Soapbox: The Great Divide

[dropcap]F[/dropcap]irst, some disclaimers. I was born in an old mining/mill town, not in the depths of a pit. Yes, I think chips and gravy has a certain soggy magic to it. In my first few weeks at Warwick, I have never been made more aware of my background, and more so my accent.  Being from the northerly half of the country, I was shocked to find myself in a minority group to be made fun of when we say ‘tea’ instead of ‘dinner’. My question is where are all the pie-eaters hiding? Are we all too ashamed to admit our northern past?

It was a few days into freshers week before I found anyone from north of Birmingham. My first northern friend happened to attend the same drama group as me back in our smoke-filled childhoods. My second was a girl from Sheffield who I hugged by a cash machine.

Maybe it was relief, finding someone who pronounces ‘bath’ the wrong way, like me.

Warwick has such a colourful student body… yet I only know of one other northerner in my block. But is this because northern applicants don’t get into top universities as easily as their southern equivalents? Well maybe. Oxford’s admission statistics show the percentage of Northern (defined by regions North East, North West, and Yorkshire and Humberside) students that applied to university through UCAS made up 20.4% of total applicants. Students from the same areas comparatively represent only 12.8% of places accepted at Oxford.

The reason for this? Blame the education system, or the rise of the BBC accent. Too many of my friends were put off moving too far away from home. On Open Days everyone was too ‘different’ and ‘posh’.

Instead they retreated to Liverpool, Leeds and Lancaster where there is safety in numbers.

I’ve been taunted for our brews, missing out the letter ‘h’, and asked if we even have electricity yet. The north is much more than the factory chimneys and cobbled streets. It has rugged cities, stunning countryside, and brilliant nightlife. The Beatles, The Smiths, The Arctic Monkeys, and the old women that natter to you on the bus.

I will sip my Yorkshire tea in solidarity. I will take your insults. University is about meeting people from different backgrounds, and I’m pretty proud of mine.