LONDON: A travel guide for foreigners brands the English as “overweight TV addicts obsessed by sex and celebrity”.
The latest edition of the Rough Guide to England also warns potential visitors that the hearts of many towns “consist of identikit retail zones”, reported BBC.
It also warns visitors that trying to talk to a stranger “can be seen as tantamount to physical assault”.
And it adds: “England is a country where accent and vocabulary can stamp a person’s identity like a brand.”
The book — the seventh edition by BRITISH publishing firm Rough Guides — has enraged the national tourist board Enjoy England.
“Comments like these really aren’t helpful when there are so many fantastic things about England to shout about. We get more than 30million international visitors every year and they love our country. I certainly don’t think approaching someone in England would ever be a problem for any tourist,” the tourist board spokesman Elliott Frisby said.
The guide, due to be published next month, does admit England has some great beaches and coastal beauty spots. And it claims that the English are typically “animal-loving, tea-drinking, charity donors thriving on irony and Radio 4”.
It adds that the country is “a genuine haven for refugees” — and praises the “thriving pop culture and dynamic fashion, music and arts scenes”. Rough Guides spokeswoman said: “We are known for being honest and opinionated.
“This book provides a balanced view of all the attractions the UK has to offer. “We are not afraid to celebrate the best of British but by the same token we are not afraid to point out areas that need improving.”
