What do Gemma Collins, Jane McDonald, Alison Hammond, Cheryl Cole and Fiona from The Traitors all have in common?
Well, that’s easy. They’re all ambassadors of hun culture — or as the country’s most devoted followers call it, the Church of Hun.
With an endless supply of St Moritz fake tan, a Nectar Clubcard full of points, and a healthy obsession with gay men, certified huns have become one of UK’s most valuable assets.
But how would you spot one in the wild? How would you know who is ‘live, laugh, loving’ and mispronouncing the word ‘jalapeño’?
Turns out, all you’d have to do it look at the way they text.
One scroll through your phone and you’ll be able to tell if you’re in the presence of an icon — here’s why.
Sealed with a misspelt kiss
No self respecting hun would finish typing out a text without adding a kiss.
George Oglethorpe, cohost of Not Being Funny, Babe, the @loveofhuns podcast, tells Metro that a hun ‘always has time for a big fat “x” at the end of every sentence.’
‘The ‘x’ is the British staple, we’d be nothing without her,’ he says. ‘How am I supposed to be both funny and a little charming without an on the nose kiss at the end of my sentence?’
Content creator, actor and comedian Fizz Sinclair, is an encyclopedia in hun knowledge. She agrees it would be ‘sacrilegious’ for a hun to end a sentence without the customary ‘x’.
She shares: ‘A hun always knows the difference between when a ‘x’ is pass agg or not. Adding an ‘x’ to the end of a proper outrageous text = 100000% funnier.’
Language learning app Babbel is all too familiar with hun linguistics, telling Metro: ‘Texting isn’t just communication, it’s social signalling. A hun is the millennial fairy godmother you might meet in the pub bathroom, hyping you up and gently advising you not to text your ex, “babe x”.’
But the habit you need to spot to know you’ve truly found a certified hun? The typo ‘xc’ — that’s when you go to type a ‘x’, but your finger catches the letter ‘c’ next to it on the keyboard too.
George continues: ‘Look we’ve all got the same 24 hours in the day, but a hun is on the go, she’s a busy girlie, she hasn’t got time for correct punctuation or spelling.’
With long acrylic nails and a million handbags to consider, does it really matter if you text ‘xc’ instead of ‘x’?
His co-host, Ellena agrees, adding: ‘A hun doesn’t care if her text makes sense when she sends it, she just expects you to understand it.’
Universally understood as an accident, this is often followed by a classic ‘lol sorry xc’. This tiny typo, Babbel shares, has become endearing shorthand for ‘I care, but I’m busy.’
Let’s be real, huns have got more important things to do, like watching the 2008 Gavin and Stacey Christmas special.
Who's your favourite British hun?
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Alison Hammond
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Gemma Collins Gemma Collins
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Natalie Cassidy
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Pam from 'Gavin and Stacey'
Huns love a pet name
There’s some other ways to spot huns on WhatsApp.
Firstly, huns don’t really understand the concept of calling someone by the name bestowed to them at birth.
Instead, as Fizz shares, huns favour the following: ‘chick, babe, babes, dallyn, pet, lovely.’
If you’ve ever penned a text to your manager and started with the phrase ‘hey babes’ or signed off a message to your situationship that’s read ‘we’re over, pet’, you understand.
And, they’d never use any pass-agg punctuation.
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One of Babbel’s experts, Madeleine Pollard, shares: ‘What people often call ‘hun’ texting is actually a sophisticated set of linguistic strategies. While memeified across social media, pet names, ellipses, and the generous use of kisses as punctuation all function as shorthand for emotional warmth — ways to create comfort, ease awkwardness, and soften messages that might otherwise feel too direct.’
‘Don’t ever use a full stop, just feels a bit like you’re tryna kick off,’ says Fizz.
‘Take nothin seriously, and become absolutely fluent in sarcasm and running with the joke x’
What are the characteristics of a certified hun?
While the patron saints of huns tend to be women in their 50s, anyone who’s worthy can be admitted into the Church of Hun. And trust me, this isn’t a community you’d want to pass up on.
So, what’s the official criteria?
Ellena says that a hun is a girlypop through and through: ‘A hun loves a wine, a Wetherspoons, leopard print everything, wants a gossip with the girls and the gays while having cheeky cig…or 10.’
It’s important to note that hun is totally gender inclusive: hes, shes, and theys are all invited into Gemma Collins’ bosom.
As Fizz sees it, ‘there’s loads of ways to be a hun, hun. It’s kinda like that “hun” it factor, you’ve either got it or ya don’t (soz).’
But if you’re hell-bent on entering into the hun chapel, Fizz has graciously given Metro the ideal hun starter kit.
Have a love for all these things? You might just be on your way to being a hun, hun.
- Leopard print (to be honest, most animal prints)
- Red lippy
- Unfiltered attitude
- Daytime telly
- Live laugh love attitude
- ‘PM me hun‘
- Eastenders
- Fake tan
- British high street clothes shops
- British 00s culture
- Hoop earrings
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Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@Metro.co.uk.
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