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.