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‘Englishman’ promotes Korean culture on London streets

‘Englishman’ promotes Korean culture on London streets

Posted November. 25, 2013 05:00,   

한국어

A good looking man as handsome as a fashion model was walking up from a distance. It is Josh Carrot, 24, the main character of popular YouTube video clips garnering hundreds of thousands of views. Since August this year, he has uploaded video clips introducing British foods and festivals in Korean by using the nickname “Englishman.” The Dong-A Ilbo met in London, England this man, who became a YouTube star instantly as those videos gained immense popularity.

Carrot was quite proficient in Korean. When asked his age, he answered in Korean, “I was born in 1989.” Perhaps due to his good look and fluency in Korean, his YouTube videos have had nearly 1.5 million views thus far. The number of regular subscribers to his videos also exceeds 80,000. “I still make lots of mistakes. Because I still don’t know many different words, I always have to refer to the dictionary. I act as if I speak fluently. I think they have displayed keen interest in me because they grow curious to see a foreigner speaking Korean in a natural fashion.”

He carries a microphone with the label “Englishman,” visiting all different places in London. He introduces in Korean famed tourist hotspots in London sometimes or visit the scene of carnivals at other times. He let Londoners sample kimchi and teaches Korean language to promote Korean culture. “I wanted to introduce vibrant images of London to Korea. I hope that British people also develop interest in Korean culture through me as well.”

Carrot majored Korean studies at SOAS University in London. In China where he moved to at 12, he made Korean friends at an international school during his middle and high school years, naturally developing interest in Korean culture. After entering the college, he came to Korea University as an exchange student in 2008, when he started loving Korea in earnest.

He said he still has many items to create videos on. “After uploading my first video clip in August, I was surprised to see responses that were far more enthusiastic than I expected. If I had a chance, I would like to visit Korea to introduce Korea`s unique culture, including jjimjilbang sauna, noraebang singing room, and PC café. I also want to operate 24-hour YouTube channel sometime in the future. As many people have expectations on me, I would like to introduce Korean and English cultures for a long time.”