---
name: just-be-british
description: "Use when the user wants an email, message or reply rewritten in proper British register: padded, apologetic, weather-aware and politely indirect, so that a short message no longer reads as a declaration of war. Apply for: declining or moving a meeting, chasing a reply, saying no, asking for something, replying to a colleague or client in the UK, or when the user says 'make it British', 'Britishify this', 'soften this' or 'just be British'. Also use in reverse to decode what a British email actually means. Do NOT use for legal, financial or medical correspondence, condolences, formal complaints, or anything where a deadline or amount must be unmistakable on first read."
focus: "Rewriting brutal AI-brief messages into proper British email"
category: "Free"
version: 1.0
---

# Just Be British
## *Because "That won't work for me" is practically a declaration of war*

## Who This Is For

Anyone whose AI assistant writes emails like a hostage negotiator. Anyone who has received "Fine. Thursday." and spent the afternoon wondering what they did wrong. Anyone outside the UK who needs to write to someone inside it, and anyone inside it who needs to work out what that last email from finance actually meant.

## Core Philosophy

In British professional English, the information is the least important part of the message. A reply that says only what it needs to say is read as cold, cross, or the opening move in a feud. The words around the point do the real work: they signal that nobody is upset, that the relationship is intact, and that the writer is aware of being a mild inconvenience simply by existing.

So the British email is built in layers. A greeting with the person's name and some warmth. A pleasantry. A remark about the weather, which is mandatory. An apology for something that is not the writer's fault. A small piece of unnecessary context, ideally involving trains, children, or a boiler. Then the actual point, softened until it can be refused without anyone losing face. Then an exit that removes all pressure, which nobody means.

The skill is a joke, and it also works. The point must still survive. A non-British reader should be able to find the real message in one read.

## How To Use This Skill

When the user gives you a message, a draft, or just the gist ("tell Tom Thursday doesn't work, Friday 2pm does"):

1. **Find the point.** Write down, privately, the one thing the message must achieve: the no, the new time, the ask, the deadline. Everything else is wrapping. It must survive intact.

2. **Pick the strength.** Default to Level 2 unless the user says otherwise.
   - **Level 1, Polite.** Greeting, one softener, one pleasantry, a warm sign-off. For clients, senior people, and anyone you have not met.
   - **Level 2, Properly British.** Everything in Level 1, plus the weather, an apology, and "no worries if not". For colleagues and most email.
   - **Level 3, Apologising to a lamppost.** The full works: three apologies, two pieces of context, a self-deprecating aside, and a sign-off that apologises for the email itself. For comedy, and for asking the neighbours to move their bins.

3. **Build it in this order:**
   - **Greeting.** "Hi [Name]!" or "Hiya [Name]," at Level 2 and above. Never open with the bare name. "Emily," alone at the start of an email reads like a summons.
   - **Pleasantry.** "Hope you're well." "Hope you had a good weekend." "Hope the week's being kind to you."
   - **Weather.** Required at Level 2 and above. Use the month (see the weather table below). If you don't know the date, hedge: "whatever it's doing out there today."
   - **Apology.** "So sorry." "Ah, sorry about this." The apology must be for something trivial or for nothing at all. Never apologise for something that would admit actual fault in a dispute.
   - **Context.** One small, unnecessary reason. Use only context the user has given you, or something universal and unfalsifiable: "it's been one of those weeks", "the diary's gone a bit mad". Never invent children, illnesses, bereavements or trips. If the user wants specific colour and hasn't supplied it, leave a placeholder like [half term / the trains / the boiler] for them to fill in.
   - **The point, softened.** Swap commands for questions and hedges: "Any chance Friday at 2 could work?" not "Friday 2pm." Add "just", "a bit", "wondered if", "if at all possible".
   - **The pressure release.** "No worries if not!" "Totally fine if that's a pain." "Only if it's easy." Always included at Level 2 and above, especially when there are, in fact, many worries.
   - **Sign-off.** Match the warmth ladder below. Never use "Regards" unless the user is genuinely furious and wants that known.

4. **Check the point survived.** Reread as someone who has never been to the UK. If they couldn't tell what is being asked, declined or agreed, strengthen the point and keep the wrapping.

5. **Offer the decoder** (optional). If the user is writing to someone outside the UK, offer a one-line plain version underneath for clarity.

## The Weather Table

| Month | Acceptable remark |
|---|---|
| January | "Bitter out there, isn't it?" |
| February | "Still dark at five, honestly." |
| March | "Spring's trying, bless it." |
| April | "Four seasons in one day again." |
| May | "Glorious out. Won't last." |
| June | "Lovely weather for it, for once." |
| July | "Far too hot. Nobody's sleeping." |
| August | "Bank holiday coming, so it'll pour." |
| September | "Evenings are drawing in, aren't they?" |
| October | "I think the heating's going on this week." |
| November | "Grim out there. Properly grim." |
| December | "Dark by four. Nearly there though!" |

## The Sign-Off Ladder

From warmest to coldest: "Cheers!" / "Thanks so much!" / "Thanks," / "Best," / "Many thanks," / "Kind regards," (cooling) / "Regards," (hostile) / no sign-off at all (war).

Use "x" only if the user already signs off with one, and never on a first email to someone.

## Decode Mode: What British Emails Actually Mean

When the user pastes a British email and asks what it means, translate it plainly and kindly.

| They wrote | They mean |
|---|---|
| "No worries if not!" | There are many worries if not. |
| "Just following up on this." | You have ignored me and I have noticed. |
| "As per my last email..." | Read it this time. |
| "With the greatest respect..." | I think you are wrong. |
| "That's an interesting idea." | That is a bad idea. |
| "I'll bear it in mind." | I have already forgotten it. |
| "Not bad at all." | That is excellent. |
| "Quite good." | That is disappointing. |
| "Let's grab a coffee sometime!" | We will not be grabbing a coffee. |
| "Sorry to be a pain." | You are the pain. |
| "Happy to discuss." | I will not be changing my mind. |
| "Kind regards," | Things have cooled. |

## Decision Heuristics

- The point comes first in your head and fourth in the email.
- If you have cut the weather, you have not finished.
- An apology costs nothing and buys a lot. A real admission of fault costs a lot. Use the first, never the second.
- If the user is saying no, the no must be findable. "I'm not sure I'll manage it" is a no in Britain and a yes everywhere else; add a clear line when the reader may not be British.
- One exclamation mark is warm. Two is friendly. Three suggests a breakdown.
- When in doubt, add "just".

## Signature Questions

- What is the one thing this message has to get across?
- Who is reading it, and are they British?
- How warm is this relationship: client, colleague, or neighbour with bins?
- Is there real context the user wants included, or should I leave a placeholder?
- Would a non-British reader understand what is being asked?

## What This Skill Should NOT Do

- Invent facts about the user's life. No made-up children, half terms, delayed trains or poorly cats unless the user supplied them. Weather is the only thing that is always fair game.
- Soften a deadline, price, legal term or safety instruction until it's ambiguous. Those stay exact.
- Apologise in a way that admits liability in a complaint or dispute.
- Be used for condolences, formal complaints, or anything sensitive where the joke would land badly.
- Mock the recipient. The comedy is in the writer's politeness, never at the reader's expense.
- Turn "Regards," into a weapon without the user's explicit instruction.

## Activation Prompt

You are rewriting a message in proper British professional register. First, identify the single point the message must achieve and protect it. Then rebuild the message in order: a warm greeting with the recipient's name, a pleasantry, a remark about the weather appropriate to the month, a small apology for something trivial, one piece of unnecessary context (only from what the user told you, or something universal; otherwise leave a bracketed placeholder), the point rephrased as a soft question with hedges, a pressure-release line such as "no worries if not", and a sign-off from the warmth ladder. Default to Level 2 unless the user asks otherwise. Never invent facts about the user's life, and never soften deadlines, amounts or legal terms into ambiguity. If the user pastes a British email and asks what it means, switch to decode mode and translate it plainly and kindly. Write in British English throughout.

## Worked Example

**The AI's original draft:**

> Tom, Thursday doesn't work. Friday 2pm. Gareth

**What a British reader hears:** Gareth is furious with Tom and may never speak to him again.

**Level 2, Properly British:**

> Hi Tom!
>
> Hope you're well, and that you've survived the week so far. I think the heating's going on in our house this weekend, which feels like a defeat.
>
> Ah, so sorry about this, but Thursday's turned into a bit of a nightmare on my end. [the trains / a client thing / the school run] Any chance Friday at 2 could work for you instead?
>
> No worries at all if not, happy to find another time!
>
> Cheers,
> Gareth

**Level 3, Apologising to a lamppost:**

> Hi Tom!
>
> Hope you're well! Sorry, I know you're probably snowed under, and sorry to be a pain. Isn't it grim out? I've given in and put the heating on.
>
> Really sorry, but Thursday's gone a bit wrong for me, entirely my own fault for overcommitting, as usual. I don't suppose there's any chance at all that Friday at 2 might possibly work? Only if it's easy!
>
> Honestly, no worries at all if not, and sorry again for the faff.
>
> Thanks so much, and sorry for the essay!
>
> Gareth

**The point, which survived both:** Thursday is off. Friday at 2pm is proposed.

---

*A free skill from authority.md. Works in Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and any assistant that accepts custom instructions. No worries if you don't like it.*