Trying to find a story

[Nigel Gordon]

7 hours ago, Cole Parker said:

I don't mind the 'gone ten' part so much.  It's the half ten that gets me.   They never specify if that means night-thirtyrro ten-thirty, and I'm sure they only say it that way to muddle the Yanks.

C

In British English half-ten means half past ten. However, I know from experience that to the Dutch the term means half past nine. Considering the impact that Dutch and German had on American English I am not surprised at the confusion.

[Camy]

Na. Half-ten means half ten... 5pm, tiffin and a nice cup of earl grey.

[Cole Parker]

And is it any surprise that a mere Yank is perplexed when even the English disagree?  😁

Yeah, I know it's just a lazy habit you guys indulge in, leaving the 'past' out.  Like you do so many times leaving the 'the' out.  Going to hospital.  What a strange way to talk!

 

C

[Merkin]

British writers appear to have a lot more nuance to trudge through than we Yanks do.  I think a major concern for them would be maintaining consistency for character class, rank, or origin throughout a story.

[Camy]

3 hours ago, Merkin said:

British writers appear to have a lot more nuance to trudge through than we Yanks do.  I think a major concern for them would be maintaining consistency for character class, rank, or origin throughout a story.

...which is why we have editors!

Here is a well known writer at work:

 

 

[Rutabaga]

4 hours ago, Merkin said:

British writers appear to have a lot more nuance to trudge through than we Yanks do.  I think a major concern for them would be maintaining consistency for character class, rank, or origin throughout a story.

How are we Yanks supposed to know, when a character refers to "having tea," whether they are actually having a meal or just drinking the beverage?  And when there is a reference to "pudding," how do we know whether it denotes dessert generically, or the actual creamy substance?

R

[Nigel Gordon]

19 hours ago, Rutabaga said:

How are we Yanks supposed to know, when a character refers to "having tea," whether they are actually having a meal or just drinking the beverage?  And when there is a reference to "pudding," how do we know whether it denotes dessert generically, or the actual creamy substance?

R

I is simple, if they are having tea, they are partaking of a light meal in the late afternoon. If they are drinking tea it will say they are have a cup of tea, a mug of tea, drinking tea, having a cup of char, a rosy lee, etc. The term pudding is generic and may be applied to things as diverse as a steak and kidney pudding to an apple crumble. A creamy substance would be a dessert not a pudding, as it is lacking the essential ingredient, a quantity of flour. All you need to remember is that if it can't be used as an offensive weapon then it is not a pudding, its a dessert. Just think of Haggis, Robert Burns righty identified it as a pudding. It is so dangerous you will not allow its importation to the United States. Though personally I would put my great aunts suet treacle pudding up against a haggis any day.

PS If the receipt does not involve boiling or baking for at least and hour and a half it is not a pudding.

PPS If it can't be used as an alternative to cement, it is not a pudding.

[Merkin]

Although I can be tempted by Spotted Dick, my very favorite is Sticky Toffee Pudding.

[Rutabaga]

This is unambiguously what someone in the U.S. would think of as pudding:

 

[Nigel Gordon]

25 minutes ago, Rutabaga said:

This is unambiguously what someone in the U.S. would think of as pudding:

 

That to us is a dessert. There is no way you could pour hot custard or gravy over it. If it is a pudding it can be savoury or sweet. The way you can tell which is being served is by the sauce. If the sauce is gravy, it is savoury. If it is sweet, the sauce is custard - though some heathens might server cream. If it doesn't have a sauce and is sweet, then it is dessert.

[Nigel Gordon]

2 hours ago, Merkin said:

Although I can be tempted by Spotted Dick, my very favorite is Sticky Toffee Pudding.

Personally it is a toss up between Sticky Toffee Pudding and Sussex Pond Pudding. However, both are forbidden to me these day on doctor's orders.

[Cole Parker]

That's another term, savoury, that you guys use frequently and it means something else over here.  To us savory is an adjective, never a noun, and it designates a good flavor, often a sharp or strong one.   Also, we spell it correctly.    🙄

 

[Camy]

6 hours ago, Rutabaga said:

This is unambiguously what someone in the U.S. would think of as pudding:

 

 

That (could do with a dollop of clotted cream) is a pud, pudding, sweet, dessert, or afters. It's also a chocolate mousse (not mouse or moose - the former having whiffley whiskers, the latter: horns).

[Merkin]

5 hours ago, Cole Parker said:

That's another term, savoury, that you guys use frequently and it means something else over here.  To us savory is an adjective, never a noun, and it designates a good flavor, often a sharp or strong one.   Also, we spell it correctly.    🙄

 

As is the word 'sweet'.  For shame, Cole, I thought you'd be caught up on that distinction between meat-based and sugar-based treats--haven't you been watching The Great British Baking Show ?  At any rate, this discussion appears to be endlessly misunderstood, and I think any good English/Irish/Scots cookbook would clarify everything for the Yanks among us.  Plus I think the Brits have been having us on just a bit.

 

[Cole Parker]

Probably so.  Their sense of humor runs that way.

I watch a lot of Brit shows on Acron.  I'm now watching The Larkins.  Wonderful show.  Of course, it's rich with Engish expressions we've never heard.  Like: 'I'll put that behind my ear.'  Say what?

C

 

[Nigel Gordon]

To "put something behind your ear" means you are likely to forget about it. It was a common practice when I was growing up to see tradesmen, specifically carpenters, with a pencil stuck behind their ear. Something that is very rare these days. It was surprising how often you would see somebody looking around for a pencil having forgotten they had put it behind their ear. 

[Merkin]

There is very little room behind my ear these days what with my eyeglasses, hearing aids, and now the damn Covid masks.  Consequently I forget about almost everything.

[Nigel Gordon]

17 hours ago, Merkin said:

There is very little room behind my ear these days what with my eyeglasses, hearing aids, and now the damn Covid masks.  Consequently I forget about almost everything.

Bliss.

[Gerry]

I guess my undying fascination with all things Australian has given me the ability to adapt to most iterations of the English language. Then again, where I'm from American English sometimes requires translation so there's that...

[Rutabaga]

In regard to "pudding":

I found this extensive discussion.

R

[Cole Parker]

Just the end picture of the black pudding is going to put me off eating anything for a week.

C

[Rutabaga]

2 hours ago, Cole Parker said:

Just the end picture of the black pudding is going to put me off eating anything for a week.

I encountered it regularly eating breakfast in Ireland, and found it tasty, but pretty much stopped eating it once I learned what it was made from.

R

[Merkin]

As I may have mentioned, my understanding of, and interest in, British versions of puddings is strictly limited to Sticky Toffee Pudding.  (Sorry, had to step out a moment to check some addresses). I found out about STP when in England about ten years ago.  While hiking in the lake district I stumbled upon a hotel hosting a meeting of the Sticky Toffee Club, where I learnt that STP was not only an addictive guilty pleasure, but it was also a moveable feast and the Club had a circuit of such feasts planned over the weeks to come.  Somehow I had more BritRail passes than I knew what to do with, and so spent the next few weeks following the circuit, scarfing down puddings, and hiking off the calories in the days between meetings. 
Since returning to the States I've often longed for STP and I finally located a lady in Texas who bakes and sends out what seems to me to be an authentic STP.  You may want to try it, but be warned it is extraordinarily expensive, although each cupcake-sized pudding can be considered two servings if you consider the calory count. https://stickytoffeepuddingcompany.com/ 

I think the club in England still exists; here's a glimpse of their activities:  https://www.facebook.com/Sticky-Toffee-Pudding-Club-257742077596572/
 

[James K]

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