Olivia and Thomas Phillips are a couple who swapped their lives in Poole, Dorset for a new life abroad. They reflect on what they miss most about the UK and love about their new home
Fish and chips. Long afternoons in a pub garden. Cash in the Attic reruns.
All things that might make the homesick British heart ache for Blighty.
But, according to two recent leavers, it’s not those things that make them long for home from their new base in the US.
Olivia and Thomas Phillips are a couple who swapped their lives in Poole, Dorset for a slice of the action in Austin, Texas. They love their new lives Stateside, but there is an element of British culture that is missing from the Lone Star State.
Aside from loved ones, the main missing ingredient is sarcasm.
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“Besides family and friends, I can miss sarcasm. In my experience, people in the US are more literal in what they say, and sarcasm doesn’t work the same way. One of my closest friends here is from the UK, and I love that we can be a bit sarcastic together,” Olivia told the Mirror.
However, with sarcasm and self-knowing irony comes a negative side, according to Olivia.
“I’ve also noticed that UK people tend to be very apologetic or say ‘please’ too frequently. It could be seen as polite, but it can also be seen as subservient or unauthoritative, especially if you’re in a culture like the US. A UK friend of ours who works at a large US company said employees thought he was even passive-aggressive when he used ‘please’ in the emails,” she explained.
“This was something I picked up on that my husband did a lot when we met. I asked if he was actually ‘sorry’ all the times he said it, and most of the time, it’s just something he was used to saying. It is the same with ‘please.’ If you say the words too much, without being intentional, they lose their meaning. It’s the same with employees we’ve hired from the UK.”
The pair now run a men’s hormonal health clinic online called Feel30 together, as well as an SEO and GEO marketing firm, DTC SEO Agency.
Thomas, in particular, loves the intense work culture of the US.
“As an entrepreneur since the age of 13, I’ve always loved how big America is and how big Americans think. I love the business culture here. As achievements are celebrated, as opposed to in the UK, I certainly experienced tall poppy syndrome. I love the US tax system much more than the UK, and you are rewarded for giving back,” he said.
Olivia has similar feelings, along with some reservations.
“The hustle culture is a double-edged sword. For those who are ambitious and want to work hard, there aren’t any limits to how far you can go. People around you cheer you on and don’t think it’s crazy if you say your goal is to own something like a private jet. In the UK (or Sweden), people might laugh a bit and make it known they think you’re dreaming a bit too big,” she added.
“But on the other hand, it’s more raw… the culture might not work as well for those who don’t rise under pressure or enjoy the daily grind. For me, it’s motivating. I can build my dream life, and it’s entirely up to me. What I put in, I get back. I find it inspiring to talk to people who are successful, and they’re happy to talk about the journey which led them to where they’re at. They’re generous about the lessons they’ve learned.”
Much has been made of the so-called ‘capital flight’ from the UK since the Labor Government won the 2024 General Election. Some data suggests that a significant number of people intend to leave the UK.
A YouGov poll commissioned by Tideway Wealth following the 2025 Budget found more than one-in-10 UK adults are planning to move abroad. The study of 2,178 adults in the UK also revealed 4% were aiming to leave within the next five years. Respondents cited the cost-of-living crisis, wage stagnation, economic uncertainty, immigration and rising taxes as reasons why.
According to analysis by Tax Justice, 18,000 news pieces have been published on the topic of wealthy people leaving the UK since the start of 2024. The news reporting is largely based on a report by golden passport sellers Henley & Partners.
Tax Justice has called aspects of that report into question. “For example, the 16,500 millionaires supposedly leaving the UK is less than 1% of UK millionaires. When put into perspective, the number of millionaires supposedly leaving is statistically insignificant. This has been consistently the case at a global level since 2013, when the claims began,” Tax Justice writes.
The organisation has also called into question the way the report was put together. It adds: “The data is primarily based on where people said they work on social media, not on actual migration. The report author has not made his data public for others to verify.”
