I've been reading a little about Borderers, and it seems like they were largely able to raid, pillage, and terrorise with impunity. Why were they not brought under control by the monarchy of either kingdom? I assume it has something to do with both parties arguing it was the other's problem.
Does the English side of the border with Scotland have more Scottish cultural influences and does the Scottish side of the border have more English cultural influences?
Does the English side of the border with Wales have more Welsh cultural influences and does the Welsh side of the border have more English cultural influences?
Or are these areas a unique blend of both cultures?
Also is the English-Scottish football rivalry a lot more intense there?
For example, there was a certain bloke local to my area that was a bellend of monumental proportions. If he showed up in the local, you were pretty much guaranteed that somebody was going to get a kicking for absolutely no reason whatsoever. A list of convictions for violent offences as long as your arm.
One night he picked on the wrong bloke and ended up quite a bit more dead than he began the night. Not long after, the eulogising began in the papers: 'Loveable Rogue leaves behind partner and young child', "He was a loveable rogue with a cheeky smile", etc.
Basically, 'Loveable Rogue' is the fallback you use when you're trying to fondly remember somebody with absolutely no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Is this something particular to Scotland? Do the English/Welsh have an alternative?
O.K. so hear me out.
I'm watching a video where this fella drives up from Yorkshire to a village on the Scottish border about ten miles in. Everyone unsurprisingly had a Scottish accent but then I thought, hang on...if he went back ten miles would everyone be speaking with an Northern English accent?
Is there really no kind of 'buffer zone' accents that are mixes of both Scottish and English?
Happy Thursday!
