What are the most backwatery of British backwaters?

[Marka Ragnos]

 

What places have a reputation (deserved or undeserved) for being culturally stagnant or "backward" in the UK?

I heard a distasteful British-based reference today to people in Norfolk, and it struck me as completely alien and weird. The joke, about "Norfolk fingers," (?!?!?!?!?) seemed to suggest that people in Norfolk are all inbred, etc.? I was like, what?

 I never in a million years would have guessed that Norfolk was thought of like that, and it made me realise all over again how blessed little I grasp about Briton despite living there for years, having an English father, etc. It makes me wonder whether I've had it wrong about places such as Cornwall, which seems sort of quirkily cool and cute to me, a place to wear a new pink Lacoste shirt and go for Vespa rides in the salty air.     

We have places with the same kinds of reps in the USA, of course, but it changes, depending on where you live, perhaps because we're so big. Appalachia in general has this unfortunate reputation, but lots of other areas do, too. You hear wisecracks about Mississippi, the Piney Woods of Texas, Maine, northern Florida, even parts of New Jersey.   

Quote

 

backwaterin British English

(ˈbækˌwɔːtə )

NOUN

1. 

a body of stagnant water connected to a river

2. 

water held or driven back, as by a dam, flood, or tide

3. 

an isolated, backward, or intellectually stagnant place or condition

VERBback water

4. (intransitive)

to reverse the direction of a boat, esp to push the oars of a rowing boat

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 27, 2023 by Marka Ragnos

[tonyh29]

1 minute ago, Marka Ragnos said:

 

What places have a reputation (deserved or undeserved) for being culturally stagnant or "backward" in the UK?

Simple answer is anywhere North of Watford 

[UpTheVilla26]

Minehead

[Seat68]

Stoke, or Cannock. More likely Cannock. 

[Mark Albrighton]

B9 4RL

[chrisp65]

Not really a backwater, but I’ve always wanted to go to Canvey Island. I got really close on Tuesday, literally drove past the turn off on my way to Saafend.

Have to say, I had an absolutely storming seaside fish n chips in Southend on Sea and in the space of a few hours heard people referred to as ‘sweetheart’, ‘darlin’’ and my absolute winner ‘treacle’.

[tonyh29]

11 minutes ago, chrisp65 said:

Not really a backwater, but I’ve always wanted to go to Canvey Island. I got really close on Tuesday, literally drove past the turn off on my way to Saafend.

Have to say, I had an absolutely storming seaside fish n chips in Southend on Sea and in the space of a few hours heard people referred to as ‘sweetheart’, ‘darlin’’ and my absolute winner ‘treacle’.

I have a soft spot for Southend , stems back to a girl I met on a school trip to the lake district when I was 13/ 14 who was my first holiday romance   … we swapped phone numbers and after our parents had spoken and discussed it me and mate went down on the coach in the summer hols and spent 2 weeks there , alas turned out she fancied my mate more than me, curse you Simon with your stylish wedge hair cut   but those 2 weeks on Southend beach front with fish and chips and her dads home made beer that we kept sneaking out of his cellar were magical times .. and I coped off with her best mate so figured we were even by the end  

[sidcow]

2 hours ago, Marka Ragnos said:

 

What places have a reputation (deserved or undeserved) for being culturally stagnant or "backward" in the UK?

I heard a distasteful British-based reference today to people in Norfolk, and it struck me as completely alien and weird. The joke, about "Norfolk fingers," (?!?!?!?!?) seemed to suggest that people in Norfolk are all inbred, etc.? I was like, what?

 I never in a million years would have guessed that Norfolk was thought of like that, and it made me realise all over again how blessed little I grasp about Briton despite living there for years, having an English father, etc. It makes me wonder whether I've had it wrong about places such as Cornwall, which seems sort of quirkily cool and cute to me, a place to wear a new pink Lacoste shirt and go for Vespa rides in the salty air.     

We have places with the same kinds of reps in the USA, of course, but it changes, depending on where you live, perhaps because we're so big. Appalachia in general has this unfortunate reputation, but lots of other areas do, too. You hear wisecracks about Mississippi, the Piney Woods of Texas, Maine, northern Florida, even parts of New Jersey.   

 

 

 

 

Norfolk is just one of those places that's a bit remote (by English standards) and difficult to get to so is often the butt of jokes. 

But there are plenty of backwaters. Many Victorian seaside towns are quite poor and desolate outside of the 2 months holiday season. 

But yeah, places like Stoke always seem quite bleak, cold and wet allied to a lot of industrial collapse. 

Many places in The North similar. The North/South divide has been widening for decades now with all political, economic, media and creative/arts power being so London centric. 

I think Capital cities should always be kept seperate from centres of economic power as it just creates a monopoly on all parts of life. 

Edited January 27, 2023 by sidcow

[KentVillan]

28 minutes ago, sidcow said:

Norfolk is just one of those places that's a bit remote (by English standards) and difficult to get to so is often the butt of jokes. 

But there are plenty of backwaters. Many Victorian seaside towns are quite poor and desolate outside of the 2 months holiday season. 

But yeah, places like Stoke always seem quite bleak, cold and wet allied to a lot of industrial collapse. 

Many places in The North similar. The North/South divide has been widening for decades now with all political, economic, media and creative/arts power being so London centric. 

I think Capital cities should always be kept seperate from centres of economic power as it just creates a monopoly on all parts of life. 

Even the South has plenty of very deprived towns. Places like the Isle of Sheppey in Kent or Plymouth in Devon.

In England, at least, the Leave vote in the Brexit referendum is a pretty good proxy for it.

[bickster]

Southampton, never have I ever been anywhere so culturally.... deficient

It's a city with the culture of a hamlet, nothing happens there, it's devoid of anyting interesting

The fact that the missus sister lives there is beside the point, even ignoring that blight on the landscape... it's CITY where absolutely nothing happens... ever

[icouldtelltheworld]

3 hours ago, KentVillan said:

Even the South has plenty of very deprived towns. Places like the Isle of Sheppey in Kent or Plymouth in Devon.

In England, at least, the Leave vote in the Brexit referendum is a pretty good proxy for it.

When the Indices of Deprivation gets published every four years or so, coastal areas around the south east and south west of England always feature heavily in the lists of the most deprived neighbourhoods/local authorities.

Coastal towns are interesting because in the UK urban poverty tends to look very different from rural poverty, but coastal towns and cities generally have features of both

Edited January 28, 2023 by icouldtelltheworld

[Follyfoot]

8 hours ago, bickster said:

Southampton, never have I ever been anywhee so culturally.... deficient

It's a city with the culture of a hamlet, nothing happens there, it's devoid of anyting interesting

The fact that the missus sister lives there is bedide the point, even ignoring that blight on the landscape... it's CITY where absolutely nothing happens... ever

When we played down there the season we went down I witnessed the Pink Panther having a vicious punch up with two Elvi 

Very surreal sight and I was sober and not under the influence of narcotics

 

 

 

[limpid]

10 hours ago, KentVillan said:

Even the South has plenty of very deprived towns. Places like the Isle of Sheppey in Kent or Plymouth in Devon.

In England, at least, the Leave vote in the Brexit referendum is a pretty good proxy for it.

It might just be me, but is there quite a correlation with "areas underwater in 30 years"? (Except London)

[Lichfield Dean]

9 hours ago, bickster said:

Southampton, never have I ever been anywhere so culturally.... deficient

It's a city with the culture of a hamlet, nothing happens there, it's devoid of anyting interesting

The fact that the missus sister lives there is beside the point, even ignoring that blight on the landscape... it's CITY where absolutely nothing happens... ever

I remember walking around the town centre whilst killing some time after returning from a cruise. I was astonished at how little was going on. It just seemed totally lifeless. Really weird.

[blandy]

14 hours ago, Marka Ragnos said:

It makes me wonder whether I've had it wrong about places such as Cornwall, which seems sort of quirkily cool and cute to me, a place to wear a new pink Lacoste shirt and go for Vespa rides in the salty air.     

Albeit a while back, when I lived in Cornwall almost none of it was like that, Marka. Newquay where I lived was all surfing and a Brit version of Aussie and US surf culture, with pasties added in. Then there was the tourist seaside holiday vibe around the coast. An arty vibe, too at St Ives. Fishing at Penzance and Newlyn, historic tin and china clay mining all over and decay and decline in Camborne and Redruth.  Maybe Truro and St Ives sort of fit your impression. Cornwall is fabulous, but apart from tourism, which is obviously seasonal, it’s economically a backwater for sure.

[Seat68]

People say out of season seaside towns, well the jokes on them. In 1990 I saw the band of holy joy in Skegness, so that clearly disproves that. 

[bickster]

37 minutes ago, Seat68 said:

People say out of season seaside towns, well the jokes on them. In 1990 I saw the band of holy joy in Skegness, so that clearly disproves that. 

I saw the Charlatans in Bridlington one December

[bannedfromHandV]

Man, Stoke gets a bad rap on here.

Yeah it’s a shithole but it ain’t that much more of a shithole than a host of comparable towns and cities across the country, I think I’ve lived in most of them.

Regards the opening post - a pink Lacoste shirt and a Vespa? Cornwall isn’t Jude Law in ‘the Talented Mr Ripley’!

[mjmooney]

1 hour ago, blandy said:

Albeit a while back, when I lived in Cornwall almost none of it was like that, Marka. Newquay where I lived was all surfing and a Brit version of Aussie and US surf culture, with pasties added in. Then there was the tourist seaside holiday vibe around the coast. An arty vibe, too at St Ives. Fishing at Penzance and Newlyn, historic tin and china clay mining all over and decay and decline in Camborne and Redruth.  Maybe Truro and St Ives sort of fit your impression. Cornwall is fabulous, but apart from tourism, which is obviously seasonal, it’s economically a backwater for sure.

 

[His Name Is Death]

Surely it's got to be places in Lincolnshire like Boston, Spalding, and the aptly-named Grimsby? Not a knock on Lincoln itself, which looks like a fine city.

Edited January 28, 2023 by His Name Is Death