Nos Galan Gaeaf



Photo by Christine Moriarty©
Owenynagat ('cave of the cats'),
one of the many 'gateways to the Otherword
' from whence beings and spirits
were said to have emerged on Samhain


Other Americans have often asked me if they celebrate Halloween in Great Britain and they are surprised to find out that it actually originated there. I explain that yes they do, but it is generally not the big over the top celebration that we have over here. Case in point, I was at a friend’s house today and I said that I was not particularly interested in Halloween and she agreed that she felt the same way. This was as she was showing me her multi lighted pumpkin, her witch shoe, her two lighted pumpkins, the skeleton on her front window, the Halloween chip and dip plate, and her ceramic ghost! 

Samhain is the Irish/Celtic name for what we now call Halloween and Nos Galan Gaeaf is the Welsh name. It was an important time of year as it marked the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter. Winter is the darker half of the year and it was seen as the time when spirits or fairies could come more easily into our world and were particularly active. On entrances to footpaths, it was said that dead persons could appear at midnight. In some parts of Wales, the cost was called the Ladi wen (white lady). Northern Wales called it the Hwch ddu gwta (tail-less black sow). In Scotland and Wales they would light huge bonfires on the hillside, often within sight of each other to see who could burn their fire the longest. People often took flames from the bonfire back to their homes, doused their hearth fires on Samhain night and reignited the hearth from the communal fire. Stones would be thrown into the fire and when the flames died down, everyone would run to escape from the Hwch ddu gwta. By the light of the next morning, they would try to find their stones and those who succeeded would be guaranteed good luck for the coming year. If you were one of the unlucky searchers bad luck or even death would come to you.

Photo by Toby Ord

 
Our modern jack-ò-lantern actually originated in Ireland and the lights within were to represent the souls of the dead. Throughout the Gaelic and Welsh regions many games were played, often using apples and nuts. Trick or Treating may have come from the custom of going door to door collecting food for Samhain feasts and offerings. 


Souling Plays



Weston Mummers

Britain has it’s own unique customs to celebrate Halloween and one of them is called a Souling Play which is a variation of a Mummers Play. These are seasonal folk plays performed by troupes of actors who are known as mummers or guisers. They usually perform the plays as house to house visits or in a pub. A Souling Play is traditionally around Halloween or All Souls Day on November 2^nd. The performances are done on the doorstep and there is a hero who’s name is most commonly Saint George, King George or Prince George, who slays an opponent who is later revived by a quack doctor. Each region adds their special twist; the Cheshire play ends with a horse and driver. The Cheshire horse always has a real skull and three legs. The best-known Souling Plays are performed around Antrobus, Comberbach, Warburton and Chester. The Halton Souling Play is identical to the 1886 version and was revived in 2000 by the Earl of Stamford Morris. Any money collected tends to go to charity.


Photo by Simon Garbutt
Soul Cakers in Cheshire, England


Tradition dictates that if you were to have a Souling Play troupe come to your door, you would give them a Soul Cake. Some regions refer to those who perform in a Souling Play as Soul Cakers. The tradition of giving Soul Cakes was celebrated in Britain and Ireland during the Middle Ages. The cakes are filled with allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and raisins or currents. Before baking they were marked on top with a cross to signify that these were alms. Children would go "souling" or begging for cakes door to door.

Big Ben



Photo by Andrew Dunn
Big Ben at Dusk

The most popular landmark in Great Britain, Big Ben had its time moved back one hour as British Summer Time switched to Greenwich Mean Time last night. The Keepers of the Clock, headed by Ian Wesstworth performed the task. The schedule for the time change weekend is as precise as the mechanics of the clock and takes five hours to complete. In order to reach the clock, workers must clime 334 steps or eleven floors just to reach the clock. In order to adjust the 14.5ft pendulum swing, pennies are used. Adding or taking away a penny will alter the time by two fifths of a second.

Big Ben was never the official name for the clock, but only a nickname referring to the clock and the tower. It may have been named after Sir Benjamin Hall who oversaw the installation of the Great Bell in the tower. The official name was Clock Tower and was changed on 2 June 2012 to "Elizabeth Tower" in tribute to the Queen in her Diamond Jubilee year. The large west tower was named "Victoria Tower" as a tribute to Queen Victoria on her Diamond Jubilee, so it was felt to be appropriate.
Londoners who live within earshot of Big Ben can hear the bell strike 13 times. It’s possible because of the speed of sound is actually a lot slower than the speed of radio waves. A fun game of counting the chimes aloud while the radio is turned down will allow the 13^th strike. 
 

Crinkle Crankle Walls

Photo by Nat Bocking
Crinkle Crankle wall in Bramfield, Suffolk

One of the reasons I decided to start this blog was to collect all of the quirky British customs and put them in one place for other Anglophiles. The other reason is so I would have an excuse to learn more and more. This is exactly the kind of thing that delights me. There is nothing more heavenly than an English garden and I especially love walled gardens. I come from the land of the grid – Chicago. The entire city is laid out in a very logical, easy to understand grid. While it is easy and accessible, it lacks a certain charm. These walls are not only fun to look at, but economize on bricks because it can be made just one brick thin. Even though it is thin, it does not require a buttress, which it would if the curves didn’t offset each other! It’s really very useful and imaginative.

I adore the name, Crinkle Crankle but these are also known as crinkum crankum, serpentine, ribbon or wavy walls. The Crinkle Crankle name originated in the county Suffolk, which has at least 50 examples of this which is more than twice what the rest of the country has. None other than Thomas Jefferson thought the idea so good that he used it when designing the gardens at the University of Virginia, which he founded. A document at the university shows how he calculated the savings and combined aesthetics with utility.

 

Defender of the Faith



Photo by Lgkdlgkd
St. George's Chapel, Windsor
 

Today Prince George was christened at the Chapel Royal in St. James Palace. One of his eventual roles, Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England. The Church was formed when King Henry VIII separated from the Roman Catholic Church in 1534 when Pope Clement VII refused to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so he could marry Anne Boleyn. Pope Leo X originally gave the title Defender of the Faith to Henry VIII as a reward for writing his pamphlet, Declaration of the Seven Sacraments Against Martin Luther. Upon Henry’s break with the papacy the title was taken away from him. Parliament restored the title to the king in 1544 and is still a very important role of all British sovereigns.

The queen is very religious and attends church every Sunday. She is usually at Windsor Castle at the weekend and worships at St. George's Chapel with Prince Philip. While The Duke of Edinburgh is very religious, in typical Phil fashion he insists on time limits for his sermons. Prince Charles is a known for being very spiritual and is even learning Arabic in order to study the Koran, which is very controversial, as he will be Defender of the Faith of the Church of England. His sister Princess Ann and brother Prince Andrew are not known to have strong religious views while their younger brother Edward is so religious one girlfriend is known to have dumped him because of it! In 1950, nearly 70 percent of the British population was baptized into the Church of England, which most Brits refer to as the CofE. In 2010, fewer than 20 percent were baptized into the CofE. 

Cabmen's Shelters



A London taxi shelter at Russell Square

On a cold January evening in 1875, ex soldier and editor of The Globe newspaper sent his manservant into a blizzard to collect a hansom cab. He needed to get to his office in Fleet Street from his home in St. John’s Wood and was surprised when his servant returned after an entire hour had passed. The manservant explained that he eventually found several cabmen in a local pub, but all of them were too drunk to drive! During this time the Temperance Society was in full swing and excessive drinking was highly frowned upon.

Hansom Cabs were the vehicle of choice at the time. They were horse-drawn and open to the elements for the cabmen. He was expected to sit waiting for a fare in all types of weather and the only place he could go for comfort was a public house. Even then he had to pay someone to watch the cab and horse, as it was illegal to leave them unattended. Captain Armstrong saw the predicament and together with his friends, including the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury formed the Cabmen’s Shelter Fund. 
Between 1875 and 1950 forty-seven shelters were built. Eventually they included a kitchen so hot meals and drinks could be provided for a charge. Watermen were employed to ensure the horses had enough water to drink and to keep order. The shelters are small but can accommodate 10-13 diners. Two benches run along the walls of the shelters with two long, thin tables comprise the main area. At the far end the proprietor has access to a cooker (stove) and refrigerator. While many cabmen’s shelters were destroyed in the Blitz and because of post war development, the remaining 13 shelter’s are Grade II listed buildings and protected by English Heritage. While they do not generally let non-cab drivers in, some do offer take-away service. There is a lovely little film about the shelters at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aA3NNNehxU




Russell Square – western corner

Chelsea Embankment – near the Albert Bridge
 
Embankment Place
Grosvenor Gardens – west side of north garden

Hanover Square – north of central garden

Kensington Park Road – outside numbers 8-10

Kensington Road – north side

Pont Street

St George’s Square, Pimlico – on north side

 

Temple Place

Thurloe Place, Kensington – opposite the Victoria & Albert Museum
 
Warwick Avenue – centre of the road, by Warwick Avenue Tube Station

Wellington Place, St John’s Wood, handy for Lord’s Cricket Ground

A Unique London House

Photo by Alan Will
Dennis Severs House

Who doesn’t like to peek into other’s lives? Well at 18 Folgate Street in Spitalfields, London you can do just that at Dennis Severs house, which is part museum, part local history and part, antiques. The creator, Dennis Severs was a transplanted American who moved to London in 1967. He bought the Brick George I terraced house in 1979 and spent the rest of his life working on it.

Severs invented a family of Huguenot silk weavers named Jervis, who had lived in the house for centuries to "inhabit" the house. To the visitor, it seems as the Jervis family has just left each of the rooms. They can sometimes be heard, but not seen in any of the ten rooms which are lit by fire and candlelight. As the visitor comes upon half eaten meals, and hear but not sees the family members the viewer begins to use their imagination, which is Mr. Severs’ intention and his art. He called his unique house a "still-life drama" his goal was to provide his visitors with a way to get lost into another time and place.

Mr. Severs was undoubtedly a unique individual who says he was a dreamy and imaginative child who was regarded by his teachers as somewhere between "exceptional" and "mentally retarded." He died in 1999 and the Spitalfields Trust subsequently bought the home. His home is open to visitors and more information can be found at http://www.dennissevershouse.co.uk/

To see a bit about the house and an interview with Mr. Severs please follow the link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yr2HtBYSNY0

Morris Minor, a British Classic



Photo by Lars-Göran Lindgren
Morris Minor 1000 2-Door Saloon 1958

It’s hard not to love the "Mini" Cooper as they are so adorable and tiny. But there is an equally loved British car you may not know about. It’s called a Morris Minor and although they stopped production in 1972, they can still be seen driving on the M1. The Mini and the Morris Minor were both designed by Sir Alec Issigonis. He designed the Morris Minor in 1942 when it was determined that the war would eventually be won and a new, small car better serving peacetime needs would be needed to replace the Series E Morris. It was very innovative for it’s time and it’s rack-and-pinion steering made it a delight to drive even though it could just manage 62mph.

They added extra power and the Morris Minor entered the United States market, selling almost 15,000 in 1959. The car was sold world wide, but it was a British favorite and the millionth Morris Minor was completed in 1961 and became the first British car to ever achieve this production figure. To many British drivers, the Morris Minor is a familiar, dependable friend. Because it was manufactured before the throwaway age, most of the parts are easily replaced with just a bush or a bearing, unlike modern vehicles. Most components can be lubricated and have extended lives. The Minor has been described as typifying "Englishness" and called a "British Icon" sadly faded out of fashion.



Photo by Adrian Pingstone
1953 Morris Minor Series 2

Books on the Morris Minor
Guide to Purchase & D.I.Y. by Lindsay Porter
The Secret Life of the Morris Minor by Karen Pender

Morris Minor Restoration, Preparation and Maintenance by Jim Tyler

Minor Traveller Restoration by Practical Classics

 

Constable Country

Self Portrait

Dedham Vale

One of my favorite English painters is John Constable who captures spectacular images of English landscape. He was born in Suffolk in 1776 and concentrated on painting the beautiful scenery around Dedham Vale, which is now known as "Constable Country." In a letter to a friend, Constable wrote, "I should paint my own places best." Constable was the second son, but his older brother was mentally handicapped so he was expected to succeed his father who was a successful corn merchant. He did start work in the corn business, but persuaded his father to let him pursue a career in art. He entered the Royal Academy Schools as a probationer.

Constable executed many fine portraits over his career, but he found them dull and only did them to make ends meet. He delighted in scenes of ordinary daily life, which was very unfashionable in an age that craved the more romantic visions of wild landscapes and ruins. He was never successful financially and was sold more paintings in France than in his native England where he only sold 20 paintings. Despite this, he refused to travel internationally to promote his work and wrote, "I would rather be a poor man [in England] than a rich man abroad." He did not become a member of the Royal Academy until he was 52 years old.

Maria Bicknell

At age 40 Constable married his childhood sweetheart Maria Bicknell at St -Martin-in-the-Fields, London. He and Maria had seven children before Maria died of tuberculosis. Sadly, he never got over her death and continued to dress in black and was "prey to melancholy and anxious thoughts." He brought up his children alone and died in 1837. "The world is wide", Constable wrote, "no two days are alike, nor even two hours; neither were there ever two leaves of a tree alike since the creation of all the world; and the genuine productions of art, like those of nature, are all distinct from each other."




British Actress Dame Judi Dench



Dame Judi playing Jean Pargetter in As Time Goes By



Photo by Caroline Bonarde

My absolute favorite British Actress is Dame Judi Dench. I have adored watching her in her romantic comedy TV series of the ‘90’s, "As Time Goes By." It is set in Holland Park, London, which is a lovely area of the city. Ms. Dench, who is 78, told Reader’s Digest that she is now seeking to balance her busy life and relax more. "I love the work, " says Dame Judi. "I'm in the two per cent of the population doing the job they want to. I think that's incredibly lucky. But I took eight weeks off when I finished the play Peter And Alice because that was 12 weeks in London and it was quite exhausting. I spent four weeks in Cornwall in the sun, swimming and lying on the beach, which was glorious."
Ms. Dench has been in the acting Industry since 1957 and has amassed a large collection of well deserved awards including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, two Golden Globes, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, seven Laurence Olivier Awards and eleven BAFTAs. She was married to fellow actor Michael Williams from 1971 until his death from lung cancer in 2001. They filmed the TV series "A Fine Romance" together from 1981 to 1984. She has one daughter, actress Finty Williams. She was born in Heyworth, York and attended the Mount School which is a Quaker independent secondary school. Although she suffers with macular degeneration, with one eye "dry" and the other "wet" and has someone read scripts for her, she continues to deliver incredible performances while remaining very down to earth. Upon receiving her Oscar for "Shakespeare in Love" where she appeared onscreen for a scant 8 minutes, Dench joked, "I feel for eight minutes on the screen I should only get a little bit of him." In 1988 she was honored with the title of Dame Commander of the British Empire.

The Lord Mayor of the City of Lonon

I live in Chicago and the being the Mayor is a big deal. He has a great deal more power then the governor. London has two mayors. The actual Mayor of London is Boris Johnson and he is responsible for the governing of the city. The Lord Mayor of the City of London is a centuries old post (instituted in 1189) whose job it is to represent and promote the businesses and people of the City of London. This mayor is apolitical, giving them credibility at home and abroad as they represent the financial interests of London. They give hundreds of speeches and travel abroad frequently.


The post is elected annually at Michaelmas ‘Common Hall’. Michaelmas is the feast of Saint Michael the Archangel and is also delineates time and seasons in Great Britain for the Inns of Court and colleges. It begins in September and ends towards the end of December. Our U.S. Supreme Court follows this tradition by starting each new term on the first Monday of October. The Lord Mayor takes office on the Friday before the second Saturday in November at ‘The Silent Ceremony’. It’s called ‘The Silent Ceremony’ because no speeches are given. But they make up for it the next day when they hold the Lord Mayor’s Show. The newly elected Lord Mayor follows a procession and travels to the Royal Courts of Justice in a State Coach that was built in 1757 to swear allegiance to the Sovereign in front of the judges of the High Court. The procession consists of bands, members of the military, charities and schools. The Lord Mayor’s show with its mix of pageantry and carnival atmosphere make it a fun part of the year in London. The day is capped off with a fireworks display.


Photo by Rodolph de Salis
The Lord Mayor’s Show

The lucky lady who was elected to by Lord Mayor of the City of London for 2013 is Fiona Woolf who is a solicitor. This is a perk filled post, which allows the Lord Mayor the following rights:

The Lord Mayor gives the reigning monarch permission to enter the city of London. At Temple Bar the Lord Mayor presents the City’s pear-encrusted Sword of Sate to the Sovereign as a symbol fidelity to the crown.

He held the Sword of Mourning at Baroness Thatcher's Funeral and preceded HM the Queen and HRH Prince Philip into St Paul's Cathedral.

Lord Mayor bears his/her mace at coronations.

The Lord Mayor is entitled to the style The Right Honourable.

At the Banquet following a coronation, the Lord Mayor of the City of London has the right to assist the royal butler. This privilege has not been exercised since 1821.

Since 1545 the lord mayor of London has worn a royal livery Collor of Esses.

The Lord Mayor gets to live at Mansion House.






As if all of this wasn’t enough, at the end they knight him/her! You can watch the Lord Mayor’s Show by following the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXbvvW0i6-s

Royal Mail goes Private



Photo by Julie Fennell
Antique Morris Minor

Major changes are in store for the Royal Mail, which began, in the 12^th century with Henry I who had messengers carry letters for the government. Before this people had to make their own arrangements. The first thing he did was provide them with uniforms. One of the best parts of Britain is all of the uniforms. I’m certain they were fabulous, but sadly it’s far too long ago for any to have survived. Edward I instituted the first "posting houses" and Edward II brought the first postal marking notations. These were written by hand saying, "Haste, post haste."

Pillar-Box

I happened to go to my post office today and love the choice of different types of stamps is utterly amazing. I picked the Vintage Seed Packets but I could have chosen from a cool Ray Charles stamp, Innovative Choreographers, a Wedding Cake, Love, a Tufted Puffin, Year of the Snake, Rosa Parks, Modern Art in America, Muscle Cars, or a Spicebush Swallowtail Butterfly to name a few! In Great Britain, you have the reigning monarch. Don’t get me wrong, I love those stamps too. What is truly suppressing is that we don’t have one of Her Majesty, as many Americans are huge fans of British Royalty. I would trade those cool British Pillar-boxes with our boring blue mail boxes that you can never find any day.

The Royal Mail has around 150,000 permanent employees and hires about 18,000 "casual workers" to assist with the Christmas post. As late as 2004, Britain had twice daily delivery. On October 15^th the government will privatize the Royal Mail through a flotation on the London Stock Exchange. Royal Mail employees will be given 10% of the shares and the public is able to buy shares. Up to 62% of the business will be sold and the state will own the rest. The shrinking need for a postal system would have no doubt shocked Henry I. Many people in Great Britain are upset with the changes. However, any institution that has been around since the 12^th century, is bound to survive whatever changes are in store.

The Queen Takes Over



Her Soverign Majesty Queen Elzabeth II and Prince Philip

In a fit of anger her majesty Queen Elizabeth II issued the following letter to the citizens of United States of America

　
To the citizens of the United States of America from Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

In light of your failure to financially manage yourselves and inability to effectively govern yourselves responsibly, we hereby give notice of the revocation of your independence, effective immediately. (You should look up ‘revocation’ in the Oxford English Dictionary.)

Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will resume monarchical duties over all states, commonwealths, and territories (except Kansas, which she does not fancy).

Your new Prime Minister, David William Donald Cameron, will appoint a Governor for the former United States of America without the need for further elections. Congress and the Senate will be disbanded. A questionnaire may be circulated sometime next year to determine whether any of you noticed.

To aid in the transition to a British Crown dependency, the following rules are introduced with immediate effect:

1. You will learn that the suffix ˜burgh" is pronounced "burra"; you may elect to spell Pittsburgh as ˜Pittsberg" if you find you simply can’t cope with correct pronunciation. Then look up "aluminum" and check the pronunciation guide. You will be amazed at just how wrongly you have been pronouncing it.
2. The letter "U" will be reinstated in words such as ˜colour", "favour" and "neighbour". Likewise, you will learn to spell "doughnut" without skipping half the letters.
3. Generally, you will be expected to raise your vocabulary to acceptable levels (look up "vocabulary"). Using the same twenty-seven words interspersed with filler noises such as "like" and "you know" is an unacceptable and inefficient form of communication.
4. There is no such thing as "US English". We will let Microsoft know on your behalf. The Microsoft spell-checker will be adjusted to take account of the reinstated letter "u".
5. You will relearn your original national anthem, "God Save The Queen", but only after fully carrying out Task #1 (see above).
6. July 4th will no longer be celebrated as a holiday.
7. All American cars are hereby banned. They are crap and this is for your own good. When we show you German cars, you will understand what we mean.
8. All intersections will be replaced with roundabouts, and you will start driving on the left side with immediate effect. At the same time, you will go metric with immediate effect and without the benefit of conversion tables. Both roundabouts and metrication will help you understand the British sense of humour.
9. The former United States of America will adopt the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland prices on petrol (which you have been calling "gasoline") of roughly $10/US gallon. Get used to it.
10. You will learn to make real chips. Those things you call French Fries are not real chips, and those things you insist on calling potato chips are properly called crisps. Real chips are thick cut, fried in animal fat, and dressed not with catsup but with malt vinegar.
11. Waiters and waitresses will be trained to be more aggressive with customers.
12. The cold, tasteless stuff you insist on calling "beer" is not actually beer at all. Henceforth, only proper British Bitter will be referred to as beer, and European brews of known and accepted provenance will be referred to as Lager. New Zealand beer is also acceptable, as New Zealand is pound for pound the greatest sporting nation on earth and it can only be due to the beer. They are also part of the British Commonwealth – see what it did for them. American brands will be referred to as Near-Frozen Gnat’s Urine, so that all can be sold without risk of further confusion.
13. Hollywood will be required occasionally to cast English actors as good guys. Hollywood will also be required to cast English actors to play English characters. Watching Andie Macdowell attempt English dialogue in Four Weddings and a Funeral was an experience akin to having one’s ears removed with a cheese grater.
14. You will cease playing "American" Football. There are only two kinds of proper football; one you call soccer, and rugby. Those of you brave enough will, in time, be allowed to play rugby (which has some similarities to American Football, but does not involve stopping for a rest every twenty seconds or wearing full kevlar body armour like a bunch of nancies or Jessies – English slangs for effeminate males and blouses for big girls respectively).
15. Further, you will stop playing baseball. It is not reasonable to host an event called the "World Series" for a game which is not played outside of the United States of America. Since only 2.1% of you are aware there is a world beyond your borders, your error is understandable. You will learn cricket.
16. You must tell us who killed JFK. It’s been driving us mad.
17. Daily Tea Time begins promptly at 4 p.m. with proper cups, with saucers, and never mugs, with high quality biscuits (cookies) and cakes; plus strawberries (with cream) when in season.
18. An inland revenue agent (i.e. tax collector) from Her Majesty’s Government will be with you shortly to ensure the acquisition of all monies due (backdated to 1776).

Thank you for your cooperation.

This an old favorite that gets re-worked to suit the times.  From what I've been able to ascertain it originated from Alan Baxter of Rochester, U.K. in November 2000.  It can be added to or edited however one chooses, but it always seems to be jolly good fun!

 

 

Don't break Granny's windows!



Photo by Anibus3
West Façade of Buckingham Palace

Prince William hosted a football match in the backyard of his grandmother’s house, Buckingham Palace yesterday. The Queen is a patron of the Football association, but is still on holiday at Balmoral in Scotland. The game was arranged by the prince to honor the work of thousand of volunteers who give up their time. Prince William is President of the Football Association and plays plays left back in park games with friends. He described football as a "personal passion", adding: "Football, in particular being a Villa supporter, has brought me a great deal of pleasure over the years. A chance to escape with friends and family and enjoy its virtues – teamwork, competition, endeavour and, more occasionally on my part, skill."

The Civil Service Football club was chosen because it is the oldest football club in the world and Polytechnic Football club which was founded in 1875, is an obvious choice of opposition as both clubs are based in Chiswick, west London. The first ever goal on the Palace lawn was made by Polytechnic’s Bojan Jelovac who is a male model and part time tennis coach. His team went on to beat Civil Service FC 2-1 in the amateur League match.

Before the game started Prince William said, "I cannot tell you how excited I am that later today we will be playing football on my grandmother’s lawn. One warning, though: if anyone breaks a window, you can answer to her."

Mixing sport with royalty was always bound to be surreal, but the sight of Palace footmen in tailcoats coming onto the pitch carrying orange slices, Mars bars, water and orange juice on silver trays was unreal. Prince William told the teams that "The one small silver lining to Her Majesty not being present today is that there shouldn’t be any corgis running on to the pitch!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0LH9jMM8pk

Cadbury Chocolate

John Cadbury

 
The British love their sweets, and the average adult consumes 30kg of sugar a year. I was very surprised when I bought a Cadbury Chocolate while in London at how much better it was than the American version. Turns out that Hershey owns a license to manufacture Cadbury in the U.S. Cadbury allows some leeway to license owners to change parts of the formula.

John Cadbury was a small candy shop owner in Birmingham, England when he
developed an emulsification process to make solid chocolate - creating the modern chocolate bar. Before this, chocolate was a treat that people could only drink. Because John was a Quaker, he believed that alcohol was bad for society and tea, coffee, cocoa and drinking chocolate were healthy, delicious alternatives. In 1831 the Cadbury manufacturing business started to produce chocolate on a commercial scale from a warehouse on Crooked Lane.

His brother David Boddy joined the business in 1848 and they rented a large factory on Bridge Street in Birmingham. The district around the factory has been ‘dry’ for over 100 years. No alcohol is sold in pubs, bars or shops. In March 2007, Britain’s largest supermarket chain, Tesco attempted to sell alcohol in its local store and the town won the court battle to prevent it.

Long live the English Eccentric!



John Singer Sargent painting of the Sitwell Family;
From left: Edith Sitwell (1887-1964), Sir George Sitwell, Lady Ida, Sacheverell Sitwell
(1897-1988), and Osbert Sitwell (1892-1969) Date circa 1900


I most confess I have a very large soft spot for eccentrics! Britain seems to cultivate exceptional eccentrics and one of the outstanding examples is Sir George Reresby Sitwell (1862 - 1943). He seemed to come from a family of eccentrics; his father’s name was Sitwell Sitwell. When George was four he greeted people on his train by stating, "I am Sir George Sitwell, baronet. I am four years old and the youngest baronet in England." Early on Sir George came to the conclusion "that it is always a mistake to have friends." Three days after he married Ida Emily Augusta Denison, the bride rushed back to her mother. IN 1880 he attended a seance with the celebrated medium, Mrs. Florence Cook. When Sir George noticed corset stays peaking out from the ethereal veil of the spirit of someone called Marie, he decided to grab her and pin her down until the lights were turned on. The other guests were quite astonished to find Florence clad in only her underwear!

Sir George was very into the Medieval times and kept his home in the style of the 14^th century. Which is all well and fine, but then he tried to pay Eton school fees for his son Sacheverell with produce from his farm and gave the children pocket money calculated from 14^th century currency. Sir George was also an imaginative inventor who came up with a small pistol for shooting wasps and a musical toothbrush. Sir George felt one of his inventions was so noteworthy; he visited Sir Gordon Selfridge himself to promote it. He had invented the "Sitwell Egg" which was completely egg free. It was shaped like and egg with a ‘yolk’ of smoked meat, a ‘white’ of rice and a shell made of synthetic lime. Sir Gordon did not take a fancy to Sir George’s egg and it was never stocked.

Sir George was a writer of absolutely no note, but extremely prolific. He filled seven rooms of his estate, Renishaw Hall with drafts and diaries. Some of his titles include, Wool-Gathering in Medieval Times and Since, Lepers’ Squints, Domestic Manners in Sheffield in the Year 1250, Acorns as an Article of Medieval Diet, The History of the Fork, The History of the Cold and The Errors of Modern Parents. A plaque hung in the entryway of Renishaw Hall instructing visitors "I must ask anyone entering the house never to contradict me in any way, as it interferes with the functioning of the gastric juices and prevents my sleeping at night."

 Not suprisingly Sir George was a bit of a hypochondriac and carried a vast array of medicines wherever he traveled. He systematically mislabeled each bottle to prevent other people from taking them. He enjoyed gardening and planning gardens and was apparently very good at it. He should have been as he would raise and entire lawn by three feet one year, and lower it the next. He would relocate full grown oak trees and move artificial lakes, decide it still wasn’t right and move it again. Perhaps my favorite story is of him attempting to decorate cows by stenciling them with the Chinese Willow pattern! I’m certain that living with Sir George was not an enviable task, but life must never have been boring! Long live the English eccentrics!

 

Keep Calm and Carry On



 British WWII propaganda posters

For the last few years we have been deluged with "KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON" merchandise. We have also been seen an incredible amount of variations of the slogan. I have to admit I liked it. I thought it was a great way to remember that our times and circumstances are not nearly as dire as we think they are. Then I found out that this now ubiquitous poster was never actually used!

It was designed by an anonymous civil servant working at the British Ministry of Information in 1939, several months before World War II started. The British government predicted massive air attacks, which would destroy public morale. The poster was distributed in limited numbers, even though over 2,500,000 copies were printed. The campaign was considered a resounding failure and the majority of copies were destroyed.

Fast forward to the year 2000 when two book store owners, Stuart and Mary Manley of Barter Books Ltd. in Alnwick, Nothumberland were looking through a box of books they bought at an auction. Stuart discovered one of the original "Keep Calm and Carry On" posters. They liked it so much they had it framed and hung it up by their cash register. Turns out, everyone else liked it too. They produced and sold copies for their customers and other companies picked up on this and it is now this incredible phenomenon. Here is a link to the Barter Books website, which has a good, short video about the sign. http://www.barterbooks.co.uk/

A rose by any other name. . .



Photo by Andre Peltier
Baby Yawning

 I was looking over popular British baby names and found that many of the most popular baby names in Britain are popular in the U.S. too. In fact, out of the top 25 girls names, nine are the in both top 25 lists and seven are in the top boy’s list. I was disheartened not only by how similar they were, but how incredibly boring. Whatever happened to great British names? 




Most Popular American vs. British Baby names 2012
Girls 

         American       British

1. Sophia         Amelia
2. Emma         Olivia
3. Isabella       Jessica
4. Olivia          Emily
5. Ava             Lily
6. Emily           Ava
7. Abigal         Mia
8. Mia             Isla
9. Madison      Sophie
10. Elizabeth     Isabella
11. Chloe          Evie
12. Ella             Ruby
13. Avery          Poppy
14. Addison       Grace
15. Aubrey        Sophia
16. Lily              Chloe
17. Natalie        Isabelle
18. Sofia           Ella
19. Charlotte     Freya
20. Zoey           Charlotte
21. Grace         Scarlett
22. Hannah      Daisy
23. Amelia        Lola
24. Harper        Eva
25. Lillian          Holly

          American       British

1. Jacob           Harry
2. Mason         Oliver
3. Ethan          Jack
4. Noah           Charlie
5. William       Jacob
6. Liam          Thomas
7. Jayden       Alfie
8. Michael      Riley
9. Alexander   William
10. Aiden          James
11. Daniel        Joshua
12. Matthew     George
13. Elijah          Ethan
14. James        Noah
15. Anthony     Samuel
16. Benjamin    Daniel
17. Joshua       Oscar
18. Andrew       Max
19. David         Muhammad
20. Joseph      Leo
21. Logan       Tyler
22. Jackson    Joseph
23. Christopher    Archie
24. Gabriel          Henry
25. Samuel        Lucas

I was disheartened not only by how similar they were, but how incredibly boring. Whatever happened to great British names? I understand that every American parent wants their little girl to grow up to be a cheerleader, but not the Brits too!! I am including some wonderful, British names to keep in mind. 

Cool: Derek, Nigel, Graham, Giles, Dermot, Clive, Ewan, Alasdair, Rex, Buzz, Raeven, Kade, Jarrett, Jamison, Greer, Wren,

Quirky: Rosamund, Fionnula, Bryonie, Rupert, Rufus, Algernon, Hugo, Mungo, Atticus, Wilfred, Percy, Quentin, Rowena, Purity, Queenie, Mercia, Maridel, Jetta, Idalis, Gilda, Evelyn, Blodwyn, Baron, Barton, Beacher, Beasley, Windy

Impossibly, wonderfully British! Cyril, Prunella, Cordelia, Gwenda, Royston, Camilla, Cedric, Prentis, Royston, Ridgewell, Penny, Rowan, Gemma, Clementine, Daphnie,Hermine, Primrose, Poppy, Tabby, Lilibeth, Edwin, Binney, Birdie, Afton, Agate, Bayard, Baxter, Sterling, Sulwen

Just plain Unfortunate: Horace, Fanny, Reginald, Beatrice, Eugenie, Octavius, Winifred, Earlene, Malvina, Eartha

How does British Healthcare work?



The Royal Free Hospital, Hamstead, London

With the healthcare debate raging on in America, I thought it would be interesting to see how healthcare is handled in the U.K. The National Health Service known as the NHS was formed in 1948 at the end of World War II to replace a higgledy piggledy (hodgepodge) systems of volunteer hospitals which required government funding. Upon birth in the U.K. each citizen is registered with NHS number. Otherwise you would register with a local GP. You would then be given a 10-digit NHS number such as 444-555-6666, which will entitle you to all NHS services. If you aren’t born into the system, having "permanent resident status" will make you eligible. If you are a citizen of the European Union (EU) and hold a valid European Health Insurance card or are from another country which the UK has reciprocal arrangements concerning health care can get emergency treatment without charge. The US does not have this agreement. The NHS is funded solely by the British Taxpayer.

The NHS is also responsible for Dentistry and Eyecare. Charges for a dental examination are £18 ($29.21) for an examination; £49 ($79.52) for a filling or extraction; and £214m(347.33) for more complex procedures such as crowns, dentures or bridges. The current cost of a NHS sight test is £20.90($33.92) The maximum cost of receiving any drug from the NHS is £7.40 ($12.01). The tax to fund the NHS is taken out of your income tax.

Tax Breakdown on a £25,500 Salary

• £2,080 Pensions and Benefits (including £212 on Housing Befit and £296 on Incapacity Benefits)
• £1,094 on NHS
• £824 on Education
• £339 on Defense
• £160 on Police
• £44 on Prisons
• £92 on Roads
• £71 on Railways

A perk some employers offer is private health insurance. A minority of patients do opt out of the NHS system. They can choose their specialists and avoid waiting lists for non-emergency procedures. A NHS patient must first see their GP for a referral to any specialist. The average wait for a non-emergency treatment requiring hospitalization is eight weeks and four weeks for outpatient treatments. Diagnostic tests are a two-week wait. NHS Patients do have a choice of hospital, but cannot always choose their specialist.

Almost all hospital doctors and nurses are employed by the NHS and work in NHS run hospitals. Most General Practitioners, dentists, optometrists are self-employed and contract their services to the NHS. They own and operate their own surgeries (offices) and clinics and employ their own staff. The NHS pays 60% of its budget to pay staff, 20% goes for drugs and supplies. Another 20% pay for buildings, equipment and training. Administration costs are low due to the lack of billing required. The NHS also handles the training of student doctors and has approximately 8000 students a year, which are attached to a NHS University Hospital.  After completing medical school the doctors must complete a two-year foundation training, usually at a NHS hospital.