brits just because we're British.

Britline was mentioned, and other English-speaking services. I opened a Britline account to use while we moved and never got round to transferring to a local branch. Now I find that I have absolutely no need to change; there's someone who speaks English IF I need it (and sometimes technical details in French can be trying to say the least) and it is just a branch of CA and serves the same function.

Live and let live, eh?  Pooh pooh to all the clever clogs. [:P]

 

 

[NormanH]

What if 'French was in this title?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/dec/14/miliband-english-language-integration

[powerdesal]

Norman, perhaps I am wrong but the phrase .......''Staff in all publicly funded jobs who interact with members of the public will have to show proficiency in the French language....'' ( see what I did there ?) already applies in France, so 'what if' doesn't really apply in the context of this thread.

[Sprogster]

According to a contributor on the other French Forum I participate in who lives in the area, the producers were really struggling to find sufficient participants for the current series, to the extent they were stopping people in the market and hassling members of a local forum. This could explain why in my opinion the second series is not as good as the first, which in itself was not exactly brilliant!

Important to realise that these types of so called reality programmes are far more contrived than you might think, with most of the events specifically arranged for filming. The technique is that the producers construct a definite narrative, rather than rely on the unscripted ramblings of participants to hold audience interest.

Also the main participants will have signed a contract for which there will be some form of consideration.

 

[Rose]

It’s been a while since I posted and I’ve been reading this

thread with interest… and mild amusement (some of the time).  As someone has mentioned I was one of the

people filmed and so I’ve tried to avoid getting involved on any of the threads

about the programme.  I’ve given in to

this one as I just feel I need to correct a few urban myths.

I was contacted via my business listing (proper

registered legal business).  My guess is

that researchers contacted all listed businesses.  I was told they were searching for families

or people working in France or those with a story to be told.  They did say that in this series they wanted

it to be less fluffy and they wanted younger people and families… and whilst it

is still tongue in cheek and certainly a bit flurry, there have been more

people running businesses and they have shown younger people with children.

I thought long and hard about taking part after the reaction

last year.   I agreed as I felt that it would be good to

show what happens when you move to another country to follow your dream and

then get diagnosed with cancer… a touch of reality I thought.  Sadly, as it transpires they avoided all

mention of the C word…. They had even filmed a follow-up hospital appointment

but I guess this also ended up on the cutting room floor.

Someone very kindly said on another forum that the participants seem so far up their own expat

posteriors and in thrall to their 15 minutes of 'fame' that we couldn’t notice

the angle of the programme… utter nonsense and in my opinion a very

ill-informed, cheap, easy comment to make. 

I was very aware of the last series and how it was received on expat

forums and whilst I am disappointed they never touched on the cancer story, I

do feel we were accurately represented. 

Greyman thinks that cancer is just too serious/sad a topic for Little

England – which is a very light-hearted look at life over here.

The process was that researchers came out in late spring and

interviewed and filmed people… a kind of shortlisting.  Rather than having to drag people in off the

street they were inundated with people who wanted to take part.  They contacted me in June to say they wanted

to include us in the series.

Things are not scripted, contrived or pre-determined… and

no-one is telling you what to say. 

Neither are events arranged just for the film crew and neither was

filming restricted to just high summer… there was plenty in September and

October too.  At no time was it suggested

we say certain things or that we act in certain ways… we went through our

diaries and said what we were doing and they picked up items wanted to

film.  They had so much to film they often

missed events as they were so busy.  No

one was coerced… before you were filmed a runner asked you to sign a consent (not a contract).  If you didn’t want to be filmed they simply

avoided you.  This was NEVER an issue.

The series isn’t cutting edge, I enjoy it for what it is –

I’ve loved watching the other participants – I think most of them seem like

decent people and I would be happy to meet them over a cup of coffee.  In contrast some of the comments on some of

the other forums show a certain kind of character that I would probably never

wish to meet (I think you’ve all been very polite and restrained on here).

I agree with earlier comments about the French conversation

too… I guess it’s a programme about English people and the audience is English

so it makes sense we’d speak English to the camera… this doesn’t mean I can’t

speak French  (I can’t speak for the others of course).

I have read comments from so many people about ‘their’ part

of France and say how they would hate to live in the Dordogne… well…

don’t.  I live here because the airports serve

the SW of England, and I can drive to the channel in a day… it’s far enough

south to have a better climate… and it’s beautiful here.  I also find there are loads of things to do and

even plenty of French people!  In fact you may

be surprised to learn that there are more French here than English and that

neither 30,000 or even 20,000 brits live here full time - you can find the

actual numbers on-line but I guess folks prefer to believe what they hear on

Little England.

All in all I have no regrets… it was a fun experience and

the crew were very lovely people and I am glad to have met them.  I’m disappointed they never showed our full

story but maybe we were just too boring  [:$]

[idun]

Interesting post Rose. Polite and restrained on here? Well I have made the comments I wanted to make and would have found little point in saying more or going out of my way to be very rude. There are things in this life that I could easily be very rude about incidentally, because they are very important to me.

However, I was very irritated by the program the other night, I'm not now, but I was.

[Rose]

[quote user="idun"]

 Polite and restrained on here? 

[/quote]

It must be Christmas [kiss]

[NormanH]

I'm sorry that they cut your Cancer story too, Rose, not only because you have been very brave, but because it seems to me to show something very important, someone coping with disease in a foreign language and country.

I suppose as has been said that this programme is seen more as 'entertainment' than as 'documentary'.

This is something I detest in UK television recently. Everything has to be dramatic or amusing or turned to 'personality' [:(]