Boxing Day

In Britain, Boxing Day is usually celebrated on the following day after Christmas Day, which is 26th of December. However, strictly speaking, Boxing Day is the first weekday after Christmas (see definition in the Oxford English Dictionary).

Like Christmas Day, Boxing Day is a public holiday. This means it is typically a non working day in the whole of Britain. When Boxing Day falls on a Saturday or Sunday the following Monday is the public holiday.

Why is 26 December called Boxing Day?
Traditionally, 26 December was the day to open the Christmas Box to share the contents with the poor. And what is a Christmas Box? The Christmas box was a wooden or clay container where people placed gifts.

Boxing Day origins; Christmas Boxes were used in different ways:

-To protect ships: Exploration ship during the Age of Exploration, when great sailing ships were setting off to discover new land, A Christmas Box was used as a good luck device. It was a small container placed on each ship while it was still in port. It was put there by a priest, and those crewmen who wanted to ensure a safe return would drop money into the box. It was then sealed up and kept on board for the entire voyage. If the ship came home safely, the box was handed over to the priest in the exchange for the saying of a Mass of thanks for the success of the voyage. The Priest would keep the box sealed until Christmas when he would open it to share the contents with the poor.

-Church To help the poor: An 'Alms Box' was placed in every church on Christmas Day, into which worshippers placed a gift for the poor of the parish. These boxes were always opened the day after Christmas, which is why that day became know as Boxing Day.

-A present for the workers: Many poorly paid workers were required to work on Christmas Day and took the following day off to visit their families. As they prepared to leave, their employers would present them with Christmas boxes.
During the late 18th century, Lords and Ladies of the manor would "box up" their leftover food, or sometimes gifts and distribute them the day after Christmas to tenants who lived and worked on their lands.

And the tradition still continues today ......
The tradition of giving money to workers still continues today. It is customary for householders to give small gifts or monetary tips to regular visiting trades people (the milkman, dustman, coalman, paper boy etc.) and, in some work places, for employers to give a Christmas bonus to employees.

Schools across the country gather together gifts to be put in Christmas Boxes that are sent to poorer countries.

Trafalgar Square Christmas Tree

The Trafalgar Square Christmas tree has been a seasonal symbol in London since 1947. It takes pride of place in the square until January, when it is taken down for recycling. The tree is decorated in traditional Norwegian fashion, using vertical strings of energy-efficient bulbs. Carols are performed beside the tree by a wide variety of London groups each evening from December 7 to 22, 5-9pm. The tree is a gift from the Norwegians to the British and there's a remarkable story behind this traditional present-giving. During World War II, German troops besieged Norway and in 1940 the neutral country was forced to surrender to the Nazis. Its royal family, government and defence chiefs fled to London, where they established a government-in-exile. For almost five years they were given refuge here while Norwegian soldiers fought alongside the Allies. London came to represent hope and freedom for the millions in occupied Norway, who listened to British radio broadcasts which provided news and information vital to the resistance movement. That's why the people of Oslo now give London the tree. Fondly described by the woodsmen who care for it as 'the queen of the forest', it can reach up to 25m in height and is between 50 and 100 years old. It's felled in November in a special ceremony in the midst of a snowy forest, with local schoolchildren singing. Once it's been shipped across the North Sea and installed, its official illumination takes place in early December.

English Afternoon Tea

Afternoon tea (because it was usually taken in the late afternoon) is also called "low tea" because it was usually taken in a sitting room or withdrawing room where low tables (like a coffee table) were placed near sofas or chairs generally in a large withdrawing room. There are three basic types of Afternoon, or Low Tea:

Cream Tea - Tea, scones, jam and cream

Light Tea - Tea, scones and sweets

Full Tea - Tea, savories, scones, sweets and dessert

In England, the traditional time for tea was four or five o'clock and no one stayed after seven o'clock. Most tea rooms today serve tea from three to five o'clock. The menu has also changed from tea, bread, butter and cakes, to include three particular courses served specifically in this order:

Savories - Tiny sandwiches or appetizers

Scones - Served with jam and Devonshire or clotted cream

Pastries - Cakes, cookies, shortbread and sweets.

Prior to the introduction of tea into Britain, the English had two main meals, breakfast and dinner. Breakfast was ale, bread, and beef. During the middle of the eighteenth century, dinner for the upper and middle classes had shifted from noontime to an evening meal that was served at a fashionable late hour. Dinner was a long, massive meal at the end of the day.

Tea Etiquette

In order for one not to spill the hot liquid onto oneself, the proper way to hold the vessel of a cup with no handle is to place one’s thumb at the six o'clock position and one’s index and middle fingers at the twelve o'clock position, while gently raising one’s pinkie up for balance.

Tea cups with a handle are held by placing one’s fingers to the front and back of the handle with one’s pinkie up again allows balance. Pinkie up does mean straight up in the air, but slightly tilted. It is not an affectation, but a graceful way to avoid spills. Never loop your fingers through the handle, nor grasp the vessel bowl with the palm of your hand.

Do not stir your tea, with your tea spoon, in sweeping circular motions. Place your tea spoon at the six o'clock position and softly fold the liquid towards the twelve o'clock position two or three times. Never leave your tea spoon in your tea cup. When not in use, place your tea spoon on the right side of the tea saucer. Never wave or hold your tea cup in the air. When not in use, place the tea cup back in the tea saucer. If you are at a buffet tea hold the tea saucer in your lap with your left hand and hold the tea cup in your right hand. When not in use, place the tea cup back in the tea saucer and hold in your lap. The only time a saucer is raised together with the teacup is when one is at a standing reception.

Milk is served with tea, not cream. Cream is too heavy and masks the taste of the tea. Although some pour their milk in the cup first, it is probably better to pour the milk in the tea after it is in the cup in order to get the correct amount.

When serving lemon with tea, lemon slices are preferable, not wedges. Either provide a small fork or lemon fork for your guests, or have the tea server can neatly place a slice in the tea cup after the tea has been poured. Be sure never to add lemon with milk since the lemon's citric acid will cause the proteins in the milk to curdle.

14th November --- Lord Mayor's

The Lord Mayors Show London celebrates an 800 year London tradition in grand, historic style. Take to the streets on Saturday 13th November to enjoy parades, festivities, fireworks and more in a truly historic London event.

Historic event
The fireworks spectacle and parade first took place in 1215, during which the Lord Mayor was presented to the Sovereign for approval. The procession's traditional journey from the City to Westminster has over the years grown in size and the event now includes a full parade and show, in which officials, workers and Londoners of all ages and all walks of life come together to celebrate London’s heritage.
Around 6,000 people will be involved in the event alongside carriages, marching bands, floats and other vehicles. The procession itself is around three miles long, and promises to be a memorable sight as it makes its way from The City to St Paul’s Cathedral. Starting out from Mansion House the beginning of the procession will be marked by aircraft fly-past.

Pomp and circumstance
The Lord Mayors Show London is a traditional affair combining eight centuries of London history. The first event to ever be broadcast live on TV, it has survived the Black Death and The Blitz and this year’s event is expected to attract 500,000 people to the capital's streets whilst millions more watch the event at home on TV.

Lord Mayors Show London 2010
Londoners of all ages can join in the fun at a landmark London event which is guaranteed to be something special for 2010. Expect plenty to see and do throughout the show, with 2,000 servicemen and women taking part in the processions alongside 220 vehicles, 71 floats, 13 marching bands and 21 carriages, including the lavish State Coach.

Showstopping fireworks
It is traditional for the Lord Mayors Show London event to finish spectacularly with a gigantic fireworks display launched from a barge on the River Thames, located between Waterloo Bridge and Blackfriars Bridge. The fireworks display marks the end of the show and the beginning of a new mayoral year and it is widely expected to be one of the most stunning fireworks displays of 2010. Crowds of Londoners will head to the river to watch the fireworks which start at 5pm.

The Lord Mayors Show London takes place on Saturday 13th November 2010, with the procession beginning at 11am. Arrive early anywhere along the route to ensure a good spot. The event is free to attend. Fireworks are due to begin at 5pm.

Why Big Ben?

Today, if you ask someone about what image comes to his/her mind when you pronounce the word `London´ automatically 99 per cent will say Big Ben.

The title Big Ben is commonly used for the clock-tower placed at the north-west corner of the Houses of Parliament, but that is a bit inexact because the name belongs solely to the big bell inside the tower.

Two possibilities are taken into account about the name `Ben´. Some say it's in its first builder honour, Mr.Benjamin Hall. Others claim that was in Ben Caunt's honour, a very famous boxer at that time.

The present tower was raised as a part of Charles Barry's design for a new palace, after the old Palace of Westminster was destroyed by fire on the night of 16 October 1834. The new Parliament was built in a Neo-gothic style. Although Barry was the chief architect of the Palace, he turned to Augustus Pugin for the design of the clock tower, which resembles earlier Pugin designs, including one for Scarisbrick Hall. The design for the Clock Tower was Pugin's last design before his final descent into madness and death, and Pugin himself wrote, at the time of Barry's last visit to him to collect the drawings: "I never worked so hard in my life for Mr Barry for tomorrow I render all the designs for finishing his bell tower & it is beautiful." The tower is designed in Pugin's celebrated Gothic Revival style, and is 96.3 metres high.

There are six shields above each of the four clock faces, twenty-four in total, all depicting the arms of St George, representing the Flag of England, London as the Capital City of England, and St. George as the Patron Saint of England. This symbolism is also repeated in the Central Lobby of the Houses of Parliament, directly opposite the House of Commons, in an enormous mosaic created by Sir Edward John Poynter in 1869, depicting St George and the Dragon with these arms, entitled “St George for England.”

The bottom 61 metres of the Clock Tower's structure consists of brickwork with sand coloured Anston limestone cladding. The remainder of the tower's height is a framed spire of cast iron. The tower is founded on a 15-metre square raft, made of 3-metre thick concrete, at a depth of 4 metres below ground level. The four clock dials are 55 metres above ground. The interior volume of the tower is 4,650 cubic metres.

Despite being one of the world's most famous tourist attractions, the interior of the tower is not open to overseas visitors, though United Kingdom residents are able to arrange tours (well in advance) through their Member of Parliament.However, the tower has no elevator, so those escorted must climb the 334 limestone stairs to the top.

Because of changes in ground conditions since construction (notably tunnelling for the Jubilee Line extension), the tower leans slightly to the north-west, by roughly 220 millimetres at the clock dials, giving an inclination of approximately 1/250. Due to thermal effects it oscillates annually by a few millimetres east and west.

Tasty Cuisine? Curry...

Contrary to popular belief, the modern British now consume more garlic per head than the French or the Spaniards, in spite of the fact that Vicky Beckham says ``Spain smells like garlic´´.

Joking apart, at least in my opinion it's quite clear than British cuisine has been unfairly vilified, and it is absolutely clear that has absorbed the cultural influence of those that have settled in the UK, producing a very rich wide range of hybrid dishes from very different origins.

Probably the most notorious influence comes from India, so I would like to write an Indian recipe that a friend of mine (from London) gave me years ago when I was in London, and I prepare it now and then. It has nothing, it's really easy and tastes nice.

Curried Rice with Prawns:

* Time: 25 min
* Difficulty: minimum (even I can do it myself)
* nº people: 4

Ingredients:
- a bit of butter/ or olive oil
- 500 g rice
- 1/2 L of stock
- 2 little onions
- 1 tea spoon of curry powder
- 300 g of frozen prawns
- 2 golden apples
- 250 ml liquid cream
- salt

How to prepare it:
Chop the little onions up and fry them lightly; peel the apples and cut them into little cubes about one centimetre. After that, add them to the lightly fried onions, let it cook two minutes and add the tea spoon of curry powder. Put the stock in the pan and when the mixture strats boiling and the rice, the prawns and salt at taste (not too much, you can always adjust the seasonig if necessary). If you fancy can add some peas, they fit well in this dish. Let it boil for four minutes and then add the cream.
Finishing: After the cream let it boiling some minutes, try the salt again, and put a bit of chopped parsley. It's OK, serve in soup dishes.

Tea Party?

Nowadays we relate the words ``Tea Party´´ with the ultra-conservative right wing of the Republican party in the US. But, What's that? Why that name?

As many of you probably now, the Tea party was a revolutionary movement in the pre-American Revolution against the British Tea act wich had been passed by the British Parliament in 1773.
The Boston Tea Party was a direct action by colonists in Boston, a town in the British colony of Massachusetts, against the British government and the monopolistic East India Company that controlled all the tea coming into the colonies. On December 16, 1773, after officials in Boston refused to return three shiploads of taxed tea to Britain, a group of colonists boarded the ships and destroyed the tea by throwing it into Boston Harbor. The incident remains an iconic event of American history, and other political protests often refer to it.
The Boston Tea Party arose from two issues confronting the British Empire in 1773: the financial problems of the British East India Company, and an ongoing dispute about the extent of Parliament's authority, if any, over the British American colonies without seating any elected representation. The North ministry's attempt to resolve these issues produced a showdown that would eventually result in revolution.

Pet Shop Boys

When I hear a Pet Shop Boys song automatically I travel to my teen age times because I was a real fun by then. Time's gone by but I keep thinking they are probably the best dance techno music band of all times (maybe I should make a mention for Depeche Mode).
All of you probably know them well, but if you don't I strongly recomend you to buy, download, so on..., take your music sistem and have a good time with their songs; here you have some information about:
Pet Shop Boys are an English electronic dance music duo, consisting of Neil Tennant, who provides main vocals, keyboards and occasional guitar, and Chris Lowe on keyboards.

They are one of the world's best-selling music artists, Pet Shop Boys have sold over 100 million records worldwide,and are listed as the most successful duo in UK music history by The Guinness Book of Records.Three-time BRIT Award winners and six-time Grammy nominees, since 1986 they have achieved 42 Top 30 singles and 22 Top 10 hits in the UK Singles Chart, including four Number Ones: "West End Girls", "It's a Sin", "Always on My Mind" and "Heart".

At the 2009 BRIT Awards, Pet Shop Boys received an award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. The duo's latest studio album, Yes (continuing their tradition of single word titles) was released on 23 March 2009.[3] It was followed with the live CD and DVD Pandemonium released 15 February 2010, filmed and recorded live at the London O2 Arena in December 2009.

Halloween

Halloween (or Hallowe'en) is an annual holiday observed on October 31, primarily in the United States, Canada, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. It has roots in the Celtic festival of Samhain and the Christian holiday All Saints' Day, but is today largely a secular celebration.

Common Halloween activities include trick-or-treating, wearing costumes and attending costume parties, carving jack-o'-lanterns, ghost tours, bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted attractions, committing pranks, telling ghost stories or other frightening tales, and watching horror films.

The ancient Celts believed that the border between this world and the Otherworld became thin on Samhain, allowing spirits (both harmless and harmful) to pass through. The family's ancestors were honoured and invited home while harmful spirits were warded off. It is believed that the need to ward off harmful spirits led to the wearing of costumes and masks. Their purpose was to disguise oneself as a harmful spirit and thus avoid harm. In Scotland the spirits were impersonated by young men dressed in white with masked, veiled or blackened faces. Samhain was also a time to take stock of food supplies and slaughter livestock for winter stores. Bonfires played a large part in the festivities. All other fires were doused and each home lit their hearth from the bonfire. The bones of slaughtered livestock were cast into its flames.Sometimes two bonfires would be built side-by-side, and people and their livestock would walk between them as a cleansing ritual.

Another common practice was divination, which often involved the use of food and drink.

The name 'Halloween' and many of its present-day traditions derive from the Old English era.

The Continent won't be isolated any more

The Channel Tunnel (French: Le tunnel sous la Manche), (also informally known as the Chunnel) is a 50.5-kilometre (31.4 mi) undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent near Dover in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is 75 metres (250 ft) deep.At 37.9 kilometres (23.5 mi), the Channel Tunnel possesses the longest undersea portion of any tunnel in the world.

The tunnel carries high-speed Eurostar passenger trains, Eurotunnel Shuttle roll-on/roll-off vehicle transport—the largest in the world—and international rail freight trains. The tunnel connects end-to-end with the LGV Nord and High Speed 1 high-speed railway lines. In 1996 the American Society of Civil Engineers identified the tunnel as one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World.

Ideas for a cross-Channel fixed link appeared as early as 1802, but British political and press pressure over compromised national security stalled attempts to construct a tunnel. However, the eventual successful project, organised by Eurotunnel, began construction in 1988 and opened in 1994. The project came in 80% over its predicted budget.Since its construction, the tunnel has faced several problems. Fires have disrupted operation of the tunnel. Illegal immigrants and asylum seekers have attempted to use the tunnel to enter Britain, causing a minor diplomatic disagreement over the siting of the Sangatte refugee camp, which was eventually closed in 2002.
Total cross-tunnel passenger traffic volumes peaked at 18.4 million in 1998, then dropped to 14.9 million in 2003, from then rising again to 16.1 million in 2008.

At the time of deciding to build the tunnel, 15.9 million passengers were predicted for Eurostar trains in the opening year. In 1995, the first full year, actual numbers were a little over 2.9 million, growing to 7.1 million in 2000, then dropping again to 6.3 million in 2003. However, Eurostar was also limited by the lack of a high-speed connection on the British side. After the completion of High Speed 1 (formerly CTRL) to London in two stages in 2003 and 2007, traffic increased. In 2008, Eurostar carried 9,113,371 passengers in cross-Channel-Tunnel traffic, a 10% increase over the previous year, despite traffic limitations due to the 2008 Channel Tunnel fire.

COUNTY OF YORKSHIRE

Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom.Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform. Throughout these changes, Yorkshire has continued to be recognised as a geographical territory and cultural region.The name is familiar and well understood across the United Kingdom and is in common use in the media and the military,and also features in the titles of current areas of civil administration, such as Yorkshire and the Humber and West Yorkshire.

Within the borders of the historic county of Yorkshire are areas which are widely considered to be among the greenest in England, due to the vast stretches of unspoiled countryside in the Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors and to the open aspect of some of the major cities.Yorkshire has sometimes been nicknamed God's Own County.The emblem of Yorkshire is the white rose of the English royal House of York, and the most commonly used flag representative of Yorkshire is the White Rose on a dark blue background,which after years of use, was recognised by the Flag Institute on 29 July 2008.Yorkshire Day, held on 1 August, is a celebration of the general culture of Yorkshire, ranging from its history to its own language.

Spanish Armada (1588) La Armada Invencible

The Spanish Armada (Spanish: Grande y Felicísima Armada, "Great and Most Fortunate Navy") was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English involvement in the Spanish Netherlands and English-sponsored piracy in the Atlantic. The fleet's mission was to sail to the Gravelines in Flanders and transport the famous Tercios de Flandes, a ground force of over 30,000 men led by the Duke of Parma, across the Channel to England. The mission eventually failed due to strategic errors of the Spanish Commander, the Duke of Medina Sidonia, bad weather, and early English attacks on the Armada, especially during the Battle of Gravelines.

The failed mission was an early event in a nearly twenty year long Anglo-Spanish war.
The expedition of the Spanish Armada led to a similar campaign by England the following year, the failed Drake–Norris Expedition of 1589,sent to occupy Portugal and northwestern Spain, which was also unsuccessful.

St George's Cross

St George's Cross (or the Cross of St George) is a red cross on a white background used as a symbolic reference to Saint George. The red cross on white was associated with St George from medieval times.

St George's Cross has been adopted on the coat of arms and flags of several countries and cities which have St George as a patron saint, notably England, Georgia, Aragon, Greece, Genoa and Barcelona.
The cross is also found, for various reasons, on the provincial flag of Huesca, Zaragoza and Teruel as well as the municipal flag for numerous cities, including Montreal, Almería, Milan, Genoa, Padua, Zadar and Freiburg im Breisgau. It is also the basis for the Four Moors flag of Sardinia. Guernsey was permitted to use it as its state flag between 1936 and 1985.

Historically, the cross appeared on many now extinct flags, emblems and coats of arms, such as that of the Swabian League in late Medieval Germany.
Like other countries with St George as a patron, the English frequently used St George's cross as their symbol.

During the first Crusade, the Pope decided that knights of different nationalites should be distinguished by different colours of cross. French knights were allocated the red cross on white. English knights complained about this, since they considered this to be "their" St George's cross.

In 1188 the French King, Philip II of France accepted the claim of the English to the red cross on white, and the English and French officially exchanged their respective crosses. However by this time, the red cross on white had become a typical crusader symbol.
From about 1277, due to already widespread use, St George's cross officially became the national flag of England and Wales. The three lions remained the coat of arms and flag of the king.

After the dynastic union of England and Scotland in 1603 (the so-called "Union of the Crowns"), a combined British flag was created in 1606, initially for maritime display, later restricted to the King's ships, by combining St George's Cross with the St Andrew's Cross (the flag of Scotland). The St George flag remained the flag of England and Wales for other purposes until the Acts of Union 1707. At the union, the first Union Flag become official for all purposes in the new Kingdom of Great Britain.
Nevertheless, in heraldry the St George's Cross continued to be used in the fly of standards in English and Welsh grants of arms (until a gradual change in practice in the nineteenth century). It is still used to represent England and by those who wish to show pride in England specifically. Nowadays this is primarily done at events such as international football and rugby union competitions. (Since the adoption of a separate Welsh flag in 1959, the St George's Cross has become associated with England alone, rather than England and Wales.)

The flag of St George is also the rank flag of an Admiral in the Royal Navy, and civilian craft are forbidden to fly it. However, ships which took part in the rescue operation at Dunkirk during World War II are allowed to fly it as a jack.

Churches belonging to the Church of England (unless for special reasons another flag is flown by custom) may fly the St George's Cross. The correct way (since an order from the Earl Marshal in 1938) is for the church to fly the St George's cross, with the arms of the diocese in the left-hand upper corner of the flag.

The flag of St George has since the late 20th century enjoyed a resurgence in popularity partly due to football-inspired nationalism, and also in response to the devolution movements in Scotland and Wales.

Sensory Experiment

Smells and Flavours

Nowadays chefs go to great lengths to be more creative and traditional concepts are fast changing in the world of cooking.

There are many chefs we could name but one place has a different approach and even wants us to test our senses. This is the Fat Duck! They have an interesting ways, for anyone who is adventurous,to have a go for themselves....what will you perceive??

The only answer to that is test your our senses...how good are they....what will you learn from this experience? Is it what you expected? Did you capture the essence of the experiment? Will it affect how you perceive food from now on?

Why don´t you have a go and don´t forget to take a good look at the whole website..you´ll enjoy it.

http://www.thefatduck.co.uk/About-The-Fat-Duck/

Have a nice weekend! ^_^

RECYCLING

'Waste not want not'

This is an old English says which refers to not wasting resources, the proof of the pudding is that nowadays most parts of the world try to recycle waste products like paper; plastic; cardboard;styrofoam; aluminium cans, steel cans, waste metals, glass bottles and jars; used oils; paint and biodegradable waste products from the kitchen and garden.
These are just a few things that we can all make a personal effort in keep our planet clean...you might say to yourself...'What I do won´t make a difference' but if we all said that we´d be buried under our own rubbish! The thing is we all love to walk down a clean street, we love going to parks with our families, we even travel to far of places to relax and enjoy but imagine all of these places covered in our household rubbish...!

We all have the responsibility to keep our planet clean not only for ourselves but for future generations.

So the question is a personal one.... What do I do to waste less and to recycle more?

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

William Shakespeare was baptized 26 April 1564 died 23 April 1616

Who was William Shakespeare?
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright.
Why is William Shakespeare famous? Because Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language. A lot of what he wrote is still read and performed today you only have to go to the Globe Theatre near the Millenium Bridge and the Tate Modern to see some of his work performed live. He wrote 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems.
Shakespeares Life
Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. At the age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway and together they had three children: Susanna, and twins Hamnet and Judith. They lived in a beautiful house situated in the village of Shottery, Warwickshire, England, and about 1 mile (1.6 km) west of Stratford-upon-Avon. Although it is often called a cottage, it is, in fact, a spacious twelve-roomed farmhous. The visible timber framing, a trademark of vernacular Tudor style architecture

1585 -1592, Shakespeare worked in London as an actor, writer, and part owner of a playing company called the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later known as the King's Men.

His famous works are:

A Midsummer Night's Dream
Macbeth
Twelfth Night
Hamlet
Romeo and Juliet
Julius Caesar

For more information use the official website: http://www.shakespeare.org.uk/

THE NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

This outstanding exhibition, the first of its kind in the UK, tells the story of the Indian portrait over three centuries, exploring the fascinating ways in which Indian artists have approached the depiction of the human form and the changing role of portraiture in Indian history. Bringing together 60 stunning works from international collections, the exhibition will celebrate the beauty, power and humanity of these works of art.

The exhibition has works from the Mughal Court, including some of the earliest realistic portraits made for the Emperors Humayun (r.1530–56) and Akbar (r.1556–1605) and these magnificent court portraits made for their successors Jahangir (r.1605–27) and Shah Jahan (r.1628–58), as well as studies of Mughal courtiers, holy men and servants. The distinctive regional styles from Rajasthan and the Punjab Hills are also shown in conjunction with the European–influenced pieces produced by Indian artists under British rule.

These paintings are a rich and complex history record, embracing influences from Iran and Europe as well as local Hindu and Muslim traditions, showing that the Indian portrait can stand side by side with outstanding examples of portraiture from around the world.

Contemporary artists, The Singh Twins, will explore themes from the exhibition with a display of work in the Studio Gallery.

For more information here´s the web page:http://www.npg.org.uk/whatson.php

British Birds

The National Bird, the Robin.

The Robin is a plump bird with bright orange-red breast, face, throat and cheeks edged with grey, a white belly and olive-brown upper parts.

The sexes are very similar, if not identical, though some texts suggest that the brown forehead is "V" shaped in females, and "U" shaped in males, sometimes even this is not always apparent. They have got a brown bill and legs.

The juvenile Robin has speckled buff-brown upper parts and underparts. They haven't got red feathers so that adult birds do not attack them in territorial disputes. The speckled feathers are lost in a partial moult when the bird is about two to three months old.
In the winter, resident Robins are joined by immigrants from Scandinavia and the continental Europe; these Robins are paler than the British ones, have a duller red breast. The immigrants aren´t as tame as the British Robin because they skulk in woodlands, only British Robins are a tame garden bird.

Robins are territorial all year round; Robins will defend their territory to the death. So in the poem "Who killed Cock Robin?", another Robin would have killed it instead of a sparrow:

Who killed Cock Robin?
I said the Sparrow,
With my bow and arrow,
And I killed Cock Robin.

Funky British Music

JAMIROQUAI
(pronounced /dʒəˈmirəˌkwaj/) are an English jazz funk and acid jazz band. Jamiroquai were the most prominent component in the early-1990s London-based acid jazz movement, alongside groups such as Incognito, the James Taylor Quartet, the Brand New Heavies, Galliano, and Corduroy. Subsequent albums have explored other musical directions such as pop, rock and electronica. Jamiroquai have sold some 35 million albums worldwide.

Check out one of his You Tube videos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cv1KzkQB75w&feature=related

His official website is interesting too: http://www.jamiroquai.com/

CHANGE OF SEASON

SPRING IS HERE

Yet again Spring is here, the warmth of the sun is provoking Spring flowers to come out of their winter hibernation. Daffodils, primroses and bluebells are showing us their beautiful faces to brighten our day and they give us a wonderful reminder that Summer is on its way.......
The birds are singing from before first light and they are so busy calling mates and building their nest...it's a bustle of Spring time activity in nature. Even the cock crows before dawn in anticipation to coming months.
Farmers are busy ploughing the land and preparing seed stock for planting in what is probably the busiest time of the year....apart from harvest time, of course.
Have you noticed the lovely lambs in the pasture fields, prancing in the sunshine? What a wonderful sight to see...yes, Spring is here.
What does Spring mean for you? Do you have special activities related to this season of awakening? If you´re a writer or poet, artist or just a parent...what does Spring bring out in your life or work?

It´s food for thought I´m sure!

P.s: Don´t forget the clocks change at the end of the month

British Cheese

• Cheese is made from milk and it takes around 10 litres of milk to make 1kg of hard cheese.
• Cheese can be made from lots of different types of milk, such as buffaloes' milk, sheep's milk and goats' milk; most of the cheese eaten in the UK is made from cows' milk.
• We all know that "Little Miss Muffet sat on her tuffet, eating her Curds and Whey" but I bet you didn't know that to make cheese, milk has to be separated into curds which are the lumpy bits and whey which is the liquid bit. We make cheese with the curds!
• Some cheeses, like Mature Cheddar, are stored for one year or longer before they are ready to eat. They are kept in special rooms and sometimes even caves!
• There are over 700 different named cheeses produced in Britain.
• Cheddar is named after the Cheddar Gorge caves in Somerset where the cheese used to be stored to ripen. Cheddar is one of the most widely made cheeses in the world. King Henry II declared Cheddar cheese to be the best in Britain!
• The majority of Shropshire Blue is not actually made in Shropshire, but in Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire.
• Cheshire is one of the oldest British cheeses. It dates from Roman times and even gets a mention in the Domesday Book
• Cornish Yarg came from a recipe found in a book in a farmer's attic - his name was Mr Gray (Yarg spelt backwards!)
• Caerphilly was traditionally eaten by Welsh coal miners for their lunch.
• Every spring sees locals in the village of Stilton, Peterborough, race along a course rolling Stilton shaped wheels.
• Cheese comes in many different colours, textures, tastes and appearances. They can be hard, soft and some are runny!
• Cheese is packed with the protein that we all need for growth and development.
• Hard cheese is source of calcium with a matchbox-sized piece providing a third of an adult's daily requirement for calcium.
• Cheese is a source of vitamin B12, which you need for red blood cell formation.
• Each day our friends in France, Italy, Greece and Germany eat more than twice as much cheese, per person, as we do.
• Cheese is one of the most versatile foods around and can be used as a starter, a main course or as a dessert - you can't do that with many other foods

TYPES OF CHEESE:

• Buxton Blue
• Caerphilly
• Cheddar
• Cheshire
• Cornish Yarg
• Derby
• Double Gloucester
• Dovedale
• Gruyere
• Lancashire
• Red Leicester
• Sage Derby
• Shropshire Blue
• Stilton
• Wensleydale
• White Stilton

For more very interesting information and great recipes go to: http://www.britishcheese.com

Jamie Oliver also has some great recipes with cheese, why not try one of them? Here´s the link:

http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/beef-recipes/steak-guinness-and-cheese-pie-with-a-puf

SPORTS

Football, Football and more Football

Can you imagine if you were full of cold and tired and having a slight injury..would you go out and win a football match? It doesn´t seem likely, does it? Well, it happened yesterday at Wembley. The match was between Manchester United and Aston Villa. The footballer of the day was Wayne Rooney who was one of the substitues to begin with..he was brought into the match and as a great attacker, he scored, putting Manchester United into the lead for the Carling Cup Final....What a champion! Great game! Great football! And above all Wayne Rooney, a great attacker! Good work mate!

The History Behind English Nursery Rhymes

DOCTOR FOSTER

Doctor Foster went to Gloucester
In a shower of rain;
He stepped in a puddle, right up to his middle,
And never went there again.

A popular tradition in the West Country suggested that the famous Doctor Foster was King Edward I whose horse got stuck in the mud of a Gloucester street during one of his visits. The mud was so deep that planks of wood were put in front of the horse so it could regain its footing. King Edward I was so upset and angry by the incident that he vowed he would never visit Gloucester again.

The Penny Sweet

Penny sweets? What are they?
In the 60s , 70s and 80s it was common for sweets to be sold individually in shops, each sweet costing a penny or two, and that's how they got the name penny sweets.
Some shops had a tray on the counter with all the different of sweets - maybe up to 20 different kinds of sweets on view.

Most every British citizen has spent some of his or her pocket money on a careful selection of penny sweets. This was tedious for the shopkeeper as sometimes it took quite a long time to pick out just what you want.
Examples of penny sweets
Black Jacks – aniseed flavoured chews which would stain your tongue inky black
Love Hearts – a packet of fruit flavoured sweets each with a romantic message written on it such as ‘Kiss me’, ‘Hug me’, ‘Forever yours’
Flumps – vanilla flavoured marshmallow strips
Flying Saucers – shaped like a flying saucer and filled with fizzy sherbet
Traffic Light Lolly – a round candy on a stick that would change colour from red to yellow to green as you licked it.
Sherbet Fountain – a cylinder filled with sherbet with a stick of liquorice. To eat the sherbet you would need to lick the liquorice stick, dip it into the sherbet, then lick it again.
Fruit Salad – sticky pineapple and raspberry flavoured chews.

My personal favourite was the Sherbet Fountain, What's yours?

If you have never tried them I suggest you do the next time you go to England ;0)

5 Minutes of British Humour

For all you that like to 'Have a five minute laugh' here's a good one for the road before you take off. They say that laughter prolongs life and gets rid of depression...how about this!

Take a quick peek at Mr. Bean on You Tube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyDY0hiMZy8&feature=player_embedded

For more British comedeans check this site,,,it's a scream.

http://www.anglik.net/comedy.htm

Long Weekend

Many of you will have a long weekend, this weekend, depending on where you live in the world.

For a mini break or maybe you just change of scene. Great places to visit this weekend are:

London, here's a link of interesting things to do and see:

http://www.viewlondon.co.uk/whats-on.aspx

To Paris: http://en.parisinfo.com/shows-exhibitions-paris/

Fly to New York: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/music/2007/08/31/2007-08-31_whats_happening_in_new_york_city_this_we.html

Or Rome: http://www.travelplan.it/rome_guide_itineraries_weekend.htm

How about Amsterdam: http://www.iamsterdam.com/en/whats-on

Whatever your choice of country, activity or festival there is always lots to see and do. Lots of people to meet or just have a quiet leisurely time with friend, loved ones and family.

Have a nice weekend!

GREAT BRITISH ENGINEERING

THE HUMBER BRIDGE

The bridge was opened officially by HM Queen Elizabeth II on 16th July 1981.
With a centre span of 1,410 metres (4,626 ft) and a total length of 2,220 metres (7,283 ft), the Humber Bridge was the longest single-span suspension bridge in the world for 16 years.
Each tower is a hollow concrete column, each measuring 155.5 metres (510 ft) tall and tapering from 6 metres (20 ft) square at the base to 4.5 metres (14.8 ft) x 4.75 metres (15.6 ft) at the top. The bridge is designed to withstand constant motion and bends more than 3 metres (10 ft) in winds of 80 miles per hour (129 km/h). The towers, although both vertical, are not parallel, being 36 millimetres (1.4 in) farther apart at the top than the bottom as a result of the curvature of the earth.
The north tower is on the bank, and has foundations down to 8 metres (26 ft). The south tower is in the water, and descends to 36 metres (118 ft) due to the shifting sandbanks that make up the estuary.

There is enough wire in the suspension cables to circle the Earth nearly twice.
The bridge held the record for the world's longest single-span suspension bridge for 16 years from its opening in July 1981 until the opening of the Great Belt Bridge in June 1997 and was relegated to third place with the opening of the Akashi-Kaikyo bridge in April 1998. It is now the fifth longest single-span suspension bridge after two longer span bridges opened in China, the Sihoumen bridge and the Runyang Bridge. It remains the longest bridge in the world that one can cross on foot.

http://www.humberbridge.co.uk/explore.php

Here you can find information about the design which is very unique due to the winds and materials. There are activities and much more.… a great piece of Britain.

The First Monarch to....

QUEEN ELIZABETH II

* Queen Elizabeth II was the first monarch to CIRCUMNAVIGATE THE GLOBE. This took 6 months

* The first queen to send her children to Boarding School to keep them from the press media.

* The first monarch and only female to serve in the Armed Forces.

* The first monarch since the Act of Union (1801), to be out of the country at the moment of succession. She was in Kenya at the time.

* The first British monarch to open Buckingham Palace to the public

* Queen Elizabeth II was the first British monarch to visit China (1986).

All of these action are far from the old monarchy, very modern indeed. This show us she is quite brave when coming to breaking tradition and moving with the times. Although keeping seems tradition is foremost the Queen has broken old fashioned moulds.

When Lady Diana died she came out of the palace and stood on the street as Lady Di's funeral car drove by. This takes humility, a valuable quality in a person that is so aloof.

You could say that Queen Elizabeth is a pioneering queen of our modern day.

Scientist - Isaac Newton

Although we all know that Isaac Newton was a physicist, mathematician, astronomer and natural philosopher, he also explained Universal gravitation, the laws of motion; he built the first reflective telescope and descovered how to decompose white light into many colours of the visible Spectrum. There is another side to Newton we don't always think of.

Today we recollected 10 facts you might find interesting:

1. ISAAC WASN'T EXPECTED TO LIVE. Yes, that's right. He was born so small that he wasn't expected to survive and could fit into a quart mug(32oz(UK) or 946ml)

2. NEWTON A FARMER? He came from a farming family and started out as a farmer but he was a bad farmer so his uncle persuaded his mother to send him to Trinity College in Cambridge. Aren't you glad of that! What a waste it would have been if he carried on working the land.

3. ISAAC INSPIRED BY AN APPLE. There are a few stories about Isaac and the apple, but it is known that, at least, he was in Woolsthorpe Manor when he was inspired to formulate his theory of Universal gravitation.

4. NEWTON SECRETIVE. He was so secretive about his findings, he rarely published them which led to many quarrels about who deserved the credit for discovering such new found laws.

5. DEEPLY RELIGIOUS. Isaac said that gravity explains the motion of the planets but it didn't explain how they were set in motion and stated:" The most beautiful system of the Sun, planets and comets, could only proceed from the councel and domination of an Intelligent Being. The Supreme God is a Being eternal, inifinte and absolutley perfect".

6. RELIGIOUS BUT...... Newton was deeply religious but he didn't believe in Satan or the Trinity. This might seem to us quite normal in a scientific man but back then it was blasphemous.

7. MAD ABOUT THE BIBLE. Isaac was obsessed with the Bible profesy of the End of the World (Armageddon, Apocalypse, the End of the System of things) and spent much of his life investigating, calculating profetic time and looking for hidden meanings in the Bible. So much so that he wrote more about the Bible than science.

8. NEWTON THE ALCHEMIST. Isaac secretly delved into the world of alchemy. He made many efforts to turn basic metals into gold, this was, of course, illegal. Evidently he kept it secret as it was a felony under an act of 1404.

9. A COUNTERFEITER'S ENEMY. In 1696, Newton became a warden of the London Mint and was given the task of stopping counterfeiting, which was rampant in those days:

He gathered much of that evidence himself, disguised, while he hung out at bars and taverns. Newton was made a justice of the peace and between June 1698 and December 1699 conducted some 200 cross-examinations of witnesses, informers and suspects. Newton won his convictions and in February 1699, he had ten prisoners waiting to be executed. He later ordered all records of his interrogations to be destroyed.

10. A POOR POLITICIAN. Newton a Member of Parliament in 1689 and served for exactly one year. During that time, he said only one sentence during the lengthy proceedings: he asked a nearby usher to close an open, drafty window!

Curiosity lead to Treasure

Most people think that everything is invented, found, discovered and exhibited in a museum somewhere. Although there are thousands of wonderous things to be seen; there still seems to be a lot that is undiscovered.

Last year Terry Herbert found a fantastic hoard of artefacts in a south Staffordshire field when he was metal detecting (Curiosity didn't kill the cat this time, ha, ha, ha). ^ _ ^

It has been estimated that the finds date right back to 600 - 700 A.D. Once the archaeological excavation started they found Sword fittings, helmets, Christian crosses, and precious gems. There are jewels with filigree work and animals interlaced into the work. Astonishing when you think how old they are.

If you want to see them for real the British Museum is currently showing the Staffordshire Hoard.

For more information use this address:

http://www.britishmuseum.org/whats_on/all_current_exhibitions/the_staffordshire_hoard.aspx

One All Time Children's Favourite

THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE

A real children's favourite is Thomas the Tank Engine It is a British children's television series, first broadcast on the ITV network in September 1984.

It is based on The Railway Series of books by the Reverend Wilbert. V. Awdry. The books were based on stories Wilber Awdry told to entertain his son Christopher during his recovery from measles. Many of the stories are based on events from Awdry's personal experience. These books deal with the adventures of a group of anthropomorphised trains and road vehicles that live on the fictional Island of Sodor.

The series has featured storytellers like: Ringo Starr (1984-1986), Michael Angelis (1991-present), George Carlin (1991-1995), Alec Baldwin (1998-2002), Michael Brandon (2003-present), and Pierce Brosnan (Guest Narrator).

Heritage railways have also benefited from the series. "Day out with Thomas" events, in which passengers are given the chance to ride in full-size coaches pulled by locomotives resembling Thomas or his friends, provide a considerable source of income, and attract those who might not otherwise visit the railway.

A great link for your little brother, sister, son, daughter, niece, nephew, etc is:

www.randomhouse.com/kids/thomas/

It good fun for all the family.

Great British Painters

JOHN CONTABLE

John Constable was born 11 June 1776 in Suffolk England. He was an English Romantic painter. He is known principally for his landscape paintings of Dedham Vale, the area where he lived—now known as "Constable Country"—which he loved and this affection comes through in his paintings. "I should paint my own places best", he wrote to his friend John Fisher in 1821, "Painting is but another word for feeling".
His most famous paintings include Dedham Vale of 1802 and The Hay Wain of 1821. His paintings are now among the most popular and valuable in British art although while he was alive he was never financially successful. He did not become a member of the establishment until he was elected to the Royal Academy at the age of 52. He sold more paintings in France than in his native England, can you believe it?

Hidden History

Many English nursery rhymes have a hidden history lesson for us. One example is 'There Was A Crooked Man'
Here is the rhyme:

THERE WAS A CROOKED MAN
There was a crooked man, and he walked a crooked mile,
He found a crooked sixpence against a crooked stile;
He bought a crooked cat, which caught a crooked mouse,
And they all lived together in a little crooked house.

It has been suggested by one scholar that the crooked man may have been General Sir Alexander Leslie of Scotland, one of those who signed the Covenant during Charles I’s reign, securing the religious and political freedom of Scotland. The ‘crooked sixpence’ would thus be Charles I, and the ‘crooked stile’ the English/Scottish border. That the English and the Scots reached agreement, after Leslie had crossed the border and seized Newcastle in 1640, is implicit in ‘they all lived together in a little crooked house’.

Do you know any nursery rhymes that tell a story? If you do please let us know.

ABBEY ROAD

If we did a ranking of the most famous streets in Great Britain, this would probably be on the top of it or, at least, very, very close.
This street is located in the Borough of Candem, city of Westminster, London. Well, in fact, there are many other streets with this same name -20 only in the area of London-, but the really famous one goes from the northeast area of St. John's Wood, close to Lord's Cricket Ground, towards the East-End.
And this could be like any other street, however, this one became an Iconic street because of the fact that the Abbey Road Studios of the discography label EMI are located at the South-East End, at number 3, and because there, The Beatles recorded their acclaimed album ABBEY ROAD in 1969.
Since then, the image of the four of Liverpool going across the street through the pedestrian crossing belongs to Music History.

Frozen Britain

This is a photo taken from a NASA satellite on January 7th. It was front page last Friday on for of the six biggest newspapers in England.

Where Did the New Year's Resolution Come From?

New Year’s Resolution
Well, here is a brief history of the origins of the New Year’s resolution for you:
The Babylonians The first recorded New Year’s resolutions were made by the Babylonians around 4000 years ago. Most commonly, it revolved around returning any borrowed farm equipment, as their New Year coincided with the start of their farming season.
The Romans Not long after, the Romans would start the New Year by counting the stock of the previous year and setting a goal to accomplish more in the coming year.
The Chinese The Chinese set a special New Year’s resolution - house cleaning. Most people nowadays would relate this to Spring-Cleaning. At the coming of the New Year, the Chinese would clean their house from top to bottom. What a great way to start the year, with a beautiful clean house!
The Modern World Today we still set New Year’s resolutions, and try to achieve them. They are almost always based around self-improvement resolutions and goals. They are a way to mark the beginning of changes in our habits and lifestyle. The most common resolutions include losing weight, give up smoking and/or drinking, and improving your finances.
As mentioned earlier, millions of people make these resolutions but unfortunately only 10% ever manage to achieve them. It is a sad fact, but many of these resolutions do not even last longer than a few weeks. By July, most have been completely forgotten and no real progress against the resolution has been made.

It’s always interesting to see where these traditions come from, why they are done and the basis for these traditions that are sometime ambiguous.
So if you are the sort to make a New Year’s Resolution, are you going to stick to it or will you be one of the 10% that manage to reach the goal you set yourself????????

Top Ten Resolution:
1. Spend more time with Family & Friends.
2. Keep Fit.
3. Reduce the Bulge.
4. Quit Smoking.
5. Enjoy Life More.
6. Quit Drinking.
7. Get Out of Debt.
8. Learn Something New.
9. Help Others.
10.Get Organized.

Yorkshire Terrier

Hi friends. Here in S&R we are very fond of dogs, so today we are going to tell you about one of the most well-known dog breeds all around the world as a companion dog, and nowadays the most popular breed in the UK according to a list published last year for The Guardian.

Obviously, as its name indicates, it comes from the county of Yorkshire. Reportedly, the first Yorkshire Terrier was called Huddersfield Ben, and its breader was a very keen dogs man called Mr. Eastwood from Bradford in west Yorkshire, England. Huddersfield Ben was the result of the crossbreeding of a mother and her son, and it is considered the pilar of the modern Yorkshire. But his ancestors, were dogs who ranged weights from 6 to 8 or 9 kilos, and do you know what they were for? They were used to hunt rats. Disgusting?? Maybe, but necessary at those big country houses. H. Ben was born in 1865 and died in 1871, a short life for a pioneer.

Yorkshire Terrier is the product of combinig Scottish and English Terriers that was made up when a big part of Scottish population moved to England because of the Industrial revolution. Amongst the breeds that created the current Yorkshire terrier were the Waterside terrier, Clydesdale Terrier, or Paisley Terrier. The influence from Scottland comes from the Scottish Terrier, the West Highland White Terrier, The Maltese, Cairn Terrier, and Skye Terrier.
We hope you will enjoy its company. Cheers.