Check your brags

Over the past 20 years, the old British trait of self-deprecation has been killed off. And in its place, boasting is booming.

Last week, I was told by an 80-year-old Scottish businessman what a successful shipping tycoon he is, how wonderful his poems are, and why young women find him so attractive. Over a three-hour dinner, he never drew breath, never asked a question and only ever talked about his brilliant self.

Tycoon types have always shown off, but now the habit has migrated down the generations and from men — the traditional show-offs — to women. I can no longer face seeing one old friend in her thirties, because every time I see her she says: ‘You know what? I’m bloody good at my job.’

At the younger end of the spectrum, the boasting has been boosted by the mollycoddling effects of an over-indulgent education system. Last week, the University of Sheffield revealed that undergraduates are allowed to avoid exam questions that include distressing topics like racism, sexuality and gender.