An American in Great Britain has revealed six unexpected social faux pas in Britain

An American who has lived in the UK for six years has revealed the ‘social faux pas’ their countrymen must avoid when crossing the pond.

An anonymous American expat shared the information when he responded to an American colleague asking for help before their transatlantic move.

Before the big move on Reddit, a poster asked: “What social faux pas in the UK do Americans often commit?

“I hope one day to study or at least spend a good few months in the UK. I know I’ll still have American (specifically New York) manners wherever I go, but I’d still like to be as intentionally respectful as possible. I wouldn’t like to offend anyone by accident.’

An American living in the UK came to their rescue and listed six things that fellow travelers should work on if they came to the UK – and the first one was being quiet.

They wrote: ‘We’re too loud – turn your voice down.’

The second piece of advice was to warn that there is a “different type of humour” in the UK – very sarcastic and not to be taken personally, as well as less overtly sweet behaviour.

“Don’t expect overly nice people (like an exceptionally happy and sweet waitress or customer service),” they explained.

“People are acting normal.

In his third yet another heads-up, the Reddit user touched on a familiar and potentially contentious divide between the two nations – tipping.

They explained, “Tipping is not standard here.

‘Our [British] workers receive a standard wage and do not need to supplement it with tips. Don’t make us look bad by tipping everyone [laughing emoji].’

A YouGov survey last year found that while both Brits and Americans are likely to tip restaurant staff, in many other contexts Brits are much less likely to leave a tip.

These include tipped bar staff, takeaway drivers and hairdressers, all of whom more than 60 percent of Americans “usually tip,” compared to less than half of Brits.

The survey also found that US citizens are “significantly more likely” to tip after poor service.

Moving on, the fourth piece of advice for all nervous Americans is about speech.

“A lot of people don’t care about your life story or giving you theirs,” they said.

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“We’re pretty private here—talking doesn’t involve talking about personal lives.

The fifth piece of advice concerned perhaps the most quintessentially British thing – the queue.

“Understand and respect the queue,” they wisely advised.

“Don’t push yourself in front of others and don’t randomly stand around. Stand purposefully as part of the queue.’

Although this was met with approval by many Reddit users, others pointed to the finer aspects of the UK front.

One noted that in certain scenarios, such as waiting at the barber, people sit in random chairs but form a “mental queue” where you always know your place.

Similarly, they explained that the queue at the bar in the pub was unusual. You take any seat you can find, but remember who was there before you and “if the bartender asks if you’re next, be assertive if you are, but don’t outrun the others.”

But if you add another layer to the complexity, if you’re in a club rather than a pub, all manners go out the window and “it’s a free for all”.

Anyone struggling to come to terms with this, wondering if the UK is right for them, can be reassured by the poster’s sixth and final piece of advice.

They wrote: ‘Enjoy it – we’re a pretty good fit here as long as you’re open to new things and don’t try to deliberately Americanize everything. The people here are genuine and you will know if you like them or not.’