how to make my stay in Britain as cheap as possible? any budget travel tips?

I'm staying there for 9 months

for accommodation look for hostels to start with ... if you're staying in one area for a while then look in local papers for flat shares or similar (in London look at Gumtree or Loot) ... don't eat out too much, buy your own food from a supermarket ... for getting around coach travel is much cheaper than trains (look at National Express and Megabus coaches) ... look for free entertainment (in London look at Time Out) and places with free admission (such as the Science Museum, Natural History Museum etc) ... learn the art of making half a pint of beer last an hour or so if you go into a pub (and by the way half a pint of beer is usually cheaper than a Coke), don't get involved in buying "rounds" (where one person at a time buys a drink for everyone in the group) and avoid buying snacks in a pub (go next door and buy a packet of crisps from a shop) ... have you looked at the website for "couch surfing"

Don't spend very much time in London or the South of England.

You might want to see if any of the tips in this article would be useful for you. http://budgettravel.suite101.com/article.cfm/vacationing_on_a_small_budget I recently took a vacation and used many of them and I saved a LOT of money. I hope you enjoy your trip.