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| Is this really what Essex is about? | Is this really what Essex is about? |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| By Denise Winterman Born and raised in Essex | By Denise Winterman Born and raised in Essex |
| Essex is the subject of a new TV show, but it's all rather predictable with big hair, big cars and big wads of cash. Most Essex men and women wouldn't recognise the stereotype. | Essex is the subject of a new TV show, but it's all rather predictable with big hair, big cars and big wads of cash. Most Essex men and women wouldn't recognise the stereotype. |
| It's arguably the most-maligned 1,300 square miles in the UK. It also has one of the country's most distinct reputations - and probably the worst. | It's arguably the most-maligned 1,300 square miles in the UK. It also has one of the country's most distinct reputations - and probably the worst. |
| Cornwall has its beaches, Yorkshire has its dales and Cumbria its great lakes, but Essex has its tanning salons, nail bars and nightclubs. | Cornwall has its beaches, Yorkshire has its dales and Cumbria its great lakes, but Essex has its tanning salons, nail bars and nightclubs. |
| That's the take of new ITV2 series The Only Way Is Essex. Described as a cross between a soap, a documentary and a reality show, it will follow the lives of a group of young people for 10 weeks. | That's the take of new ITV2 series The Only Way Is Essex. Described as a cross between a soap, a documentary and a reality show, it will follow the lives of a group of young people for 10 weeks. |
| If it's stereotypes you want, you've got them. The first episode - screened on Sunday - included several aspiring glamour models and flashy nightclub promoters. It's as if you can't walk down a street in Essex without bumping into one. | If it's stereotypes you want, you've got them. The first episode - screened on Sunday - included several aspiring glamour models and flashy nightclub promoters. It's as if you can't walk down a street in Essex without bumping into one. |
| It also introduced a word to an unsuspecting wider world for the style of fake gems stuck around a woman's freshly-waxed bikini line. Believe me, I'd never heard of it - and I was born and raised in the county. | It also introduced a word to an unsuspecting wider world for the style of fake gems stuck around a woman's freshly-waxed bikini line. Believe me, I'd never heard of it - and I was born and raised in the county. |
| The show's launch is very timely. Twenty years ago almost to the day, Simon Heffer, himself an Essexonian, first wrote about "Essex Man" in an article in the Sunday Telegraph. His subject was the Londoner who had moved out of the capital and settled just down the road. | The show's launch is very timely. Twenty years ago almost to the day, Simon Heffer, himself an Essexonian, first wrote about "Essex Man" in an article in the Sunday Telegraph. His subject was the Londoner who had moved out of the capital and settled just down the road. |
| Described as a bit "brutish", "culturally barren" and "breathtakingly right-wing", Essex Man quickly became shorthand for the successes - and excesses - of Thatcher's Britain. He even entered the Oxford English Dictionary. | Described as a bit "brutish", "culturally barren" and "breathtakingly right-wing", Essex Man quickly became shorthand for the successes - and excesses - of Thatcher's Britain. He even entered the Oxford English Dictionary. |
| His partner "Essex Girl" became even more legendary. A social statement rather than a political one, she quickly became shorthand for everything that was shallow, vulgar and stupid about society. | His partner "Essex Girl" became even more legendary. A social statement rather than a political one, she quickly became shorthand for everything that was shallow, vulgar and stupid about society. |
| But it's not how many locals see the place or the people. As England's second largest county, according to Essex County Council, it is a richly diverse place which has become defined by the relatively small area that abuts Greater London. | |
| "The London part of the county has always been very visible, publicly and culturally," says Dr Pam Cox, a lecturer at Essex University who specialises in social order in 19th and 20th centuries. | "The London part of the county has always been very visible, publicly and culturally," says Dr Pam Cox, a lecturer at Essex University who specialises in social order in 19th and 20th centuries. |
| "It's its proximity to the City of London. People would leave school in Essex and go and work in the City, often making a lot of money. | "It's its proximity to the City of London. People would leave school in Essex and go and work in the City, often making a lot of money. |
| "It's made it a microcosm of what is going on in the wider society. It's like a weather vane for the whole of the UK. If the media or politicians want to sum up what is going on in the country they jump on a train and come here. That's how Essex man came about in the 1980s." | "It's made it a microcosm of what is going on in the wider society. It's like a weather vane for the whole of the UK. If the media or politicians want to sum up what is going on in the country they jump on a train and come here. That's how Essex man came about in the 1980s." |
| But Essex is more than just London overspill, the majority of it is rural. It vies with Cornwall for the title of the county with the longest coastline, thanks to its many estuaries. It's also second only to Devon when it comes to the most roads officially designated as country lanes. | But Essex is more than just London overspill, the majority of it is rural. It vies with Cornwall for the title of the county with the longest coastline, thanks to its many estuaries. It's also second only to Devon when it comes to the most roads officially designated as country lanes. |
| It's a point not lost on some viewers of the ITV show, who have blitzed the programme's website with protests. "Wake up production team and sack your researchers, this is not Essex," wrote one. | It's a point not lost on some viewers of the ITV show, who have blitzed the programme's website with protests. "Wake up production team and sack your researchers, this is not Essex," wrote one. |
| Lazy stereotype | Lazy stereotype |
| "Just take the accent," says Luke Wright, a 28-year-old poet from Essex. "Most people think an Essex accent is the typical estuary accent. The real Essex accent is actually a soft, warm country burr. It's lovely. | "Just take the accent," says Luke Wright, a 28-year-old poet from Essex. "Most people think an Essex accent is the typical estuary accent. The real Essex accent is actually a soft, warm country burr. It's lovely. |
| "The place is defined by a few lazy stereotypes. Sure people like Essex Man do live there, but people like that live all over the UK, you just have to change the accent." | "The place is defined by a few lazy stereotypes. Sure people like Essex Man do live there, but people like that live all over the UK, you just have to change the accent." |
| But the stereotypes are not entirely harmless fun. Research for Essex County Council some years ago showed its reputation was bad for business, deterring tourists and investors. It also put skilled workers off relocating to the area. | But the stereotypes are not entirely harmless fun. Research for Essex County Council some years ago showed its reputation was bad for business, deterring tourists and investors. It also put skilled workers off relocating to the area. |
| As a result it became the only county to have a commitment written into its Public Service Agreement with the government, to improve its public image. | As a result it became the only county to have a commitment written into its Public Service Agreement with the government, to improve its public image. |
| "The council has worked really hard to promote a greater understanding of Essex and what it is really all about," says Jeremy Lucas, Essex County Council cabinet member for heritage, culture and the arts. "It's disappointing people are still trying to suggest there is only one aspect to the county." | "The council has worked really hard to promote a greater understanding of Essex and what it is really all about," says Jeremy Lucas, Essex County Council cabinet member for heritage, culture and the arts. "It's disappointing people are still trying to suggest there is only one aspect to the county." |
| In fact, when Heffer introduced Essex Man, it wasn't all negative. He described him as "industrious" with "instinct and energy". | In fact, when Heffer introduced Essex Man, it wasn't all negative. He described him as "industrious" with "instinct and energy". |
| "To me Essex is vibrant, it is about movement, energy and enterprise," says Dr Cox. "It is about mobility, both social and physical. People came here to improve themselves, build a better life and that is still the same today." | "To me Essex is vibrant, it is about movement, energy and enterprise," says Dr Cox. "It is about mobility, both social and physical. People came here to improve themselves, build a better life and that is still the same today." |
| Sally Carpenter, who promotes businesses in the region, says the county has "one of the highest start-up rates for new businesses of anywhere in the UK. People here are entrepreneurial and think big. | Sally Carpenter, who promotes businesses in the region, says the county has "one of the highest start-up rates for new businesses of anywhere in the UK. People here are entrepreneurial and think big. |
| "I think it's because you can be the rural countryside here, but you are still often less than an hour away from London on a train. Essex has the best of both worlds and that allows it to have real diversity." | "I think it's because you can be the rural countryside here, but you are still often less than an hour away from London on a train. Essex has the best of both worlds and that allows it to have real diversity." |
| In case it seems as though Essex Man and Woman have suffered a sense of humour bypass, it's fair to say they can see a funny side to the jibes. | In case it seems as though Essex Man and Woman have suffered a sense of humour bypass, it's fair to say they can see a funny side to the jibes. |
| "A lot of it is just gentle teasing," says Dr Cox. "People have a soft spot for Essex too. The nastiness no longer exists." | "A lot of it is just gentle teasing," says Dr Cox. "People have a soft spot for Essex too. The nastiness no longer exists." |
| Others agree the loathing has softened. | Others agree the loathing has softened. |
| Outsiders "don't take the place too seriously," says Mr Wright, "but there is little malice anymore." | Outsiders "don't take the place too seriously," says Mr Wright, "but there is little malice anymore." |
| It would be wrong, though, to say Essex Man has embraced this label. | It would be wrong, though, to say Essex Man has embraced this label. |
| "Friends ask me if I'm an Essex man and I say no," says Mr Lucas. "I'm a man of Essex and I'm very proud to be one." | "Friends ask me if I'm an Essex man and I say no," says Mr Lucas. "I'm a man of Essex and I'm very proud to be one." |
| Send in your comments using the form below. | Send in your comments using the form below. |
| I'd love to sneer about Essex, coming from neighbouring North London! Of course I can't, because the 'Essex' and attendant stereotypes listed above actually relate to a handful of towns - Basildon, Billericay, Southend - on a coastal strip in the south. The north and west of the county are just as rural and desirable as any other rural county, and Maldon, further up the coast, has a delightful little harbour. | |
| Noam, Oxford | |
| I have lived my whole life in Essex and I have never understood the sterotypes of the "Essex girl" and "Essex Boy" Personally out of all the hundreds of girls I've met in Essex, grown up with, attended school with, worked with etc - only one or two actually met up to the sterotype! that would be less than 1% ! Same goes with the men. I have met men from all over and it appears the "Essex boy" sterotype is just as common in Essex as any other county. Although my area if far from those sterotypes whenever people hear I'm from Essex, I get jibes. I now revert to having to say I live "Just outside of London"! | |
| Kate, Essex | |
| London has always depended on an influx of labour from Essex, but the railways and modern roads provide commuters from non- metropolitan Essex with the added enjoyment of living in rural surroundings with their own historical heritages and cultural scenes. These are visibly demonstrated in Colchester, Britain's oldest recorded town, which was a pre- historic tribal centre, the first capital of Roman Britain, an Anglo-Saxon town, has a Norman castle built on a a Roman temple, was home to Flemish cloth-makers, endured a Civil War siege and has been a garrison town since the Napoleonic Wars. With its neighbouring agricultural towns and villages it preserves mediaeval markets, links with the early settlement of New England and rural aspects immortalised by John Constable. Essex Man and Essex Girl are largely confined to the Metropolis. | |
| Peter Moll, Tortola, British Virgin Islands | |
| I am Essex born and bred and it is a great county and one which I am proud of being from. Like Footballers Wives, this type of TV series just stereotypes those from Essex. It's the white heels, blonde hair and loose women that doesn't typify the average Essexian. Contrived rubbish imo. People like Chris Moyles just add to this. | |
| Kevin Barrett, Ongar, Essex | |
| I was born and raised in Chelmsford, the heart of Essex, for 20 years and have lived in Cambridge for the last 20. I see little or no difference. Both cities have their highlights and low-lifes. Chavs abound in every corner of the UK. The kind of dim-witted glamour model or beer-swilling lout who parade up and down Chelmsford high street on a saturday night are indistinguishable from their counterparts in other counties. Essex it seems to me, is a beautiful county - blighted like all other counties, by ugly people. | |
| Simon Wheeler, Cambridge | |
| I saw about 5 minutes of the show "The Only Way is Essex," I bumped across it by chance, but got bored. I am an American living here and I didn't recognise the characters on the show. I find that most people here have neutral accents, wear jeans and tshirts (and often wellies if they have been walking in the nearby Epping Forest) and are here for the excellent state schools and easy commute into the city. Of course, there are some very well dressed women and thick accents, but these don't differ any from the usual cockney accents in London generally, and the highly made up polished look is no different from what I have seen in the West end of London. However, I am eternally grateful for the lousy reputation of this area because it means I can afford to live some where clean, spacious, leafy and convenient for a pittance. We could never afford such a nice house in Hampstead or Richmond which in my opinion are the only areas of London to offer a comparable lifestyle. | |
| KB, Buckhurst Hill, Essex | |
| At no time should you endanger yourself or others, take any unnecessary risks or infringe any laws.In most cases a selection of your comments will be published, displaying your name as you provide it and location unless you state otherwise. But your contact details will never be published. | At no time should you endanger yourself or others, take any unnecessary risks or infringe any laws.In most cases a selection of your comments will be published, displaying your name as you provide it and location unless you state otherwise. But your contact details will never be published. |