The United Kingdom and America are two countries separated by the same language, George Bernard Shaw never said, and we’ll be proving that in this podcast. We gather Incomparable panelists from the UK and America, as well as Canada and other English-speaking regions, and try to explain to each other the distinctions between biscuit and cookie, lemonade and fizzy water, public school and, er, public school, and why when we put our pants in our boot, we mean something altogether different.
LATEST EPISODE • It aunt necessary so
American panelists finally hear the difference between ma’am and mum when referring to, for instance, the bloody Queen of England! Yes, we talk mom, mom, and mum; aunt and aunt; and the names we call our grandparents in various regions.
September 2, 2019 • 17 minutes • Glenn Fleishman with Antony Johnston, Dan Moren, Erika Ensign and James Thomson
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The North Americans challenge their UK panelists to please, please, please explain what lemonade means, since it’s not “lemons, sugar, and water.” The answer will surprise you. But then we discover ginger as a generic. It’s all sweet fizzy water with fake lemon (or Lymon) in the end.
August 19, 2019 • 26 minutes • What’s up, BRU? • Glenn Fleishman with Antony Johnston, Dan Moren, Erika Ensign and James Thomson
We’re all lumberjacks and we’re okay, we chop down words, and we read dictionar—ies! Panelists get to the bottom of suspenders and braces, and James explains how he used to visualize Wall Street financial wizards. All we can say is, honi soit qui mal y pants.
August 5, 2019 • 5 minutes • Brace yourself • Glenn Fleishman with Antony Johnston, Dan Moren, Erika Ensign and James Thomson
We thought the difference between a truck and a lorry wouldn’t be a bumpy road. But when we get into it, we find a trash fire, Dumpster trademarks, and a confusion over caravans, and ultimately articulate the differences.
July 22, 2019 • 13 minutes • Keep on truckin’ • Glenn Fleishman with Antony Johnston, Dan Moren, Erika Ensign and James Thomson
Panelists try to avoid getting their knickers in a twist while discussing the disparate—sometimes obscene—meanings of words that address the back of our front: fanny, butt, bum, ass, and arse.
July 8, 2019 • 18 minutes • Fanny Anny Foh Fanny • Glenn Fleishman with Antony Johnston, Dan Moren, Erika Ensign and James Thomson
What about a boot? We put our pants in the trunk, but we put our trousers in the boot? Panelists find themselves questioning whether they know the front of the car from the back. Hood a trunk it!
June 24, 2019 • 2 minutes • The B in Our Bonnet • Glenn Fleishman with Antony Johnston, Dan Moren, Kathy Campbell and Liz Myles
Who wears short shorts? We wear short shorts—if we’re Americans at least. It’s in the title of the show, but the confusion between pants and trousers makes for many an embarrassed trans-Atlantic story. We also delve into briefs, boxers, short, short pants, and more.
June 10, 2019 • 8 minutes • Drop the trou: it’s pants • Glenn Fleishman with Antony Johnston, Dan Moren, Kathy Campbell and Liz Myles
An extra syllable? A missing syllable? Are you out of your ever-loving minium? While it’s hardly a debate, panelists say it’s elementary as they discuss the difference between aluminum and aluminium. And the fetishism many Americans have for Jony Ive saying the UK version of that word.
May 27, 2019 • 6 minutes • Elements Are We, Watson • Glenn Fleishman with Antony Johnston, Dan Moren, Kathy Campbell and Liz Myles
When is a chip a chip and when is it a chip? In this episode, we stare down the pare down of cutting, shredding, crushing, and extruding potatoes into the many forms in which they are consumed. One conclusion? While the British love their chips, Americans seem to like fried potatoes in a much larger variety of formats.
May 21, 2019 • 22 minutes • Put a Steak in It • Glenn Fleishman with Antony Johnston, Dan Moren, Kathy Campbell and Liz Myles
Panelists bicker over biccies in our inaugural episode. Both America and the UK have biscuits and cookies, but they aren’t the same thing. Except sometimes they are. Sometimes it’s even settled legally and taxed accordingly!
Thanks to the literally incomparable Chris Breen for the show’s theme music.
May 6, 2019 • 16 minutes • Bickering over biccies • Glenn Fleishman with Antony Johnston, Dan Moren, Kathy Campbell and Liz Myles