Separated by a Common Language

I've immersed myself in the UK show Top Gear, and one of the things I've been truly noticing are the distinct differences between American English and British English. I'm not simply talking about vocabulary or the Oxford comma. I'm more interested in the colloquialisms, phrases, and syntactic patterns.
I'm absolutely fascinated by these phrases which do more to dictate how language is received more than specific words. I also think these phrases convey more than trying to phonetically reproduce an accent in print.
If I'm honest, I'd say phonetic accents in print are rubbish.