Just say UK!
It's very common to say just 'England' or 'English' when the sentence/context actually means the UK or all British people. I come across this 2 or 3 times every week in some book or TV program or personal conversation. Even in otherwise well made historical drama and documentary programs they often call the UK just ‘England’ and the British troops just ‘English’. Sometimes even switching from British to English within the same sentence, as if they were exactly the same. Every now and then i decide to make a quick recording of it, like these below. I could have 100's of them by now if i wanted to go mad and record them all!
1. Program refering to the Crimean war when it seems only English soldiers are worth mentioning, despite there being at least 10 Scottish, Irish and Welsh regiments involved in the war:
It's very common to say just 'England' or 'English' when the sentence/context actually means the UK or all British people. I come across this 2 or 3 times every week in some book or TV program or personal conversation. Even in otherwise well made historical drama and documentary programs they often call the UK just ‘England’ and the British troops just ‘English’. Sometimes even switching from British to English within the same sentence, as if they were exactly the same. Every now and then i decide to make a quick recording of it, like these below. I could have 100's of them by now if i wanted to go mad and record them all!
1. Program refering to the Crimean war when it seems only English soldiers are worth mentioning, despite there being at least 10 Scottish, Irish and Welsh regiments involved in the war:
2. Did the Nazi's only intend to invade 'England’…not the UK in general? Oh, i wish my Scottish grandfather in Edinburgh had known that before he joined up to fight! Could have saved himself all the bother... This is from the otherwise excellent ITV drama 'Foyle's War'.
This is both inaccurate and insulting to all the people in the armed forces from Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, many battalions from these places fought bravely and with great loss of life in key battles in WW1 and WW11. So, out of both accuracy and respect, say ‘the UK’ program makers!
Actually it would have been a good plan on Hitlers part to broadcast a message in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, like "Guten morgan Celtic folk...I promise that I will only invade ENGLAND... So there is no need for all your whisky drinking, valley singing, guinness brewing people to fight against us. No honest, really. Would i lie to you? I'm a man of my word ... ask the Czechs! ...Anyway the history programs in the future will not even bother to mention you, like you dont even exist - so why fight?"
3. Travel program. No one from Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland flies to Thailand it seems. The fact that the flights would normally leave from Heathrow (in England) does not excuse not saying 'the UK' here in this BBC program made for the whole of the UK, where everyone from any part would fly from Heathrow. it just her bad habit:
Actually it would have been a good plan on Hitlers part to broadcast a message in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, like "Guten morgan Celtic folk...I promise that I will only invade ENGLAND... So there is no need for all your whisky drinking, valley singing, guinness brewing people to fight against us. No honest, really. Would i lie to you? I'm a man of my word ... ask the Czechs! ...Anyway the history programs in the future will not even bother to mention you, like you dont even exist - so why fight?"
3. Travel program. No one from Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland flies to Thailand it seems. The fact that the flights would normally leave from Heathrow (in England) does not excuse not saying 'the UK' here in this BBC program made for the whole of the UK, where everyone from any part would fly from Heathrow. it just her bad habit:
4. My fellow 60s music loving Edinburgh writer, Ian Rankin, calmly correcting an American saying only England when the context is quite clearly the whole UK:
5. This WW11 image, shown on a recent documentary, that writes 'England' over almost the whole of the UK, from Eastern Wales right up through Scotland to the middle of the highlands. oh boy!
So, folks: 'Just say UK'
...you'll be right every time.