The document discusses regional identity in the UK and stereotypes associated with different regions. It provides stereotypes for Northerners, Southerners, Scots, Welsh, Scousers, Geordies, Mancs, Brummies, Londoners, Essex and Yorkshire. Key theorists discussed include Higson and Anderson who note the role of media and cultural means in constructing regional identities. Higson also discusses how stereotypes are used as shorthand but can shape outward perceptions if they become widely recognized. Examples of TV shows like EastEnders, Shameless, Trainspotting and Doc Martin are given that potentially reinforce regional stereotypes through various production elements.

1. Regional and National Identity

2. What is Britishness?

3. Understanding regional identity
• Pick 3 of the following regions and stereotype
their regional identity:
– Northerners
– Southerners
– Essex
– Scottish
– Welsh
– Scousers
– Geordies
– Yorkshire
– Mancs
– Brummies
– Londoners

4. Northerners
• Stereotype= ‘Northern
Monkeys’, Loud rude,
drink a lot and of a
lower status
• Costume= Track suit or
cheap/casual clothes
• Dialogue/dialect=
Vowel sounds over-pronounced
• Make up= Over the top
or minimal
• Class/Status= Low

5. Southerners
• Stereotype= ‘Poncy Southerners’
arrogant and posh
• - Dialogue/dialect= Well spoken ‘
the rain in Spain falls mainly on the
plain’
• -Costume= Suit and tie, tailored
clothing and dresses
• -Props= Brief case
• -Make up= Classy and to a
minimum
• -Class/Status= Middle/Upper

6. Essex
• Stereotype= Image conscious,
unintelligent, love to shop and
party
• Stereotype coined by TOWIE (The
Only Way is Essex)
• Dialogue/dialect= 'Shut up' 'Oh
my God' = common phrases
• Costume: Girls= Revealing/OTT
Boys: Fashionable
• Location= Clubs and boutiques
• Props: G Expensive, flashy, tacky
handbags, up to date mobile
phone
• Make up= Fake tan, fake
eyelashes and hair extensions
• Class/Status= Lower Middle
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vTzuZk1O
HA

7. Scottish
• Stereotype= Humourless, hate
other nations,alcoholic and violent
• Dialogue/dialect= Strong accent
'och' 'wee'
• Costume= Kilt, tartan, Tam o'
Shanter
• Location= Highlands, cold and vast
open spaces
• Props= Bagpipes, haggis, whisky
• Make up= Ginger hair and freckles
• Class/Status= Lower class (farmers)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
fp-jVwBGUsI

8. Welsh
• Stereotype= Small ,dark
haired people who play all
rugby, sing in choirs, herd
sheep or mine coal
• Dialogue/dialect= Very ‘song-like’
and melodic, slow and
exaggerated pronunciation
• Costume= Rugby shirts
• Location= Rugby pitch, church,
pub, fields with sheep
• Props= Sheep
• Make up= Minimal
• Class/Status= Middle/Lower

9. Scousers
• Stereotype= Dangerous ;
‘Why does the river Mersey
run through Liverpool? If it
walked it would get mugged’
• - Dialogue/dialect= Flemmy,
difficult to understand; 'like'
prominent k's
• -Costume= Tracksuits, very
casual cheap looking clothing
• -Location= Pub/home
• -Props= Cheap looking
jewellery
• -Make up= Minimal, or OTT
• -Class/Status= Low
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=STIvNjWobzA

10. Yorkshire
• - Dialogue/dialect= 'Ey up’,
‘An' Ah'll tell thi that fer
nowt’, don’t pronounce ‘t’s’
• Costume= Flat caps, tweed
jackets
• Location= Open fields,
country pubs, Local shops
• Props= Whippets/Yorksire
terrier and Yorkshire
puddings
• Make up= Minimal/pale
• Class/Status= Low (farmers)
http://www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=jzAD2GLfaNU

11. Geordies
• Stereotype= Loud, swear a lot,
party animals and binge drinkers
(help coined by Geordie Shore)
• Dialogue/dialect= ‘way eye
man’, difficult to understand
• Costume= Revealing, tight
clothing
• Location= Busy town centres,
clubs, urban areas
• Make up= Over the top, fake
tan, dark hair
• Class/Status= Lower middle/
middle
http://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=6PVQbnvv79I

12. Mancs
• Stereotype= Loud, rude, funny and fond of
fighting (Helped coined by Oasis)
• Dialogue/dialect= ‘Oh, aye’ ‘Nowt’
• Costume= Manchester United
• Shirt
• Location= Busy town centres
• Class/Status= Low/lower
• middle

13. Brummies
• Stereotype= Unintelligent and
unfriendly
• Dialogue/dialect= 'Yow' heavily
pronunciation the 'ow' of 'You'
• Costume= Casual/ Cheao
• Location= Busy, industrialised
centres
• Make up= Greasy hair
• Class/Status= Low

14. Londoners (Northern/ more posh
boroughs)
• - Dialogue/dialect= Well spoken, range of
vocabulary
• -Costume= Cashmere jumpers/sweaters and
suits
• -Location= Skyscrapers, swanky bars, posh
homes
• -Props= Briefcase
• -Class/Status= Middle/upper

15. Londoners (Cockney/ South London)
• - Dialogue/dialect= ‘Gorblimey’, Rhyming slang
‘apples and pairs = stairs’,dropping ‘t’s’
• -Costume= Flat caps
• -Location= Busy streets, market stalls
• -Make up= Minimal
• -Class/Status= Low

16. Key Theorists
• Theorist Andrew Higson (1998) writes; “Identity is generally
understood to be the shared identity of naturalized
inhabitants of a particular political-geographic space – this
can be a particular nation or region.”
• Benedict Anderson (1983) maintains that the media play a
vital role in constructing a national/regional identity as in
reality the nation is too big for everyone to know each
other yet they often have shared values ; “The unification
of people in the modern world is achieved not by military
but by cultural means, in particular the media system
enables people (of a nation or region) to feel part of a
coherent, meaningful and homogenous community.”

17. Constructing images of
regional/national identity:
• According to Higson (1989) there are two
ways in which the process of constructing
images of national/regional identity should be
understood; “The first involves an inward
looking process, defining the nation in terms
of its own cultural history. The second is a
more outward-looking process, defining the
nation in terms of its difference from others.”

18. In other words, stereotypes play a large role in
constructing images of identity and these can either
reaffirm notions of a nation (historic/culture) or
contradict them. For example, as Higson (1998) states;
“Film like Trainspotting (1995) deal with quite specific
cultural traditions, including working class traditions,
youth traditions, all of which can be subsumed under the
umbrella term Britishness.” In other words, Trainspotting
taps into traditional stereotypes of Scotland while
illustrating what these stereotypes mean to working class
youths (social-realist interpretation). Interestingly, this
film changed the way this film represented Scotland
changed outward perceptions of the nations (negatively).

19. Higson also argues that; “Representations of
national/regional identity are constructed as the
narrative of the text unfolds, as characters are
pitted against one another, so a sense of identity
emerges…but at the same time producers often
resort to stereotyping as a means of establishing
character and identity.”

20. • Higson goes on to say; “Stereotyping is a form
of shorthand, a way of establishing character
by adopting recognisable and well established
conventions of representation…the stereotype
reduces characters to the most basic form and
attempts to naturalise them and the more
widely recognisable they become the more
readily they are accepted. Except that if a
stereotype becomes more widely recognisable
it becomes comic”.

21. Now think about programs/films set in the following
locations, do they reinforce these stereotypes through
mise-en-scene (location, setting, actors, props, costumes
etc), camera work, sound (include dialect that could be
colloquial) and editing?
• EastEnders
• Shameless
• TrainSpotting/Braveheart/Monarch of the Glen
• Doc Martin
• Emmerdale

22. The satellite map shows us a city sprawl
so we know that the programme is set
in an urban area. However it is the
River Thames than reveals the specific
location as being London.
Regional Identity can be seen
by the views we see in the
picture. We can see the
countryside in the distance
and we can also see an old
vehicle of which is only used in
the countryside.

23. You can tell that this is
set in the country also
because the
background of the first
picture is the country
and in the second
picture the house is
styled as a country
house. Also, what the
characters are wearing
symbolises ‘the
country’
You can tell that this is set in an estate as
there are flats in the background and the
people look like they aren't of a high class
because of the clothes they are wearing
therefore we would expect them to live
there and if there is a show about them
then it would be set here.

24. Manchester - Mancunians, or Mancs Liverpool – Scousers
Task: As you watch, write notes and then write
one P.E.E for each of the following clips

25. As you watch, consider:
•Setting
•Accents
•Dialogue
•Props
•Make up
•Class of characters
•Costumes

26. • As you watch, consider:
• Setting
• Accents
• Dialogue
• Props
• Make up
• Class of characters
• Costumes

27. For Regional Identity in Emmer dale we shall look at this clip for examples:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01QQB_nrOtU
Views at 0.30 show that the setting is in the country and we see straight away that all
the views we see are all of this manor also/
We see that the clothes and possessions (van) show low class as the clothes look old
and used as the van that the women is driving does too.
We know that they either run or live on a barn as when they open the barn we see a lot
of sheep , which can only really be in the country which backs up our other beliefs.
We then see people decorating a house which we can see was very old by the décor for
example the curtains are very countrified which means that if the house was oringinally
decorated as if it was in the country it is probably in the country.
We then see the sheep again and the farm surroundings which is repeated throughout
which only drums in the fact that they are in the country and that that is their regional
identity.

28. • Good example clips to look at during revision
if you want to practice note taking include;
Vicar of Dibley or Doc Martin (middle
class/upper class characters do not have
regional accents and are presented ‘as
intelligent’ while the locals are ridiculed – this
obviously links to Marxism).