Spouse and I lived in Britain in 1972 and 1973, and worked in a Herts hospital. American Bill Bryson (b1951) first visited Britain in 1973 and worked in a Surrey hospital. Bill married a local nurse in 1975, moved back to Des Moines in 1975 to complete his studies at Drake Uni, then re-settled in Britain in 1977. Mainly they lived in rural Hampshire.
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Later, to mark the 20th anniversary of this classic, Bryson made a new journey round Britain (2015). Bryson again gave a perceptive insight into all that was best and worst about modern Britain in his book The Road to Little Dribbling (Doubleday 2015). Following a spinal route from Bognor Regis on England’s south coast to Cape Wrath in the Scottish Highlands, Bryson set out to RE-discover the beautiful country that he once knew. Each village en route led him to a tale of intrigue, history and gossip. And despite Britain’s occasional dilemmas, Bryson was still in love with his country, even though he lamented a country that had become overly tolerant of stupidity.
The Road to Little Dribbling
published 2015
Bryson travelled around Britain, to celebrate the green and pleasant land that he called his own country. His book, Notes from a Small Island (1995), was the bestselling travel book ever, and one I loved. But he was rude. Remember the story in Notes in which Bryson was stuck in a train carriage with a railway enthusiast. The man went on endlessly, with Bryson stoically enduring the boredom, at which point the mood changed. Bryson learned the man's wife had died relatively recently, so he snapped: "Suicide, I would guess." How VERY rude!
Later, to mark the 20th anniversary of this classic, Bryson made a new journey round Britain (2015). Bryson again gave a perceptive insight into all that was best and worst about modern Britain in his book The Road to Little Dribbling (Doubleday 2015). Following a spinal route from Bognor Regis on England’s south coast to Cape Wrath in the Scottish Highlands, Bryson set out to RE-discover the beautiful country that he once knew. Each village en route led him to a tale of intrigue, history and gossip. And despite Britain’s occasional dilemmas, Bryson was still in love with his country, even though he lamented a country that had become overly tolerant of stupidity.
As in his previous outing, The NY Times described how Bryson used visits to historic sites like Runnymede and Sutton Hoo to reflect on the true and otherwise details of Britain’s past. An outing in the New Forest prompted a discussion of Arthur Conan Doyle’s spiritualism; in Oxford, he wrote the story of Roger Bannister when he saw the track where he ran the first sub-four-minute mile. He scanned the tranquillity of the Cornish fishing village of Mousehole and the sadly diminished down-market resort of Blackpool.
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In May 2007, Bryson became the passionate president of the Campaign to Protect Rural England. There wasn’t a landscape in the world that was more artfully worked, more lovely to behold, more comfortable to be in than rural Great Britain, he said. His argument was won by sneakiness, with charm and learning. And he still lives in the UK.
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Bryson’s reaction to Australian understatement reminded me how much we take our casual attitude for granted. Australians sharks were part of our painful history, but we still went swimming! Only an outsider like Bryson showed us how unique (and stupid) we were. It was huge proof that it took an outsider to see the truth about our own country.
He was constantly complaining about rubbish, illiteracy, poor manners, mediocrities, rip-offs and talentless celebrities that infested the place since he first arrived back in the 1970s. But once again, see his matchless romp through the funniest, the most ridiculous and the most scandalous. The latest Bryson travelogue him showed him to be older (64) and grumpier, just like any older British man. But readers will enjoy this just as much as earlier books.
Bill Bryson, Hampshire
2017
Bryson felt perfectly comfortable to gush, despite the cynical impulse of our times. At the same time, he was equally comfortable to unleash his inner killjoy: He wrote: Eastleigh appears to have been heavily bombed during WW2, though perhaps not heavily enough! Or later, describing a local bus: It was the sort of vehicle you would expect to be put on if you were being transferred between prisons. Rudeness popped into his head and out his mouth without censorship, which every Australian and New Zealander understood. However I would call Antipodean humour ironic, and Bryson’s humour sarcastic.
In May 2007, Bryson became the passionate president of the Campaign to Protect Rural England. There wasn’t a landscape in the world that was more artfully worked, more lovely to behold, more comfortable to be in than rural Great Britain, he said. His argument was won by sneakiness, with charm and learning. And he still lives in the UK.
A Campaign to Protect Rural England poster
While we are talking about Australia, Bryson travelled across this nation, exploring from a tourist’s perspective and seeking to understand what made Australians unique. In book, Down Under (Random House 2001) was also funny. Even though Australians knew a lot about Australian history, Bill Bryson’s perspective could be very mind-expanding. As with every American tourist I ever met in Australia, Bryson focused on the many dangers of native Australian animals and used this medium to examine the classic characteristic of Australians, that of understatement. While surfing in Sydney he asked his host “What about sharks?” The host responded “Oh it’s been ages since someone was killed by a shark; months at least”.
Down Under
published 2001