Matthew Bessant
This week, Izzy will be joined by Varsity’s digital editor Alex Oxford, who is tackling the North-South divide. The two start by introducing Alex, a fourth year northern student studying MML at Homerton College, and she talks about some of the common stereotypes of the North and the South. From drinking too much to no cold, Alex and Izzy talk about the potential impact of classes on the current divide, as well as the role of the media in deepening the divide.
The hosts then speak to Daniel Fry, who is from Northern Ireland and studies history at Homerton College. In discussing the north-south divide, Daniel gives the audience an overview of the difference between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland (the south) and the ongoing conflict in the north between unionism with the UK and nationalism (a reunited Ireland). He mentions the cultural differences that come with this political divide – such as the Irish flag, the Northern Irish flag and the Union flag – and the different holidays for unionists and nationalists. With parents on both sides of the divide, Daniel says he’s used to hearing both opinions and that his group of friends generally accepts both sides of the debate. Nonetheless, Daniel believes that there is a generation gap in people’s views on division as there are still walls of peace in the country.
Next, Izzy and Alex interview Sara Pocher, who comes from Trento in northern Italy and is studying Chinese. Since Izzy herself comes from Rome, she and Sara discuss their perspectives on the Italian north-south divide compared to the English one. Sara says there is a strong cultural divide in Italy that is most immediately noticeable in accent and language. There are perceived stereotypes about school and health care that are not necessarily objective but are well known across the country. The group discusses the importance of accents in identifying a person’s ancestry as they are the first thing you notice about a person.
Alex mentions the common English associations with accents and different levels of education, while Izzy mentions that accents are often unfairly equated with class in Rome. The conversation goes on to talk about the spread of stereotypes and how they can affect people’s initial judgments. The group also discusses the north-south divide in Cambridge and how it differs from the one in Italy. They mention that the north of England is perceived similarly to the south in Italy, with structural reasons for perceived gaps with differences at the institutional level and public funding. The conversation ends by mentioning that there is a “nuanced conversation” going on about these divisions.
Check out last week’s episode …
Finally, the hosts speak to Georgie, a post graduate student of Christ’s history from Hinkley in the Midlands. She mentions that she doesn’t come from the north or south – and that the Midlands should be a category when talking about this division. In this conversation Georgie Izzy introduces the “Greggs Line” and the rural-urban separation as a potential new divide that could compete with that between North and South. Georgie is weighing whether to identify more with the North or the South, as she doesn’t feel that the Midlands have a strong cultural identity within them. She also mentions the connotations that come with being north or south. Georgie also mentions that the south is not a monolith and that there are trenches there, such as in areas like the southwest. The group concluded the conversation with a summary, in which they stated that it is too simplistic to view the gap between England and Great Britain as a whole as just a north-south problem.
Switchboard is Varsity’s flagship podcast. The episodes air every Friday at 8:30 p.m. on Cam FM and are available through Anchor on all major podcasting apps. The transcript will be available here after the episode is released.
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