Brits take politeness seriously. When you hear people going on about ‘British values’ they probably mean tea and having good manners. We’ve got pretty strict rules on what is and isn’t polite in this country, so much so that there are people who’ve made their entire livelihoods on teaching ‘etiquette’ to the masses.
Basically, the title of ‘rudest city’ is one which no place in the UK would ever wish to claim. Unfortunately, it has to be somewhere. Language learning company Preply has taken it upon itself to analyse our cities’ manners by comparing cleanliness, safety, and online reviews.
In a shocking twist, London didn’t score last! Northerners will be disappointed to discover that, despite their reputation as a pretty lovely bunch, Manchester was actually crowned the UK’s rudest city. No more complaining about southerners not liking a chat until you lot sort that out.
London’s luck runs out there, as it was the second-least welcoming city on the list. It was good while it lasted, Londoners. Sunderland, Wolverhampton, and Peterborough rounded out the bottom five, so there’s no real geographical trend to be seen. It seems that impoliteness is a cross-country phenomenon.
The most polite city was Cambridge, which scored very well on safety and cleanliness. Despite only ranking as the 10th nicest, Southampton had the most positive reviews on TripAdvisor. Newcastle and Sheffield also scored very well, receiving overall second and third place respectively.
You can have a look at the full friendliness index here, but remember that real politeness comes from within, not your place of birth. It’s also, at times, an arbitrary set of rules invented by random people throughout history. Except thanking the bus driver. Always thank the bus driver.
Staycations according to Time Out
Deciding where should be your next UK trip? If you’re not fussed about politeness, we've got some solid recommendations. Why not try one of Time Out’s favourite things to do in the country, or embark on one of these top rated Great British road trips? For something a bit more out there, have a look at these cool islands scattered across England, or check out these haunted places you can visit.
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Plus: The UK is officially one of the happiest countries in the world.
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