would you rather

Give me a full English instead of a typical Canadian breakfast and I’ll make that choice immediately. Ask me to choose between a British winter and a Canadian winter, and suddenly I need conditions. Am I working from home? Do I have to drive somewhere? I don’t like either winter much, but those details change my answer.

That was the problem with playing Would You Rather with UK and Canadian choices after nine years living in England. Some answers were easy, and some came with a whole argument. These were my preferences based on where I’d lived and what I actually used, rather than a scoreboard for two entire countries.

Breakfast was easy

For everyday breakfast growing up in Canada, cereal came to mind. Going out might mean pancakes, scrambled eggs and bacon, but I think a full English has the perfect assortment of things on one plate. I’d had one the day before filming and it was delicious. No hesitation there.

Beans on toast also won against Kraft Dinner, the boxed macaroni and cheese I’d eaten as a child. The nostalgia was there, but I didn’t think the powdered-cheese macaroni was very good. I regularly had beans on toast for lunch because it was quick and filling, especially when the weather outside was disgusting.

I should confess how I eat it, though. The beans go in a bowl and the toast stays on a plate. I spoon beans onto the toast as I eat so it doesn’t get soggy. I know this upsets people. I’ve said it now.

Missing something didn’t always make it the winner

Swiss Chalet gave me a harder choice against a week of eating at Nando’s. At Swiss Chalet, I’d normally have half a chicken, fries, hot rolls and gravy. Nando’s seemed to offer more variety, which sounded useful for a whole week, although my meals there had generally been fine rather than amazing.

At the time, I thought it had been about seven years since I’d eaten at Swiss Chalet. I reckoned I could spend a week there and probably enjoy it. Missing a familiar meal mattered, even if the other option seemed to make more practical sense.

Then poutine beat Marmite, but please don’t mistake that for me loving poutine. It’s fries with gravy and cheese curds, and I don’t enjoy how soggy the fries get. I’d still choose it because I’d tried Marmite in different ways and just couldn’t get on with it.

All-dressed chips were the Canadian food I really missed. People had sent me photos when Co-op started selling a version in the UK, but after trying it I thought it tasted more like barbecue. Fine, but not what I wanted from all-dressed. I liked salt-and-Chardonnay-vinegar crisps too, especially Co-op’s, yet they didn’t replace the flavour I missed.

Winter depended on the commute

When I filmed, England was grey, rainy and cold in that wet, into-your-bones way. Canadian winters could be brighter in my experience, even when the temperature was lower, but driving on snow and ice was miserable. Neither option had me excited for winter.

Working from home, as I was then, I’d choose Canada because I wouldn’t have to commute through it. If I had to drive to work as I’d done in the past, I’d choose Britain. The weather might be dark and rainy, but I’d take that over months of driving on snow and ice.

I’d take the train, and the walkable town

Growing up near Toronto, I used trains for trips into the city, perhaps for a concert. I didn’t take one to the next town over. In England, I was planning to do exactly that the next day, visiting a friend for lunch and a working afternoon in a cafe. That kind of journey hadn’t been part of my Canadian life.

I still missed the convenience of having a car and going where I wanted. I’d sold my car in England in 2020, and choosing between driving and the train wasn’t simple. I picked the train, with the qualification that I’d be very unhappy if the following day’s service was late.

For driving itself, I preferred Canada. The roads I knew there felt simpler than English country lanes that were supposedly two-way but only fitted one car. I missed having a car here, but the thought of driving those roads again frightened me.

The housing question clarified another preference. I’d rather have a walkable town than a big house. Where I grew up, I couldn’t walk anywhere and needed someone to drive me until I could get my own licence. That felt isolating. I might still complain about small houses, but being able to walk mattered more to me than extra rooms.

Watch uK or Canada? My choices changed when I thought about daily life in the original video.