If you skip to the front of a queue in the UK you risk your life😂

"Remember, remember the fifth of November, gunpowder, treason and plot. I see no reason why gunpowder treason should ever be forgot."

As a Brit, the only time I’ve come close to physical violence was when someone jumped the queue. 😡😡

The British 'Pantomime' is a very specific type of popular live theatre show, usually put on around Christmas and New Year. The definition you read out does not cover what British 'Pantomime' is at all. It is usually based on a traditional tale- like Cinderella, or Babes in the Wood. It has songs- including at least one audience participation number - and all sorts of conventions about casting, and set pieces where the audience is encouraged to shout out certain phrases (He's behind you!!! is one of the most famous of these). They are family shows- but usually with a large dollop of 'double entendre' which goes over the kids heads. I would recomend finding a video specifically on what it is.

The ever reliable Watchmojo, no channel does being wrong so consistently. Pantomimes are not just performed in UK, all the commonwealth countries have them. They're even starting to take off in the US.

Every Brit has a bin initiator on their street, they wait for that person to put their bin out so they know which one is being collected and the rest follow.

I live in a communal block of six flats with shared bins, this week somebody forgot to put the bins out and there have been discussions

there is a wondeful video on you tube somewhere i saw a year ago, it was the brits queing, where they had barriers up in the zig zag line, but there was more people that the barriers could hold, after the barriers ended, the brits qued up as tho the barriers were still there in perfect formation, even tho the barriers had ended

You misunderstood the definition of pantomime. In the British tradition, it is a family show put on around Christmas time and has very specific conventions. It is usually based on a classic fairy tale but with contemporary references thrown in. The characters always consist of a sweet heroine; her boyfriend (traditionally played by a female known as the principal boy, but nowadays sometimes played by a male); the dame, a comic figure always played by a man in outrageous drag; an animal played by an actor in costume; a wicked villlain; and a fairy godmother type figure who usually makes the plot turn out all tight in the end . There is vociferous audience participation. The villain is booed every time he appears. If he creeps on stage the audience shout "He's behind you!". Characters get into verbal tussles with the audience who contradict them by shouting things like "Oh no he's not!" or "Oh yes he is!". There is always a singalong from a giant song sheet lowered on to the stage. The scripts are usually written to appeal to children but with double entendres thrown in which only the grown ups will get. It is family entertainment, unique to Britain and some of the Commonwealth realms, and has to be seen to be believed. You should find a video of one. "Mime" it is not!

Re: The British Pub Culture; Years ago I worked as a system designer in an IT department. We had a certain software package that was performing nowhere near to the standards or specification defined by the (American) software house that produced it. After continuous reports of errors, the Software House sent one of their specialists to be on site, while the required emergency fixes were applied to the package. This guy was an American, and being far from home, and living in a local hotel, we (a few of us in the IT department,) invited him out for 'after-work' drinks; (for 'after-work' read 'an extended evening of'.) At one point, we noticed he had left the pub without mentioning to anyone that he was leaving. The following day at work he clearly had a hangover and apologised for disappearing the prevous evening, saying "When you said you were going for a couple of drinks after work, I took that literally, but then I found it was too much for me." - He'd actually had THREE half pints when he left!

another point on the que (line), not always but in general, you can be at the bar in a pub, there is not so much of a line, but everyone knows there turn, bar staff dont know who is next, but a brit will say most often, no your before me, its order in chaos, but everyone gets served in the right order usualy, yes as everywhere, there are ones that will jump, but they will be told.

I give a Latvian girl a lift to work every day, after just a few years here, she now constantly complains about or talks about the weather :)

Remember, we are the motherland, so anything and everything we do is completely normal. Pantomimes are not mimes.

You would have done well to read the SECOND Google definition of 'Pantomime' (the one labelled: 'BRITISH') which reads: "a theatrical entertainment, mainly for children, which involves music, topical jokes, and slapstick comedy and is based on a fairy tale or nursery story, usually produced around Christmas." These days, it's also a vehicle of last resort for forgotten, washed out, or over-the-hill performers to give them at least a bit of work for a couple of weeks over Chirstmas - I can't count the number of times, I've seen a poster for a pantomime at a local or regional theatre, and reading the "STARRING: " bit, I've thought: "Is he/she still alive?" There's an awful lot of audience participation in a British pantomime, and I would say that the closest thing to it outside of the UK would be something like "The Rocky Horror Show".

To the weather point, it is worth considering that British weather is more fickle than in most countries. There is a common joke that, if you don't like the weather right now then wait a minute and it'll change. Therefore it is slightly more interesting than in most countries wherein for days and months the weather will be the same. That is a possible explanation as to why British people tend to lean into conversations about the weather as small talk and ice breakers. Maybe.

On the 5th November, Ottery St Mary in Devon has the tar barrel event. I visited this as a kid and it was fun. It wasn't as busy then as it is now. It is where people from Ottery lift up and carry burning tar barrels a small distance up the street and handed to someone else. I can't remember the origins of this but it has been going for years. It is now filmed live on KZfaq when it happens. Something similar also used to be held in a village closer to where I grew up(Hatherleigh). I don't know if that still runs. . That was also fun. In Ottery you just had to make sure you kept out of the way of the person with the burning barrel. You have to be an Ottery born local to be able to carry the burning barrel. Nowadays it is very busy and the streets are packed. It was much more fun as a kid as there wasn't so many people.

We call it 5th November, the day comes before the month ALWAYS, we do say get in line or get in the queue, not get in queue.

I must admit I do like your short intro's then straight to the video model! works for me so have another subscriber!

Americans seem to find the name "Spotted Dick" full of inuendo and worthy of humour, which is something the British don't see. That's because we've lived with the name all our lives, and there is nothing amusing about it. The English language is steeped in tradition, and has words with historical meanings. One if these is 'dick' which originated as 'dough' to describe a steamed suet pudding; this became 'dog' instead of dough, and from there became 'dick'. The 'spotted' part clearly refers to the raisins, currants and other vine fruits that punctuate the dough (or dick) appearing as spots - hence spotted dick - nothing rude there at all!

Milk was put in first when it was first introduced to the UK as the china cups were very thin and could crack.

Another acronym that people in the UK seem to add to the end of text messages is "LOL", which of course stands for "Laugh Out Loud", though I did hear about someone whose mother thought it meant "Lots Of Love" and once sent her daughter a text message saying: "Just to let you know: your grandmother died last night. LOL" 🤭

I was always told the lower classes always put the milk in their tea first because the cups were not great quality and would crack with near boiling liquid . The upper classes had bone china so were able to put the milk in last.

Not forgetting..cottage Pie/Shepherds Pie. Sticky Toffee Pudding and Custard. Angel Delight.Crisp Butties Chip Butties(fries to Americans)

Our cuisine has come on leaps and bounds from the British stereotype of stodge. Check out which country has the most Michelin stars,I think we’re third for best restaurants……IN THE WORLD. The food on offer ranges from street food of the highest quality to very exclusive restaurants. Of course that’s London but major cities all over the UK are excellently provided. Plymouth Hoe has a row of restaurants on the waterfront and the food was magnificent.

When you come to the UK you can jump the queue if you want? BUT expect to be knocked out🤣

We don't celebrate Guy Fawkes trying to blow up Parliament & King at that time. We celebrate Guy Fawkes being caught & executed. We commemorate the failure of the gunpowder plot in 1605. This is why a 'guy', a stuffed human effigy (most of time looking like Fawkes) is made & burned in front of a crowd on November 5th. Remember Fawkes was a catholic trying to blow up the protestant King & still today England is a predominantly protestant nation. These days unpopular government figures are the 'guy' on top of the fire lol. 🇬🇧❤🇺🇸

Just discovered your channel, you have a nice mix of being a proud American but open minded to other cultures at the same time..subbed! A couple of good vids you may like are UK Bands that cracked America and UK Bands that didnt.. As an aside, why do Americans use the month, day, year format yet still say 4th of July? 😊👍🇬🇧

I remember some TV episodes had to be staggered for fear of power shortage because at the commercial break EVERYONE would put the kettle on for a brew!

They really didn't do a good job of explaining pantomime for an American. What you call pantomime would just be miming here. A pantomime is usually a childs first introduction to theatre; it has nothing to do with mime. It's usually a play based on a fairytale such as jack and beanstalk or another tale like Aladdin. All pantomimes are essentially the same. You have a principal boy, traditionally played by a woman. A dame for comedy, played by a man in a dress (distinct from drag though, it's often a very burly man with a deep voice) and a villain who everyone boos. There are plenty of jokes for the kids but many are very risque for the adults but go right over the children's heads. There's loads more but it's great fun. Ps. Occasionally you'll get an adult pantomime that does very little to hide it's innuendo. A good clip from such a one is Jim Davidson - Sinderella - Pissed

the pantomime, is not a mime, its for children to have some, its theatre play on as said before a nursery ryhm, Lets take cinderella for example Cinderella and buttons, will be big named stars, a female star and a male star, that sells the show, people kids would see on TV, and know and can relate to cinderella will be played by the female star, as button's will be played by the male star, the ugly sisters, will be played by men dressed up as the ugly sisters. there ugly makes sense. the cast will be played by theatre actors, either amtuer or proffesional. but is also very interactiive with the child audience, get them to scream out when they see the baddy, or shout out he is behind you, the performer looks the wrong way, kids keep shouting he is behind you. a term all brits know, not sure if its made it over the pond. normaly schools will take the kids, clubs, parents, it a xmas institution that still runs today, the the theatre we went as children and my children was built in 1907, still pretty much the same today as it was built, also the pub next door, has the oldest back bar in the country, cant remeber the pub name. people who would do the pantomimes, are the likes of jason donavon from neighbours, who went to do jason and his dream coat in the west end. people from america, who's careers have took a dip, but revived through the pantomime across the pond to the UK excuse my spelling,

I was a drummer and have done about 17 pantomimes (cinderella, puss in boots, babes in the wood, etc) Theyre great fun. Kids love it. So do I actually. Theyre very busy for drummers. Sound effects and stuff.

Pantomime one word has a history from Mime back in Italy and France bought to UK and fused together to make Pantomimes. Think all the fairytales (Jack and the Beanstalk) and old rhymes (Dick Whittington became Mayor of London) told in the Elizabethan / Victorian times, make them simple so they are children’s stories put it on the stage, make men play woman (Widow Twanky, you’d have to see it) and woman play men (the “Principle Boy” like Aladdin with his Lamp) with jokes and slapstick, songs and with ghosts and bad guys and two men in a cow or horse suit, and kids screaming “He’s behind you” three or four times, there are plenty of adult, child friendly jokes to please the parents too. Christmas Pantomimes go back years and are specifically for parents to take their children for extreme enjoyment with audience participation, we’ve even exported this phenomenon to Hong Kong while we were their and they have embraced the art with there own twists. In the UK we even have US actors come over and take part in the performance quite regularly, David Hasselhoff and Dustin Hoffman have been notable performers. You can look it up on KZfaq

You need to visit a pie and mash shop here and treat yourself to pie, mash and liquor. Its stunning and everyone should try it at least once.

If you can get to watch the originally series of horrible histories (of which the guy fawkes sketch is) i highly recommend it. My kids loved it and its brilliant. And educational.

im sorry posting this on this vlog pall, we talked about the war years and rations, Can Modern People Survive On WW2 Food Rations? | Turn Back Time | Absolute History

I was listening to aircraft flying into Heathrow a few years ago now, when the 5th November was much bigger than now. An anonymous American pilot says "Jeez, it looks like the Tet Offensive down there!" Another crew chimes in with "1st November 5th over the UK eh? It's like it every year! They're even burning effigies and dancing around the flames..." 1st pilot answers with just a chuckle as if he thought he was joking. But no! He was right 😆 They're the bits of listening to air traffic I used to enjoy. When the rules get bent just a little.

Pantomimes are normally a tradition at Christmas, for everyone including children, they can be quite risqué . It all depends where you live whether you take your bin in or not. I live in a terraced house and there are no way to get the bin in to the back garden, except through the house, so everyone leaves them on their paths. You need to take some of the info you get from channels with a bit of salt.

After watching this...I realise how proud I am to be English

The 'Class' thing is not in most people's everyday lives, it just occurs now and then. Pantomimes are a combination of storytelling/musical/comedy with audience participation expected. And no silent mime is done. The use of 'x' at the end of texts is nowhere near as common, as the media makes out. Groups of younger friends do it, some families do it and of course couples but for the other 50-60% nope. 5th Nov - Guy Fawkes Night - Watch either the Edinburgh or London fireworks displays for the biggest versions of these events, that take place in every city, town and village, plus many peoples back gardens too. Tea - Only the Irish and Turkish drink more than us per person per year. British Pub Culture and drinking is a thing but it's not for everyone. In fact many more Brits either don't drink alcohol or drink very lightly and more don't go to pubs at all. British food is generally good, tasty, diverse and not to bad for you health.

It's all true.. Thing about the bins: As a young lad, I was often up to joyous tomfoolery, and one day I discovered that, if I got home after school and put the bins out on the road, about an hour later, half the street had their bins out.... it wasn't bin day. And then, in the dead of night I would slip out and put our bins back in and over the course of a few days, more and more of the neighbours would slowly take theirs back in too. Others would leave their bins out until it was actually time to collect them. By that time I was already in their heads and had already won. The air of unease that swept through the huddled masses until... the dusbun men FINALLY CAME on the time they had been expected to arrive initially was palpable. The power trip

On 5 November, Guy Fawkes night, in the UK, dusk is around 5pm. The only other time you are likely to see a regular display of pyrotechnics here is on New Year's Eve at midnight in the pitch black. In Washington DC, dusk on 4 July is after 9 pm. Fireworks displays work best against a dark sky. In the UK, our public firework display on Guy Fawkes night, primarily aimed at children, can be done and dusted and children put to bed after it by 9 pm, before a US Independence Day display could even start!

You guys skip queue and have guns? Dangerous combo.

I worry if my neighbours bins are still out after collection day, they might be dead..

Haggis is fantastic i love watching people try it for the first time and watching there faces as they realise how tasty it is, we have huge Haggis farms now to keep up with the demand.

Roast beef and Yorkshire pudding with crispy roast potatoes ... Steak and Kidney Pie, and no end to the variety of hot casseroles.

Talking about the weather, sure normal for lots of people to talk about but here it is the GO TO opener for 90% of any conversation 😂

This is my first comment. I only found the site a couple or so weeks ago, and love it. Reading one of the comments I just had to add something about Haggis - which is actually really nice. When I was small, my dad told me that in order to catch a Haggis, you had to find/put a right legged Haggis on a left legged hill (or the right legged as appropriate of course)! I know it's totally silly - but it's also hilarious. It look a few years for me to realise there were no right or left legged hills! Not sure about Haggis though.😆 Next - Pantomimes. No matter how old you are, you still go to them every year. Well in my family you do - even though all the children are in their thirties by now. And Yes - never try to queue jump in the UK🤫. Death by Tutting is not against the law (as far as I know)🤣. And so to Bonfire Night. Age is irrelevant - have fun and games whenever you can. We are British, we can't help it - it's hereditary.

Pantomime is not mime.

When i was in the States, i found cars were the go to conversation.

Tea is a huge part of my life. I drink it all day long. Most days, it is all I drink (I know that isn't good!) . I switch to decaf in the late afternoon nowadays. I recommend well brewed Yorkshire tea and a bit of milk. Lots of love from Nottingham. xx

Interesting that to you small talk is related to money and sales where to us it is a form of being friendly

You should find a video about pantomime - it's a classic British tradition, especially around Christmas. Usually a deliberately weird version of a traditional story or fairy tale filled with bad jokes, lots of innuendo, and a ton of audience participation. A leading female part is usually played by a man, and a leading male part is usually played by a woman. It's a chance for well-known actors to let their hair down and have a load of fun.

the milk traditionally has always been put in first, because years ago the Fine China would crack with the hot water so they use to put the milk in first and it's always traditionally been that way.. Now it's found that minerals in hard water prevents the flavour compounds from forming. As milk contains certain proteins which lower the waters mineral content, it makes the tea taste better.

Pie and mash from a proper pie and mash shop is the best

Hey man. Like the channel. Everything in this video is exaggerated and turned up to 11 lol. Anyway, You're about my speed. React suggestions..prob a bit obvious. The Ricky Gervais show + Mortimerian tails. All the best guv thanks.

As the beefeaters in the Tower of London say, Guy Fawkes has been the only person in British history who went to Parliament with honest intentions, a clear agenda, and the means to see it through.

I literally drink tea when I’m bored 😂 I thought I was the only one who did that

Pantomime is family theatre. Usually based on fairy tales. Principle boy is played by a girl( like in Shakespearian times). The Dame is played by a man outfitted as a woman grotesquely dressed. There is slapstick humour and innuendos for the adults in the audience. In Britain queue skipping is social suicide. I have 5 huge wheelie bins. 2 green bins because I have a large garden( after the council has composted this waste you can buy it back as compost) Blue bin for paper and cardboard, brown bin for recycling and a black bin for everything else. Our national dish was voted as chicken Tikka masala.

Ours is not about making a sale or closing a deal. It's just about being a nice human being.

​@JJLAReacts I'd love to see you do a tour of UK, perhaps skipping London in favour of some less well-known places.

Come get your black bin bags... they're on offer till December

Brits think a hundred miles is a long distance. Americans think a hundred years is a long time.

If I leave the empty bag and food bin after collection at the end of my drive for a day my neighbour will move it all to my front door as a hint.

It had NEVER occurred to me that the rest of the world doesn’t do bonfire night. Also that example tea was criminally pale that’s half milk

They missed pork pie and mushy peas and parking on bonfire night! However not sure if that's just a yorkshire thing lol Yorkshire and proud 😊

I once watched my mum put the milk in her tea first and its the only time in my life i questioned whether i was her daughter 😂

most brits put a 'x' at the end of a text, for us men, its needed. me and my wife usualy 5 X's at the end of the text, if i only get 2 X's i have done something wrong im in trouble, if i get no X's im on the couch. we can actualy use them, to know the mood of your better half

From the same content provider,MOJO UK,check out their “British bands the ruled the world….or something like that. I think you’ll be astonished how many iconic bands were in fact,British. I’ve seen it and of course I disagree with mojos choices for some of their top ten but with SO MUCH competition,it’s understandable (Radiohead? Really??)

Ok if you come to the UK at Christmas we HAVE to go to a pantomime, then you can see just how good British acting is (sarcasm 😂) I love your American positivity so much ❤

Sweet and sour dishes yummy😋😋😋😋😋😋 on Saturday night take away.

Please watch top 10 things brits are bloody good at and also watch 101 facts about the UK (it's a kinda long video)

If you like bonfire night just check out the celebrations in Lewes sussex, it will blow your mind

The fat bloke in the grey suit stuffing his face is the voice of Darth Maul (peter serafinowicz)

Enjoyed what I’ve seen up to now, this one’s spot on fact wise. We’re so lucky to live in such a great, free nation. I know U.S. citizens feel the same way. We both get a lot of flak from other nations, some enemies, some frenemies some allies. We should never take our freedoms for granted. Just wanted to say I’ve been an Americaphile all my life, music, movies, fashion, ideas, culture, technology!! Love it all, I’m a Yorkshire man, (Gods own County) it’s literally the green & pleasant land!! I have always wanted to see L.A. California- hyte ashyburry, Venice beach, the whisky, Hollywood bowl, Fillmore, I’m a huge Doors fan, Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane & so on!! G.B.🇬🇧 USA 🇺🇸 🙏🏻✊🏻👍🏼👍🏼

Only two countries on the planet fall in the zone of four cross weather zones, England and New Zealand. However because of the Latitude of New Zealand it is mostly hot with snow covered mountains where as England (or the UK) is a massive variance of ice cold storms and distressingly hot heat waves with everything in between, as well as rain.. lots and LOTS of rain. England isn't called a green and pleasant land for no reason, its is because our plants have an abundance of water.

NO NO NO. PANTOMIME IS NOT MIME. Somewhat related to what you would call "music hall", it's a low-theatre comedy play genre based on several well-known stories. It usually runs at theatres throughout winter and the main actors are often very well known.

We're all about making fun of each other relentlessly. If you can't joke about yourself and other people, especially in more masculine trades like; Engineering, construction. You 100% won't fit in.

Yes go on Tea ❤❤❤

There are several American actors who love being in a Pantomime. Henry Winkler, (Fonze)

You need to realise a lot of streets are very narrow and bins left out can cause a problem

If you go to the right chip shop you can get chips with masala sauce and chicken tika on the side NOMNOMNOM

We don't celebrate him getting caught, we celebrate him trying me had

the next step for you mate is to get yourself on a flight and sample our finest wares here in the UK

Tea is good for the heart and coffee is good for the liver.

Dude - you want to deep dive into the british Pantomime.... the term pantomime that you googled does stem from the theatrical root of mime, but it grew from the harlequinade and set pieces of clowning skits to traditional tales and soft victorian cabaret (the lead male being played by a woman in jodhpur's in those times was scandalous, not to mention if the young leads kissed) these where combined with the Pantomimes Dame - which others have mentioned, can't remember the roots of that cross-dressing tradition. The Dame has become a theatrical staple and even now the biggest comics / actors are the draw for the shows (McKellen is widely regarded as the best Dame in the business). Dames are the comedy Vehicle of the piece. The Panto soon became hugely popular and to all traditional fairy tales where adopted. These then evolved their own troupes within both their Storys (Widow Twanky and Wishy-washy owning a laundrette in Ala-lad-in). Whilst you can expect EVERY panto the have certain set peices in them - famously the 'its behind you' ghost set on a bench with the Dame scaring the last monster. Back in the day Panto's where all year round but as theatre's noticed a sharp decline over the winter months the Panto became a big winter spectacle to draw customers in (and today is most live theatres biggest money makers) it also has musical numbers now too. So it's now a massive UK tradition, still has throwbacks to Victorian vulgarity if you're ever in the UK over Christmas you have to check a good one out. I haven't mentioned half the troupes but well worth looking into. Whilst you're at it you might be interested in reacting to Punch and Judy as well... which again started from the harlequinade and has now become disturbingly a key part of British seaside culture.

You need to come over on the Fifth of November to see the fireworks, it's a blast!🔥💥

Just come across your channel, Very good quite like you, not bad to listen to🤣

Pantomime is singing, dancing, and comedy acting. Not the same thing as mime. Oh yes it is. Oh no it isn't.

If you have a bone china mug or cup then you should pour the milk in first before the boiling hot tea. If you added tea first and then the milk then your bone china is likely to shatter. Bone china seems to keep your tea hotter for longer too.

Interesting you said you were taught about small talk re weather to make a deal or make a sale, rather than make someone's acquaintance.

With reference to the alcohol attitude: Listing various alcoholic drinks and finishing it with "we aren't fussy" implies that Brits will drink anything. It's nearer the truth to say that different Brits have different tastes when it comes to alcohol. It's not that we "aren't fussy" it's more that we have a wide variation of tastes.

Please watch Jim Davidson's pantomime Sinderella, it's hysterical. Would love to see your reaction. Have you ever been to the UK? X

That was sutch a milky cuppa 😂

Tea is definitely a cure all look at WW11 house destroyed in an air-raid keep calm and put the kettle on yhe burning embers. Also a hang over from WWII, the Britsh main battle tank Challenger 2, has a space to make a brew (cuppa tea). That's how important tea is to 7s Brits.

You need to watch this guy 😊

One noticeable difference between Americans and Brits is that we generally give lousy or nonexistent tips or gratuities even when we may have been quite satisfied with the service. When we do tip it will never be more than 10-15% and more likely 5%. We only regularly give tips to food waiters not so much drinks waiters. We also tend to give tips to cab drivers but certainly not always. What I have never seen a Brit do is what I have seen some Americans do which is give a tip that exceeds the bill itself. They do this so they will get an extra special greeting when they return, which they do. My New York Mafia Uncle does this and so gets immediately seated at his favorite table, swiftly receives his favorite drink, and is surrounded by eager large-breasted waitresses, with smiles your could drive a bus through. At some time the owner will appear acting like God almighty has come to his humble abode. Joe this, Joe that, We thought you had forgotten us, how are the kids Joe? You get the picture. Over on that side of the Pond, they don't have Class they have MONEY as their defining factor. We often deride our class structure but this is not quite how it works in practice within British society. There is being of a class and there is having class, which are not the same thing. Anyone can have class this has nothing to do with what school you went to or even more importantly how much money you earn or are worth. You can have plenty of Class but be a care worker from a very humble background and still access the highest parts of British society. Trust me on that one. I do and I am many things but rich or particularly generous with what little I have is certainly not two of them. All you need to have is a decent working-class income, know how to purport yourself in good company, and know a few people who can guide you to the right places. Becoming a Freemason and/or doing voluntary work in the community is a good place to start. In the UK, this does not cost a lot of money at all or certainly does not need to do so, unlike any other country in the entire world very much including the USA. I rub shoulders with High Royalty on a fairly regular basis and know several Lord Mayors of London on a personal one. Also, a whole long list of billionaires, top businessmen, landed gentry, top barristers and lawyers, well-known celebrities, retired generals, and chief constables, and this costs me next to nothing compared to what it would cost an American to mix in the same circles in the USA. I don't even attempt to adapt my Kentish accent. I just know how to talk to people in a civilized manner while not boring them to death. The top people, like to be around what they see as an example of the common folk, or a bit of rough, who they feel that they can trust not to be trying to scam them, talk to the press, or steal their antique silver cutlery. IMO, I have more, genuine Class in my little finger than most Eton boys have in their entire families, and I know more than a few of those. I bow my head only to the King himself and see myself as no man's inferior, and no man's superior. When I bow to my sovereign I bow not to a man but to my nation, its culture, and above all its people. When I sing my nation's anthem with the greatest gusto, I sing not to a man but to my nation, its culture, and above all its people. The twit wearing the crown means no more or no less to me than anyone else. All true Englishmen purport themselves with true humility at all times, this should come naturally, it does not need to be taught or contrived. An English gentleman is an English gentleman regardless of breeding or fortune. Not only this but a true English gentleman will treat the same as the same or he is not a true English gentleman, he is a jumped-up scumbag, so why would you wish to talk to him for long? Put another way. A person of true Class is supposed to judge a person by the depth of his character not by the color of his skin or the school he attended, certainly not the amount of wealth that he has accumulated, or the number of bucks he tips to his plantation slaves at a massively over expensive Italian restaurant in Lower Manhattan. I don't even pay a penny at most of the places I go, as I get invited F.O.C. A couple of small tips. NEVER try to be all things to all people as you will swiftly become nothing to anyone. Always be yourself and if this is not good enough then become a better person. It is places like America that often get this all the wrong way around. Yes indeed, the UK is very much a class-obsessed society, but not in the way that many people wrongly assume, including many people who are born in the UK.

It speaks a lot to the British obsession that hot water, to make tea, is provided in British battle tanks

Milk is added first so that the is less risk of thermal shock when using fine bone china. This dates back hundreds of years when fine bone china was first developed.

Coffee is replacing tea as Britain's most drank hot drink. I must admit that I feel decidedly un-British by massively preferring coffee to tea (something I find too insipid). I drink 2-3 cups of coffee a day and maybe a tea once every month or two.

Most Americans didn't know anything about Bonfire Night and Guy Fawkes, until they had watched the movie *"V for Vendetta"* . It's a *Must watch* for all yanks.. ha ha