I don’t get too many invitations these days. So, when one pops onto the digital doormat it receives serious attention. The invitation in this instance was to the Chalke History Festival and it came from a nice bunch of folk collectively known as ‘Guidl’. Guidl is a new venture and was a sponsor of the […]
Britain has had an affection for tea and coffee for a similar length of time, but despite (apparently) 95 million cups of coffee being drunk every day in the UK, it is ubiquitous good tea that it is famed for, rather than coffee. It is a different story just across the Channel and throughout mainland
The British like to see themselves as keen gardeners. Indeed, some consider gardening to be a national pastime and would be mildly surprised to discover that people in other countries do it too. Of course, as an island race, we often prefer well-ordered borders; for some, it is a perennial fixation. According to the Horticultural
Village open gardens Read More »
The page on A Bit About Britain entitled What does ‘Britain’ mean has been getting quite a few views lately. Whether that’s because there are people who foolishly want to try and understand our muddled foreign policy, or Britain’s relationships with our friends and allies; I couldn’t possibly say. I’m hoping it’s mostly because people
Great Britain, Britain, or the United Kingdom? Read More »
“ ‘Not here,” said Nancy hurriedly, “I am afraid to speak to you here. Come away – out of the public road – down the steps yonder!’ The steps to which the girl had pointed were those which, on the Surrey bank, and on the same side of the bridge as Saint Saviour’s Church, form
We all know what a national park is. Although definitions vary, they are usually rural areas of natural (or naturalised) beauty designated as ‘special’ in some way by their national governments. Normally, the environment within a national park, including its flora and fauna, are protected and there are particular rules about what you can, and
Britain’s National Parks Read More »
A bit of London background London is one of the world’s top tourist destinations, receiving about 30 million visitors each year, and is often the only part of Britain that overseas visitors see. Which is a pity, because in so many ways it is unlike any other part of Britain. For a start, it is
A bit about London Read More »
Including Bristol and Bath, the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire and the Isles of Scilly. I keep returning to the West Country. Somerset’s worth visiting for the place names alone – where else would you find such choice tongue pleasers as Wyke Champflower, Huish Episcopi, Shepton Beauchamp, Great Shitting (I made that
A bit about South West England Read More »
Including the counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey and West Sussex. The South East is the most heavily populated region in England. It has more businesses, including international HQs, than anywhere else in the UK and is the most prosperous and cosmopolitan region outside London. It owes
A bit about South East England Read More »
Including the counties of Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. A radio disc jockey once did a dedication for someone living in Bury Street, Edmunds. Without wishing to offend the delightful town of Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, perhaps this illustrates the fact that England’s eastern extremity is a little cut-off; you don’t go
A bit about the East of England Read More »
Including the counties of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire and Rutland. What can you say about the East Midlands, an area that spawned Tennyson, DH Lawrence, Margaret Thatcher and the legend of Robin Hood? Sherwood Forest is still there, though it’s a little smaller now; and did you know they’re building a brand-new forest, the
A bit about the East Midlands Read More »
Including the counties of Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, West Midlands and Worcestershire. Just to confuse the unwary, the English West Midlands is a region that also includes a county called the West Midlands. The West Midlands (county) is largely urban and includes Britain’s second city, Birmingham – so it’s in the West Midlands twice. Don’t
A bit about the West Midlands Read More »
There are 22 ‘counties’ or ‘principal areas’ in Wales. Most modern guides differentiate between ‘North’, ‘Mid’ and ‘South’ Wales – though some don’t offer any regional breakdown at all. For the time being, that’s the approach taken by A Bit About Britain. Though politically joined with England since 1535 (see here for a bit about
Including the counties of North Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, East Riding, North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire. Yorkshire is often referred to as ‘God’s own county’. It is (by British standards) huge and the whole region straddles the north of England, from the east coast to only about ½ an hour’s drive from the
A bit about Yorkshire and the Humber Read More »
