Just fly parallel to the runway while descending for the last couple of miles (or from the edge of the ATZ), call "joining deadside", fly along the deadside of the runway at circuit height (or very slightly below so you can see downwind traffic against the sky), and then turn onto downwind at an appropriate point to fit-in.
IMNSHO straight-in approaches at uncontrolled fields should be banned
I'm somewhat surprised that you weren't taught OHJs, but I guess it just got missed by accident.
So....when I am joining from the deadside or have completed my descending turn to circuit height from an OHJ, are you going to give way to me on your "parallel deadside no one knows what you are doing approach"? Seems about as "bad" as a straight in approach, except on a straight in approach everyone knows what you are doing.
Also you have to bear in mind that it is pretty much only uncontrolled fields (bar a few ) that use the OHJ. Try and OHJ at Bournemouth for example and you'll either meet a Falcon or bust Solent's airspace.
I am not sure why in the UK we get so hung up about idiotic stuff like this. Who cares how someone joins. If someone joins on a long final so what, aircraft on downwind can either turn inside if there is space, or turn behind if not....it really is very easy. But of course we seem to suffer from Air Rage over here, and despite us flying perfectly everyone else shows appalling airmanship.
I must have shown appalling airmanship the other day when I joined Old Sarum on base leg, with someone just turning downwind. Shock horror, I landed and cleared the active and was no bother to them whatsoever.
Over and out.