‘No worries’ – the new response to thanks

  • Post

  • 1 September 2009

  • Posted by Alastair Campbell

  • 9

Out for a longish run along Regent's Park canal this morning, I found myself saying 'thank you' on four different occasions - twice when being waved forward by oncoming cyclists at those slow-down safety gate things, once when a couple walking side by side went into single file to allow me to pass, and once when buying a bottle of water at a shop near Primrose Hill. This is not however a blog to inform you of my inherent politeness, which you probably take for granted anyway. It is to draw attention to what may be a shift in the use of language. Because of the four who were on the receiving end of my thanks, three replied with the words 'no worries.' It is always good to have things to think about when out running - I'm training for the Great North Run - and once the third 'no worries' was sounded, I had a nice, unexpected train of thought to pursue. It is a phrase I have heard most often in Australia, but none of my three respondents had a trace of Antipodean in their looks or accents. Scotland is another place where you hear a variant 'nae worries,' itself a variant of 'nae bother.' Yet nor were any of them Scots, so far as I could tell. I freely accept none of this is scientific, but I like to think I am quite good at detecting shifts and I think there is a linguistic shift going on, with 'no worries' taking over from 'not at all,' the somewhat warmer 'my pleasure' or, perhaps the most common response to thanks, silence, with or without a smile. As for the reason, it is probably rooted somewhere in a piece of popular culture I am unfamiliar with. Perhaps viewers of Aussie soaps can help? is there a comedian I don't know of who has made the phrase his or her own? There must be someone inside the Conservative Party's CR department (Cultural Resonance) who has the answer for me. The same guy who got Chris Grayling to pretend he sits in front of the telly watching episode after episode of The Wire. The one who thinks the public will be impressed by saying a government run by Dave and George will be like something out of The West Wing. 'I'd like to cut rather more from the public services budget than originally intended, David.' 'No worries, George.' 'Thank you.' 'No worries.' It's a nice phrase. I may start to use it myself. But I bet Dave beats me to it. The Conservative Party's FP department (Finger on the Pulse) will see to that. Meanwhile, only one and a half cheers for the work of his BW (bandwagon) department, which sits above the other two in the Tory HQ pecking order. Getting aboard the anti-release of the Lockerbie bomber bandwagon was a pretty obvious move, but Dave appears to be jumping a bit late. Are his BW people not talking to his FP people? So not West Wing, as CR could tell him.

9 responses to “‘No worries’ – the new response to thanks”

  1. And I suppose you weren’t guilty of instructing Tony Blair to say similar things? For example, when Blair was asked what his favourite song was in an interview – he mentioned the number one at the time.

    Pot calling the kettle black?

  2. It’s gone international, Alistair. The common response to “merci” here in France has become “pas de soucis” a direct translation from the Oz!

  3. You are onto something … I said exactly the same thing in a restuarant in Chswick the other night with my girlfriend. Pur waitress was a British girl, probably a student, pretty middle class kind of girl, and she said ‘no worries’ as a response to virtually everything we said. I am assuming this is the Neighbouts effect

  4. Agree Cameron is a bandwagoner, but equally I agree wuth his statement on Libya that regardless of the position with the Scottish executive, Gordon Brown should have stated clearly what his view was. Sometimes leadership means no more or no less than saying what your view is, even if ultimately a decision is for someone else

  5. I always say “You’re welcome.” I now feel ancient, borderline Medieval. Then again, I don’t do soap operas so am probably out of many many loops. The Aussie phrase that branch of my family use most is always “she’ll be right”, which gets applied to just about anything.

  6. I spent time living with Aussies – great times – and they used to say

    ”No wuckin forries,mate”

    Just a note on the Japanese Election – the new allowance for young people was a real vote winner – Alastair Darling to take note.

  7. I now feel abit aged, well I am, saying – you’re welcome or it’s my pleasure, but daughter says no worries as does granddaughter, BUT most you hold a door open for etc., just expect it, and some of the youngsters are downright rude. Well that’s enough of my moan, good luck with your training.
    Remember, pace yourself.
    A

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

203. The Man Taking On Infantino: UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin

How did UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin lead the revolt that tore apart Gianni Infantino's plan to privatise the World Cup? Is Infantino finished as FIFA President after alienating the European fed... Continue

24 August 2026

Becoming Burnham: Thatcher, Hillsborough, and the Anger that Shaped Him | Part 1

To hear the full episode and the series as it drops, sign up up at therestispolitics.com Alastair is joined by Andy Burnham’s closets confident, friend and former colleague, Steve Rotheram – the ... Continue

20 August 2026

564. Burnham’s Media Machine and West Bank Settler Impunity

Is Burnham’s Britain’s first ‘TikTok Prime Minister’ and what does that mean for accountability, old-fashioned journalism, and the Westminster lobby? Why are violent Israeli settlers able to a... Continue

20 August 2026

563. Britain’s Afghanistan Shame and the Jason Arday Tragedy

Five years after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan and the Taliban takeover, why has not a single Western government marked the anniversary of a war that cost thousands of lives and trillions of doll... Continue

19 August 2026

Alastair Campbell’s diary: Sometimes I do ‘do God’, but only as a favour to the Pope

There’s a golden rule that you don’t plug someone else’s book when your own one is out. But there are some times when you have to make an exception... Continue

19 August 2026

202. Is Peace in the Middle East Closer Than We Think? (A Palestinian & An Israeli’s View)

How do an Israeli who lost his parents on October 7th and a Palestinian whose brother died after torture in Israeli prisons come together to reject revenge and build a brotherhood for peace? Why do th... Continue

17 August 2026

202. Maoz and Aziz

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices... Continue

15 August 2026

Will Climate Action Go Backwards Under Burnham?

Should Andy Burnham deliver a covid style national emergency briefing to inform the public about the climate emergency? How do we foster cross-party consensus on the climate emergency? And, can we bal... Continue

14 August 2026