When I visited Cape Cod a couple of years back I observed a number of American brands which we don’t have in the United Kingdom. I find this pretty strange considering that Britain is easily one of the most Americanised countries in the World (besides our spelling, thankfully! 
). Five of these brands are listed below!
Mountain Dew
Mountain Dew is a drink I heard about numerous times on telephone but never have seen for sale in the UK. Needless to say, when I reached the States it was the first drink I got out of a vending machine. .
According to the Wikipedia, it was sold for a very short time in the ’90s but was quickly withdrawn.
I realise that pretty much any drink has much better nutritional content than Mountain Dew but I’d love to be able to buy it here as I fell in love with over the pond.
The last place I saw Mountain Dew for sale was in a Polish supermarket (next to the energy drinks, interestingly enough) in a town called Rabka-Zdrój (roughly 30 miles away from Kraków). I don’t see why they sell it in Poland but not the UK!
There is a petition to have it sold in Britain.
Discover
I often see on sites such as PayPal signs indicating that they accept Discover. The Discover brand of credit card has never been launched in Britain as we seem to have two successful brands (Visa and MasterCard; American Express isn’t used much) and I doubt there’d be a market for any more. Most of our older card brands, such as Access, have been swallowed by larger companies like MasterCard.
Apparently, Discover issue MasterCards under the Goldfish and Morgan Stanley brands in the UK.
Wendy’s
Wendy’s is apparently an American fast food firm. According to the Wikipedia Wendy’s, like Mountain Dew, once had a presence in the Uk but then withdrew. I’ve never seen a Wendy’s though.
In fact I only became aware of the brand following their Wii-themed toys which were a frequent topic of discussion on Nintendo Wii Fanboy!
We do have most other American fast food brands though: McDonalds, Burger King, KFC, Pizza Hut and T.G.I. Friday’s!
AT&T
What I’ve heard of AT&T hasn’t been positive but I find it amazing that such a large telephone network hasn’t crossed the pond. Then again, our fixed-line telephone market isn’t exactly competitive with most people using BT.
The mobile market over here is slightly more competitive but most personal users seem to use Orange (however they haven’t won the iPhone contract!).
Fox
OK. So Fox does exist in the UK, but nowhere near to the degree it does in the US. The only exposure I get to Fox is Fox News (same as US version) and the FX channel which strangely seems to syndicate for CBS shows than Fox ones!
I am surprised that there aren’t any actual general Fox channels in the UK though, but I guess our TV market is considerably different to America’s and it’s no doubt too late for a large brand like Fox to establish themselves fully in the UK.
You are missing nothing at all by not having Mountain Dew soda or the Discover credit card but Wendy’s has the best french fries and your life is enriched by eating this (probably) non-nutritional food.
AT&T just bought Cingular so cell phone usage might reflect this.
The Discover credit card is dieing off in the US, to the point that a friend who ones their own business specifically singled out Discover cad as one they don’t accept. I didn’t bother to ask why though.
Wendy’s came and went..twice. Once in the early eighties and then again in the late nineties. I’m not sure it has withdrawn completely , but the last one I recall in Londonwas in Cahring Cross Road.
We also once had a Taco Bell…right in front of the Trocadero in Piccadilly.
Oh I love Wendy’s, I’d eat it everyday if I could. They have the best fries and burgers which they don’t freeze (they refridgerate), and the Chicken Caeser Salads are sooo good.
Guy: I ain’t a Londoner though!
I used to go to the Wendy’s in Shaftsberry avenue, again right in front of the Trocadero! The seems to be the place for US imports – that was where I first saw a 7/11
[...] No Mountain Dew [...]
…what??? Orange the most popular network, dude your either joking or living in an entire different dimension to me.
The most popular cell network in the UK is most probaly vodaphone, followed by O2, with tmobile,orange and virgin bringing up the rear.
This information is direct from my mate who is the manager of a major idenpendant mobile phone outlet.
Fox news and network and 20th century fox and SKY, are all owned by me Rupert Murdoch
Bob Dole, i would seriosuly doubt your sources mate, hes a manager of an “idenpendent” u mean indepentdent, sorry, but anyway carrying on, the fact of the matter is Orange and 02 are the big to mobile networks in the uk, not vodaphone.
I think SKY tv is fox, they show most of the same shows. I realy want to try mountain dew to see what its like. But as for FOX SKY tv is the same.
Because its the first place where new simpsons episodes ect are shown. and they are made my FOX
I usecd to love mountain Dew in the 80’s when I was living in Holland. My dad was in the RAF and we were based on an Allied base so the US forces families had shopsa that sold american soda and other food. I was chuffed when Mountain Dew was bought out in the UK but it tasted nothing like the proper stuff and why they thought the colour was a selling point I don’t know. Add the daft avertising campaign and it’s all to clear why it flopped over in the UK. Pepsi co – Bring Mountain Dew over here – don’t use advsertising like Twin Peaks on Acid and sell the original US flavour!!! (Idiots)
Stewie is so right. The poor excuse for Mountain Dew that they brought out over here was a totally different drink.
I thought I had died and gone to heaven when I saw it, even if the can was different. Then I tasted it. Yugghh!!
I never bought another can. And it didn’t last long.
Bring out the real Mountain Dew!!!
Fox IS Sky, as far as we’re concerned… both owned by News Corp, Murdoch etc.
I once visited a Wendy’s in Bradford, and thought it was rather unremarkable. Best burger I’ve ever had was In-And-Out burger in California. Always struck me as a funny name that
Mountain Dew came over here to the UK in the mid 90s, I think. I remember it tasted limey. Which is ironic, given that we’re limies.
Mountain Dew was apparently withdrawn for sale in the UK and most of Europe as its Caffeine content was far too high.
And I remember eating a wendys burger in Walthamstown in the early 80`s it was one for the first fast food burgers I ever had! and i love taco bell! Im sire it would do a rip roaring trade if they started up again here – its the same company who own Burger King..
And I have to disagree that Orange is the big phone network here in the UK – maybe in London but not in the rest of England Vodaphone are a massive massive company – they are called verizon in the USA and also are rolled out over most of the rest of the world – jesus orange dont even provide decent coverage once u pass the midlands..
PLEASE PLEASE BRING MOUNTAIN DEW BACK TO THE UK
What about Cheetos?