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'Little England' will you be watching?


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[quote user="cooperlola"]  But if it had been about a few couples running small businesses in the UK it would never even have been made.  Must try harder![/quote]

I wish that were so, I can't recall how many ridiculous programmes there are along those lines, with dramatic tales of couples attempting make the best sausages - while their sheep were escaping and other such ludricrous dramatic scenarios;
just to watch something (with great cinematography[;-)]) and no artificial drama or sausage superlatives 'absolutely to die for'  made it relaxing to watch. (so I'll be back![8-|])

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[quote user="Bob T"][quote user="nomoss"]

[quote user="Bob T"]Just watched it and had to rewind a bit. I am sure that the Dordogne chippie who has been here for years has a UK plate on the chippie trailer! That would make it illegal when being towed by his French registered Jeep. If they flout the laws on trailer registration then do they do the same on French food safety legislation?
Some one please tell me that I am wrong and there were French plates on that trailer.
[/quote]

Oh dear!! But who really gives a monkey's?

[/quote]

Perhaps the local French people who see Brits coming here to make as much as they can from France without sticking to the rules themselves.
Perhaps someone who gets food poisoning because they don't think that they need to comply with French food regulations either as they have a UK plate on the food wagon.
[/quote]Since you seem unsure if the trailer had british or french plates it seems an unwarranted assumption that their food hygiene is not up to standard. Since they had a large number of regular customers it would appear that they are not causing food poisoning even if they are serving poisson[:)]
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[quote user="idun"]

Charly, give us a break, quit the sinking ship and all that poppy rot.

Dear me, give me a penny for all the bitter expats who say that and I'd be considerably richer than I am now.

 

Just start reading french newspapers and watching french tv and listening to what is happening in the cités in France, the banilieus and for working people and then would could have a proper conversation about sadly the bad things that happen in BOTH countries, instead of one liners that just leave me with thoughts I would not write on here.

[/quote]

"Give us a break Charly?!!!!!"

Do try reading my post again Idun and maybe more carefully....believe it or not there are people other than yourself who are entitled to an opinion on some of these threads; and mine was hardly an opinion, more of an observation. Yours was based on what exactly? Wasn't it 10 minutes or so of t.v. overheard from another room and a failure to explain on here why you were flabbergasted? If you had read my post a little more carefully before your rant, you might have been able to see what I was saying after the word "unless"...and it was conjecture - about the possible slant of the programme and NOT my opinion on life in England, here, or anywhere else. Yet again - maybe due to the hazy view from your high horse, you missed the point completely. So, another total (and rude) overreaction to something you failed to understand !
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[quote user="pachapapa"]

Just watched it on itv player, just over 20 minutes with a flag and no adverts.

Obviously perusing little england from the A 20 gives a false impression as the scenery is largely flat and boring.

Certainly no comparison with the Welsh Marches.

[/quote]

Most of the cinematography was of the Dordogne valley and the Perigord Purple; the wine growing area to the SW of the department, I was refering to the whole department; Perigord vert which is green and lush, rolling hills and rivers, Perigord blanc with its beautiful lime stone villages, fields of sunflowwers and orchards of walnut trees, Perigord noir; rolling hills and valleys with masive oak woods. The Dordogne valley is the most picturesque place in the whole of France (in my opinion [:P] ) The Dordogne has (almost) every thing you would dream of for a place to live [:D]

PPP I think you and Geoffry Palmer would get along so well, two of a kind me thinks [kiss]

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[quote user="Charly"][quote user="idun"]

Charly, give us a break, quit the sinking ship and all that poppy rot.

[/quote][/quote]

Why is it that topics like this which discuss a positive view of France, have to attract cheap digs at Britain? Just because some of us live in France, either full-time or part-time, doesn't mean we can't love our home nation as much, or even more. Surely it is possible to like both, and to accept that life in both nations has good and bad points.

I actually feel rather sorry for people who say they can't wait to get out of a place where they were born, grew up and have lived in for a long time. I think that's far sadder than trying to recreate a bit of their own culture in another country.

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What stood out from the first episode was the limited integration, in that none of the Brits featured seemed to speak the language that well and their businesses were reliant on the expat market, or employers. Which must be a bit of a concern in the current economic enviroment, where Brits in France are generally either tightening their belts or leaving.
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[quote user="Charly"]Before you comment and make wild guesses why not READ THE POST AGAIN? Your post blindly followed someone who either never read it properly or totally failed to understand what I said ![/quote]

Perhaps you had better spell it out for them Charly. Obviously they didn't read  your post properly or read into it what they wanted so as to fit an idea they have already lodged into their minds!

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[quote user="Chancer"]

"Obviously"???

There could well be many other reasons, "perhaps" would have been a better choice especially as "obviously" is a phrase loved and often (mis)used by the very type of people that you are talking of.

[/quote]

"Obviously" is not a phrase and I talk "about" people not "of" them but your comments have been noted for future reference, thank you.

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Charly, if you want to talk about sinking ships, then you'll get such comments from me. I don't understand why you even said it.  In the past it was from people who were cocooned in relatively well off lives in France, who remained aloof from things french, who read the Daily Mail and moaned about the UK.

If you know about France, then why are you talking about the UK sinking? Look at the problems in France, my son is there and we have friends there, I may not be, but my, do I know about the current state of France and it is worrying. I also worry about the UK, that much of europe is in the caca has not escaped my notice at all.

 

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I think Charly was talking in general terms about a particular attitude that is all-too-rife in the so-called 'expat' community and is well to the fore in programmes like this, rather than giving a personal viewpoint. At least, that's how I read the post (and I definitely did read Charly's post, as well as Idun's and Cooperlola's). If I made any error, it was probably taking a quote out of context, but that was done to refer to where it occurred in the conversation rather than actually attributing it to Charly.

My personal view still stands that I don't believe there can be any justification for the black-and-white extreme 'France good UK bad' (or vice versa) sort of comment. There is no reason why one can't like both places, each have good and bad points, and the virtues and negatives are often more similar than we think. Unfortunately this sort of programme, and the resulting forum discussion, often tends to forget this.

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[quote user="Will"]I think Charly was talking in general terms about a particular attitude that is all-too-rife in the so-called 'expat' community and is well to the fore in programmes like this, rather than giving a personal viewpoint.

[/quote]

That is exactly how I read it! Perhaps Charly would like to comment? I also agree with the second part of your post, nothing is black & white. We love Cornwall where we lived for 24 years, we just felt like a change and a bit of adventure.

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[quote user="Jay"][quote user="Will"]I think Charly was talking in general terms about a particular attitude that is all-too-rife in the so-called 'expat' community and is well to the fore in programmes like this, rather than giving a personal viewpoint.

[/quote]

That is exactly how I read it! Perhaps Charly would like to comment? I also agree with the second part of your post, nothing is black & white. We love Cornwall where we lived for 24 years, we just felt like a change and a bit of adventure.

[/quote]

Me too. I thought Charly was just parodying an attitude I'm sure we've all come across rather than presenting a personally held view point.

Bloody program has an effect tho' - fish & chips for tea.  [;-)]

I found the wedding couple irritating in a vague and non-specific way, but everyone else presented seemed perfectly sane and unobjectionable.

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Jacqui Too, there are far more Brit second home owners in France, than those who live there full time, so the majority would seem to be in that fortunate position.

Also my guess is many of those who have retired to France full time, would have liked to have kept a base in the Uk, if finances had permitted.
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[quote user="Sprogster"]Jacqui Too, there are far more Brit second home owners in France, than those who live there full time, so the majority would seem to be in that fortunate position. Also my guess is many of those who have retired to France full time, would have liked to have kept a base in the Uk, if finances had permitted.[/quote]

Yes there are far more holiday homes than full time living homes, but my point was that even with a choice I would still want to live in UK, many of the holiday home owners would like to make the move, but other factors stop them from doing so. Living in France full time has never been concidered or wanted by us.

 

 

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And there I was thinking that I had made some very clear comments about the style of the programme - specifically the narrator - whose slightly bored, slightly "let's make a jokey comment about this" Grumpy voice made me feel uneasy as to where this might be leading. He's great doing his Grumpy Old series, particularly when we can all recognise and laugh at life's annoyances. I'd rather not watch any tv which aims to make fools out of individuals, whatever their nationalities. It makes me feel both sad and uncomfortable.

Not attempting to explain any of this to Idun, who has totally failed to understand what I have written and whose attitude I freely admit baffles me completely. I am completely at a loss to understand why my posting the odd comment here should attract such animosity. It is well documented that I am not the only target of her missiles but they don't make sense to me. What is her criticism, given my post ? Some of you are simply being told what to eat, but I am instructed to read the papers and watch French t.v. - well yes, I do, and the point here is....? I consider myself well read, well educated and informed. I also know where my allegiances lie. I would no more post the following here than fly to the moon but Idun feels it's acceptable:

"If I had had the need fo (sic) brits, or to be near brits, I would have stayed at home in the first place"

"I couldn't imagine living abroad amoungst (sic) my own"

"It starts in about 10 minutes and I am cringing already"

"But there are so many brits there, how can you avoid them....?"

And, apparently she lives in England now. So, now I'm even more confused.

I can be lambasted for something I never said, however, she is able to say what she likes, whenever.

Thank you anyway, Cooperlola, Will, Riff-Raff E., and Jay. Bless you, you understand English and it's a big relief to know that I am not, after all, going mad !
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