History Main / TheMeanBrit

* Shaun Hastings in ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedII'', especially to Desmond.

Expect him to appear on any show that has an AmericanTitle. Call it subtle (or not-so-subtle) nationalism, but note that these people are seen as nasty at home too. Another possible explanation is that several of these reality shows originated in Britain, such as ''American Idol'' (from ''Pop Idol''), ''{{Dancing With the Stars}}'' (from ''StrictlyComeDancing''), and ''AmericasGotTalent'', which was based on an unaired British pilot which would eventually become ''Series/BritainsGotTalent''.

** Ramsay tends to keep his temper relative to his expectations: screw-ups by culinary professionals -- restaurateurs, chefs, waiters, etc.(who frankly should know better) -- will get the full brunt of his wrath; non-professionals (like those who appear on ''Series/TheFWord'') are treated much more patiently; and the man is downright cuddly when he's teaching children how to cook on ''Series/MasterChef Junior''.

* Jin Kisaragi of ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'' fame was born in England and has precisely two modes: DeadpanSnarker StawNihilist {{Jerkass}} MeanBrit [[FromBadToWorse and]] [[LaughingMad Cackling]] [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything Rapey]] [[IncestSubtext Incestuous]] AxCrazy PsychoForHire EvilBrit.

* As mentioned, Cowell on ''Series/AmericanIdol'' and ''Britain's Got Talent''. He's known for his "No... I won't send you home" approach, his cases of hitting his fellow judges' klaxons in ''Britain's Got Talent'' and his put-downs, usually to HopelessAuditionees. Granted, generally he's simply telling the truth, but does so in such a blunt way that it could only be taken as offensive. His curt demeanor is sometimes exaggerated into being a straight {{Jerkass}} outside the shows he appears in, but the interesting thing for being the TropeCodifier is that he often falls into a CruelToBeKind approach (he thinks it's a waste of both his time and that of the underqualified contestants he judges to entertain their false hopes), and ''will'' praise those who do have the chops. Some ''American Idol'' viewers took to saying "Paula will give you a pass if you're nice, Randy will give you a pass if you're black, but Simon will only give you a pass if you can ''actually sing.''"
* Piers Morgan, also known as [[PrivateEye Piers Moron]], on ''America's Got Talent''.

-->-- '''Jimmy Carr''', on the trailer for the US version of ''Distraction''

* Joseph Joestar, from ''JoJosBizarreAdventure'', was a punk in his youth who got into fights and loved to mock his opponents...[[GoodIsNotNice and the protagonist of the second story arc]].

* Music/JohnLydon (aka Johnny Rotten of The Music/SexPistols) sometimes falls in this trope too. He can be extremely assertive and confrontational at times, even when the host tries to be nice to him. He has also venemously criticized politicians and musicians he personally vilifies.
* UsefulNotes/MargaretThatcher famously belittled everything that stood on the left side of the political spectrum; She wasn't keen on unions either. During her final years she became increasingly hostile towards initiatives of the European Union and even towards her own cabinet.

* Subverted with Colin Fassnidge of ''Series/MyKitchenRules''. Known as being very critical, the Irish judge brings intimidation to many of the contestant intimidates many of the contestants, who felt like they were about to be punished when he was around. But as the show goes on, he turns out to be a pleasant guy. He gets along with the contestants alright, and even though he does frequently find flaws in the contestants' dishes, and can be rather blunt in pointing that out, he's never rude about it, his criticism are always constructive (he points out what exactly is wrong with the dish, and how it can be improved) and is even willing to give a 10/10 for a dish that he finds really good (even though he jokingly complains that this ruins his reputation).

** Ramsay tends to keep his temper relative to his expectations: screw-ups by culinary professionals -- restaurateurs, chefs, waiters, etc.(who frankly should know better) -- will get the full brunt of his wrath; non-professionals (like those who appear on ''Series/TheFWord'') are treated much more patiently; and the man is downright cuddly when he's teaching children how to cook on ''Series/JuniorMasterchef''.

* Creator/GordonRamsay acts this way in his shows ''Series/HellsKitchen'' and ''Series/KitchenNightmares'', although it is arguable that the show's producers gave him directions to do so. At times his temper becomes too much to handle that it pushes buttons and some contestants will once in a while lose control and lash back at him. On the other hand, any aspiring chef who makes it through his tutelage must have truly worked hard and honed their skills, as well as when praise and enthusiasm is due, Ramsay will give it to the deserving.
** Ramsay tends to keep his temper relative to his expectations: screw-ups by culinary professionals -- restaurateurs, chefs, waiters, etc.(who frankly should know better) -- will get the full brunt of his wrath; non-professionals (like those who appear on ''Series/TheFWord'') are treated much more patiently; and the man is downright cuddly when he's teaching children how to cook on ''series/JuniorMasterchef''.

* Red Symons, the main judge on the Red Faces segment (a segment similar in format to TheGongShow) of ''Series/HeyHeyItsSaturday''.

* John Lydon (aka Johnny Rotten of TheSexPistols) sometimes falls in this trope too. He can be extremely assertive and confrontational at times, even when the host tries to be nice to him. He has also venemously criticized politicians and musicians he personally vilifies.
* MargaretThatcher famously belittled everything that stood on the left side of the political spectrum; She wasn't keen on unions either. During her final years she became increasingly hostile towards initiatives of the European Union and even towards her own cabinet.

* [[TopGear Jeremy Clarkson]] can come across as one too at times.

* Subverted with Colin Fassnidge of ''Series/MyKitchenRules''. Known as being very critical, this Irish judge brings intimidation to many of the contestants, who remarked that they felt like they were about to be punished when he was around. But as the show goes on, he turns out to be a pleasant guy. He gets along with the contestants alright, and even though he does frequently find flaws in the contestants' dishes, and can be rather blunt in pointing that out, he's never rude about it, his criticism are always constructive (he points out what exactly is wrong with the dish, and how it can be improved) and is even willing to give a 10/10 for a dish that he finds really good (even though he jokingly complains that this ruins his reputation).

** Whereas on the British equivalent ''Series/StrictlyComeDancing'', his judging style is relatively lenient compared to Craig.

* Subverted with Colin Fassnidge of ''Series/MyKitchenRules''. Known as being very critical, this Irish judge brings intimidation to many of the contestants, who remarked that they felt like they were about to be punished when he was around. But as the show goes on, he turns out to be a pleasant guy. He gets along with the contestants alright, and even though he does frequently find flaws in the contestants' dishes, and can be rather blunt in pointing that out, he's never rude about it, and is even willing to give a 10/10 for a dish that he finds really good (even though he jokingly claims that having to do so ruins his reputation).

Expect him to appear on any show that has an AmericanTitle. Call it subtle (or not-so-subtle) nationalism, but note that these people are seen as nasty at home too. Another possible explanation is that several of these reality shows originated in Britain, such as ''American Idol'' (from ''Pop Idol''), ''{{Dancing With the Stars}}'' (from ''StrictlyComeDancing''), and ''AmericasGotTalent'', which was based on an unaired British pilot which would eventually become ''BritainsGotTalent''.

* Len Goodman on ''DancingWithTheStars'' isn't really mean, but he ''is'' much more demanding and less likely to hand out fuzzy, feel-good comments like "I loved your energy!" or "You are a smoldering sex goddess!" than either Carrie Ann or Bruno, and more likely to base his comments on the actual dance. Like Simon, if Len says it was good, it was ''very'' good, and his criticisms virtually always relate to something the dancer needs to work on. On the other hand, if a performance was genuinely ''bad'' he won't pull his punches, as during the second season when he told Master P essentially 'You don't care, you aren't trying, you don't belong here, it's time for you to go home.' ''in the third week''.
** Whereas on the British equivalent ''StrictlyComeDancing'', his judging style is relatively lenient compared to Craig.

* Red Symons, the main judge on the Red Faces segment (a segment similar in format to TheGongShow) of HeyHeyItsSaturday.

* On the Futurama forum PEEL, totalnerduk is known for being incredibly sarcastic and harsh. He even [[SelfDeprecation admits himself that he's an asshole]], although he has his [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold good moments]].

--> '''Store Clerk:''' ''"I've seen you in here before. I've seen you slouching around the place with your slip-on shoes and your motorcycle jacket, looking like a mechanic who won the pools. I've seen your tin earring and your black marketeer swager. We've all seen you, and we thought you were a turd!"''

* As mentioned, Cowell on ''Series/AmericanIdol'' and ''Britain's Got Talent''. He's known for his "No... I won't send you home" approach, his cases of hitting his fellow judges' klaxons in ''Britain's Got Talent'' and his put-downs, usually to HopelessAuditionees. Granted, generally he's simply telling the truth, but does so in such a blunt way that it could only be taken as offensive.
** Some ''American Idol'' viewers took to saying "Paula will give you a pass if you're nice, Randy will give you a pass if you're black, but Simon will only give you a pass if you can ''actually sing.''"

* JonathanRoss

* GordonRamsay acts this way in his shows ''Series/HellsKitchen'' and ''Series/KitchenNightmares'', although it is arguable that the show's producers gave him directions to do so. At times his temper becomes too much to handle that it pushes buttons and some contestants will once in a while lose control and lash back at him. On the other hand, any aspiring chef who makes it through his tutelage must have truly worked hard and honed their skills, as well as when praise and enthusiasm is due, Ramsay will give it to the deserving.
** Ramsay tends to keep his temper relative to his expectations: screw-ups by culinary professionals -- restaurateurs, chefs, waiters, etc.(who frankly should know better) -- will get the full brunt of his wrath; non-professionals (like those who appear on ''TheFWord'') are treated much more patiently; and the man is downright cuddly when he's teaching children how to cook on ''JuniorMasterchef''.

* Anne Robinson on ''TheWeakestLink''.

* Steve Valentine on ''EstateOfPanic''.

* Creator/JimmyCarr on ''{{Distraction}}''. Some of his insults are just about as X-rated as his stand-up show.

** There's also a Simpsons short where he plays as [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s66wTXO2F3g a really hopeless contestant]]. An interesting role reversal, to be sure.