Guest Amy Robbins Posted October 17, 2006 Share Posted October 17, 2006 DO YOU KNOW OF ANY BRITS WHO ARE CONSIDERING RETURNING TO THE UK? ITV1 are making a new documentary series about British Ex-Pats who are considering moving back to the UK. We’re keen to hear from Brits who have lived abroad for years without (or very rarely) visiting home, but who are now thinking about returning permanently to Britain. Perhaps you miss your family and friends, maybe schooling is a problem for your kids, or you simply yearn to step back into British culture. Are some family members longing for home while others are not so sure? We'll help you explore the reality of coming home, and prepare you for deciding whether to stay abroad or return to your roots. If this sounds like you, or if you know anyone who might be interested, please contact Amy Robbins as soon as possible by email: amy.robbins@fevermedia.co.uk Or call (+44) 020 7697 1425. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted October 17, 2006 Share Posted October 17, 2006 Amy, my love Your planned programme will not 'help' anyone to do anything. The real idea is that it will exploit them in whatever they decide to do, for the benefit of those with nothiing better to do than watch misery-stories on TV in a prurient fashion. How much are you willing to pay me for my own story, my girl? Lurve Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest IanL Posted October 17, 2006 Share Posted October 17, 2006 Not to mention the saturation PMs. Do you think Amy and Man from Grand are related? :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Missiemo Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 I think these programmes are a very good idea, in my opinion they give people a true insight as to what can happen when you move to another country, after all it does not always work out for whatever reason, and that it is not always a bed of roses. Good Luck with your research Amy Regards Mo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest IanL Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Well after watching programs like A Place Down Under, and A Place in (insert European country here) I agree with Gill. Most people watch those shows to do a bit of armchair travelling and howl at other's mistakes. It's a bit like watching Top Gear. Good fun, light entertainment but no self respecting car fan would take their assesments seriously and nor should anyone watching these types of relocation programs. Ask yourself, if it was real life it'd be endless footage of waiting in goverment department queues filling in forms and getting the 'leccy switched on. Hardly riverting. I'd like to be pleasantly surprised but I'd put this month's wages on knowing pretty much how this'll turn out. And I'm not a betting man 8) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Missiemo Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Well after watching programs like A Place Down Under, and A Place in (insert European country here) I agree with Gill. Most people watch those shows to do a bit of armchair travelling and howl at other's mistakes. It's a bit like watching Top Gear. Good fun, light entertainment but no self respecting car fan would take their assesments seriously and nor should anyone watching these types of relocation programs. Ask yourself, if it was real life it'd be endless footage of waiting in goverment department queues filling in forms and getting the 'leccy switched on. Hardly riverting. I'd like to be pleasantly surprised but I'd put this month's wages on knowing pretty much how this'll turn out. And I'm not a betting man 8) # Well I have watched a lot of those pragrams like a place down under etc,before we were granted our visa, and laughing at other peoples mistake's and misfortunes was furthest from my mind, in fact I learned a lot of precious information and was grateful to the people who were brave enough to put themselves in front of the camara in the first place regardless of weather they did it for money. Maybe hardly riverting but I guess that is why there is more then one channel, or even better the off switch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest IanL Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Well I have watched a lot of those pragrams like a place down under etc,before we were granted our visa, and laughing at other peoples mistake's and misfortunes was furthest from my mind, in fact I learned a lot of precious information and was grateful to the people who were brave enough to put themselves in front of the camara in the first place regardless of weather they did it for money. Maybe hardly riverting but I guess that is why there is more then one channel, or even better the off switch. So we have a different opinion. I think they'll exploit all the bad bits about the UK for cheap sesationalism, and you think think it'll provide some vital information about living in the UK to people who have already lived there. What info could the show provide that we don't already know about our country? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Missiemo Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Well I have watched a lot of those pragrams like a place down under etc,before we were granted our visa, and laughing at other peoples mistake's and misfortunes was furthest from my mind, in fact I learned a lot of precious information and was grateful to the people who were brave enough to put themselves in front of the camara in the first place regardless of weather they did it for money. Maybe hardly riverting but I guess that is why there is more then one channel, or even better the off switch. So we have a different opinion. I think they'll exploit all the bad bits about the UK for cheap sesationalism, and you think think it'll provide some vital information about living in the UK to people who have already lived there. What info could the show provide that we don't already know about our country? I was of the understanding it is about people who have left the UK to live in another country and of whom were having a difficult time adjusting to living there new life, not about exploting the UK or what it is like living there. Amy was simply asking for people who left the UK several years back, and had felt the new life had not worked for them, not anything to do with living in the UK or providing information about living in the UK as far as I can see. We have only been in Oz for four months and it has been a very difficult and challanging time, and it has crossed our minds several times if it will work but we are going to give it two years and see if we can adjust to life here, I have no doubt for most people it does work and for the few that do not make it I am sure any help or advice they receive would be appreciated, weather that be via friends or TV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest IanL Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 I have no doubt for most people it does work and for the few that do not make it I am sure any help or advice they receive would be appreciated, weather that be via friends or TV. and that's a fair enough statement. It's just that most of these shows seem to play heavily on the character foibles of the people taking part rather than the geographic ones. And that tends to give a jaundiced view of the whole situation. I remember a show here years ago (can't think of the name) where some English people were complaining because 'the glass breaks differently in Australia' :shock: (amongst other things). Absolutely nothing to do with the country, just quirky people. If they really wanted to help people they could do a show just comparing lifestyle, costs, bureaucracy etc without the human element. Just my 2c Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest choobs Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 If they really wanted to help people they could do a show just comparing lifestyle, costs, bureaucracy etc without the human element. Just my 2c I have to say, I'm with IanL on this one. The UK media likes nothing better than an "in tears" shot, at which point they get the camera in as close as possible. It's almost as if they derive some form of savage glee. Much though it galls me to say it, Boris Johnson's much-maligned comment about Liverpool "revelling in victim status" really isn't so far from the truth, when talking about the UK as a whole, *from the media's point of view*. Grief seems to sell these days. Choobs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Missiemo Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Well it is like I said before no-one forces you to watch this dribble as you call it, thank goodness for TV I am sure most of us would be a lot worse off without some of the information it provides, weather you agree with it or not, I would be happy to put my money on anyone given the chance to be on these useless programmes if the offer of money is involved no matter what dribble they produce. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Missiemo Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Well it is like I said before no-one forces you to watch this dribble as you call it, thank goodness for TV I am sure most of us would be a lot worse off without some of the information it provides, weather you agree with it or not, I would be happy to put my money on anyone given the chance to be on these useless programmes if the offer of money is involved no matter what dribble they produce. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Hi Mo As I understand it, not that I've done it, this so-called 'reality TV' is cheap to produce because the particpants do not get paid for these 'fly on the wall' programmes detailing their woes. For £100K we'd all think up a sob-story and make it sound good..... What concerns me is the promise of "We'll help you to explore what went wrong." That is a singularly pointless thing to do. If it went wrong, the only solution is to put matters right, not to navel-gaze about why it went wrong. These programmes never offer concrete help in fixing the problem. Cheers Gil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Amy Robbins Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Thanks very much for your support Mo. As you say, viewers seem to love relocation programmes and the shows which present a balanced view can be very informative for people sitting at home. Not all TV programmes are looking to set people up though I know people become very sceptical of how they'll be edited etc and there are expat shows which have given all of us a bad name and make my job much harder. I worked on Get A New Life in Australia and our contributors were all very happy with the end result, they felt it represented their lives accurately and were pleased they had the tapes of the shows to show their grandkids! 'A Place Down Under' was mentioned - I have to say that series which I had nothing to do with has made my life so difficult as it did do all the negative things you've mentioned, and people assume they will be treated in the same way on other shows. As much as there are loads of Brits going to live abroad, stats show there are also lots coming home to be with family and friends. This programme is purely looking at how you make the decision to go back or not when you have pulls in both countries. There are positives of living in the UK and living in Oz, and it's a difficult decision to give one of them up. People who have been away for a long time, say 10 years or more can also find it culturally very difficult to settle back in the UK. I've spoken to lots of people who have found the experience tough. I'd be very grateful for any help with spreading the word about what we're doing so that anyone who could be interested in taking part could get in touch to find out more. It's an opportunity for an expat family in a dilemma about going back, to do a 'recce' of the UK and get some help with their decision. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Missiemo Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Hi Amy You are very welcome, and I am more then happy to spread the word, and help when I can. Good Luck and we look forward to the programme hopefully being shown in Australia. My best regards mo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Missiemo Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Hi Mo As I understand it, not that I've done it, this so-called 'reality TV' is cheap to produce because the particpants do not get paid for these 'fly on the wall' programmes detailing their woes. For £100K we'd all think up a sob-story and make it sound good..... What concerns me is the promise of "We'll help you to explore what went wrong." That is a singularly pointless thing to do. If it went wrong, the only solution is to put matters right, not to navel-gaze about why it went wrong. These programmes never offer concrete help in fixing the problem. Cheers Gil Gill I have no idea whatsoever if people get paid, personally I am not bothered either way. What I do know is how I have been feeling over the past four months, and I feel if you have not and are not going through that extremaly difficult and complicated process of having to decide weather you should go home or not then we should not comment about the very difficult time these people are going through, sorry but you have to expericence that situation before you can say as you put it navel gaze and put the wrong right Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Amy Robbins Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Thanks very much Mo, I'm very grateful for your help. Hope you enjoy the finished product! And hopefully it will be of use to some potential expats/repats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Missiemo Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 Thanks very much Mo, I'm very grateful for your help. Hope you enjoy the finished product! And hopefully it will be of use to some potential expats/repats. You are very welcome, look forward to it Mo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest IanL Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 What I do know is how I have been feeling over the past four months, and I feel if you have not and are not going through that extremaly difficult and complicated process of having to decide weather you should go home or not then we should not comment about the very difficult time these people are going through, sorry but you have to expericence that situation before you can say as you put it Gill is giving an opinion based what these programs have portrayed before, and I agree. You may not feel that Gill is qualified to speak but I can assure I am. I have lived here a 'tad' longer than 4mths (nearly 18yrs) and I've battled with this on and off all the time. I've been through one divorce, lost two kids, two operations, spent lots of trips working out where I should be, and that included the US and Colombia. I've been through all that with absolutely nobody here to support me. All the while holding down a full time stressful job and paying child support. Thankfully I now have my new wife in my life, but even that was a problem this year because she couldn't settle in the UK which is why we're back here. I have been through through the full range of emotions agonising over where I should be emotionally and financially and my family in England have had to deal with the situation of me moving back for good, only to be told I'm leaving again. I can assure you that some this stuff got pretty ugly and the last thing I would have wanted was a couple of people shoving a camera and a microphone in my face. When you go through this you can make stupid statements like 'I hate this, I hate that' , 'this country is stupid' etc. Say that in real life and it's gone in a moment until rational thinking takes over. Say that on camera and it's recorded for all to see. And that ain't pretty. If anyone was going through this I'd suggest professional counselling rather than seeking solace with a tv production company. It's 'whether' btw :wink: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Missiemo Posted October 18, 2006 Share Posted October 18, 2006 I am sorry you have had such a difficult time, but we are all individals who handle all life's stressful situation differently. Thankfully this is a free country and no-one is forced to do anything they do not wish to do. I may only have been here four months but I know the feelings I have been going through, and they are as important to me as are yours no matter how long you put up with them for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest IanL Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 I may only have been here four months but I know the feelings I have been going through, and they are as important to me as are yours no matter how long you put up with them for. That's very true :wink: Geez I'm cranky lately, must be time for a holiday 8) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mccarudd Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 If they really wanted to help people they could do a show just comparing lifestyle, costs, bureaucracy etc without the human element. Just my 2c I do see what you mean, Ian, but iIthink there's a different way of looking at this. I'm about to go to Melbourne on my own, but what's a little different about my situation is that this is my third emigration, having previously lived in the US and NZ. At the moment I'm very much caught up in practical questions, such as what sort of housing I'm going to be able to afford etc. But at the same time, I know that feeling at home really does come down to little things that you might not think about. For example, the simple pleasure of reading a paper takes a while to regenerate when you move to a new culture, as it takes a while to pick up on the events surrounding you. So I suppose you could argue that complaining about the way the glass breaks is an expression of a deeper discomfort at finding yourself in a world where almost everything is different. Perhaps this is hard on English people because we tend to falsely believe that we'll fit right in as there is no language barrier. I thought "A New Life Down Under" was hugely exploitative of many of the families involved. Despite this, I have found it a useful resource in that it shows aspects of Australia that you won't find in the travel brochures. The fact that shows like this have to be entertaining before they are anything else means that they will always be exploitative, but I don't think that makes them bad, necessarily. Just my point of view. I'd be interested to know what the rest of you think, amy included. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest daisydeeds Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 hiyah We watched all of the programmes we mentioned and yes we found them valuable. They showed some of the aspects of Australian life that isnt portrayed in the glossy travel agent brochures. We only picked one up the other day for the kids to cut out the photos and maps to look at ;-) The programmes showed the level of homesickness but it also showed the positive aspects of the big move. Dont forget though that they werent all negative ie some of the folk stayed on. ;-) What I think would be good would be a real life programme or a series of shorts from people all over the continent covering a range of emotions/attitudes going a bit more into what they thought Australia held for them, how they have found the culture shock, what were the good and bad points of moving - the experience of the flight, what they have discovered about themselves. Theres a lot of determination involved too. Also things like who they have made friends with - was it with the australian folk or have they mixed only with british folk or a mix of both. Also stuff like everyday things like plants, wildlife etc in an educational point of view. What I did find did not help was the backpackers guides as they were useless as they covered the tourist aspect but I guess as lots of people backpack then those folk wouldve enjoyed that iykwim. We couldnt find a David Attenborough programme type thing to introduce Australia to us in respect of the native wildlife and environment-that would be a help to those choosing to emigrate too. This is turning into a mini novel! ;-) Basically what I think is that these programmes are interesting but that often they feature someone moaning and comparing things but then again the folk that migrated are under a lot of stress and what I know is that usually it takes a couple of years not a couple of months to get settled and this requires determination and flexibility on their part. These programmes did not depict that in the whole. Daisydeeds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest austibeach Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 This discussion does not really have a "right" or "correct" side to it. Those who wish to take part in such pograms, WILL take part. Those who wish to watch such programs, WILL watch them. As for those people that dislike such programs, for whatever reasons, simply do as you would with the likes of "NEIGHBOURS" or "HOME AND AWAY" , don't watch. For some people there are elements of all these programs that are useful in helping them decide to make the biggest move of their lives, even if it's just an insight into what the country looks like, as it would appear, a good many people on these forums are looking to emigrate without ever having been there.......not something I would care to do. However, each to their own way of doing things. On the subject of whether the participants of these programs are being paid.........I would sincerely hope so. Eric. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 Hi Eric I am pretty sure that the partipants in thee programmes do not get paid. 'Reality TV' is cheap TV for that reason, it seems. God knows why they get involved with it if no dosh is headed their way. Cheers Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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