Are Britons overly polite?

Question

Having just got back from my holiday in Greece, I'm starting to wonder whether I, as a Briton, am overly polite, or whether perhaps the entire world is just downright rude.

I know Britons are known for their manners and stiff upper lip, but is this seen as a negative thing?

What do you think of Britons and their manners?

Answer 1

I would have to say yes, the entire world is becoming downright rude.  It is tragic.  Basic rules of politeness and etiquette have been lost.  It's difficult not become rude when dealing with rude.

Don't let "them" get to you.

Answer 2

I have a couple of friends of mine who are from Bristol and the other moved to Brisbane,Australia. Both not only have that "stiff upperlip",but are so patient.

Answer 3

I lived in  West Africa and Spain, with tons of expat Brits, and trust me, they needed to be way more polite.  Often when I would become a customer at a local Spanish establishment, the staff would say to me, "You speak English, where are you from?"   I met more nasty, rude and pompous ones  than I thought was possible.  Widely reported (and not just in Spain, but also Crete Greece etc) are reports of public drunkenness, rape at dance clubs, and my favourite, "Spain would be perfect, if it weren't for the Sp*cs).  This is not just my opinion, or what I myself have witnessed, it is well documented in your newspapers, and TV media.  

I applaud you, that you are polite.  There is no such thing as being too polite.  Better to lead the pack, than to be laying in the gutter with them.

Answer 4

There is no such thing as "overly polite".  Each culture has its own understanding of what being polite is all about.  It's something we just have to live with and adjust to if we're going to be visiting other countries and cultures.  How tedious things would be if everybody everywhere behaved exactly the same way.

Answer 5

I enjoy British people, they are very polite but I don't think that's a bad thing.....I wish Americans were more polite for sure.....

Answer 6

Katie... I LOVE my Brit friends from London as well as Newton Wales.  I adore them.

Answer 7

I don't believe Britons are different from others there are a lot of nice ones and a lot of hooliganism in Britain.. I lived in the UK for 2 years.. there are great people there and others.. nothing at all to do with their nationality. the times of the British ''stiff upper lip and ''Gentlemen'' is a time of the past.. there are some left.. the rest are just like everywhere. a lot of them smash up phone booths,  go binge drinking .. and others are nice and great people to know same as in Greece, in USA as everywhere in the world.. there are nice people and not so nice ones..nothing at  all to do with nationality but with how they were brought up and with personal character... (personality..) not with culture and not with skin colour.. xx My husband is British and my brother in law and my in law's .. they are just ordinary country folk..  no different from other people in other countries..  not rude and not overly polite..and I met a lot of people when I lived in Britain.. they are all just normal acting.. there are some really polite people and some rude ones as in every country... in the big towns or the medium towns a lot of hooliganism is going on.. and a lot of drunks are around in the evenings.. and vandalism... but that is a minority.. others are nice.. x*x