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Posted on Jul 26, 2010 by 
In England we tend to eat three meals a day. Many people eat their biggest meal in the evening which is often called supper or dinner. Breakfast is usually between 7am and 9am.
What do the English eat for Breakfast?
Well, this varies alot from person to person and some people skip breakfast altogether (although it is widely considered unhealthy to do so by most English people).
I expect you think you already know what an English breakfast consists of (or dare I say it, the ‘full English Breakfast’). Most people would say that the English breakfast was eggs, bacon, sausages, mushrooms, baked beans and fried bread.
According to a survey of commuting workers a more typical English breakfast nowadays is more likely to be a simple bowl of cereal, a slice of toast or bread, orange juice and a cup or two of coffee. The English definitely rely on their coffee.A more traditional English breakfast consists of eggs, sausages, bacon, fried bread and mushrooms.Hotels particularly like to serve this option at their breakfasts. We also call this style of breakfast a ‘fry-up’, because most of the food is fried in a pan.
Cereals have become the healthy choice although many of the popular cereals on the market today are quite the opposite, full of sugar and other unhealthy elements.
Regardless, there are healthy cereals packed with whole grains which provide a good source of energy and are often had with milk.
A traditional winter-time alternative to cereal is hot porridge, which is a gloopy white substance that most children positively dislike!
I always had to eat mine with chocolate, which my mother was happy to allow as even porridge with chocolate is better for a young child than no porridge at all!
Women in England are given equal rights to men, and this is a very important part of English society now.
It wasn’t always this way, and it took the bravery and courage of some famous women and men to make the change. Here are some simple points about women that may differ to your country (or may not!):
It’s completely acceptable for women to drink beer. Women can drink anything men can and most of society will not find it odd. However, many men still feel that it is not attractive to see a women drinking the more tradition ‘male’ drinks like a pint of beer or very hard spirits.
It’s also normal for women to wander around alone. Just like men, women in England can go anywhere they want and do anything they like (within the law!). It is very normal to see women on their own walking from place to place, just like men. You might be asking yourself why this is notable – if so, consider yourself lucky!
Another important social event is eating out! Women in England are socially free to eat alone in restaurants. It is not seen as odd or notable to be female and alone while eating your meal in a cafe or restaurant. This is something not all countries can take for granted!
It is standard in England for women to hold positions of authority in the Armed Forces, police, politics, law and every aspect of society and business.
There are no legal restrictions on what a woman can achieve in terms of a career in England.
Some women still complain that men stop women from succeeding in business sometimes, but equally so some men complain that companies will be more likely to hire women because it makes the company look good in the eyes of society, so men are losing out on some jobs.
Both things probably do happen sometimes, but this is the result of an equal society.
For the longest time now, the British government has banned TV shows from advertising products within the programme itself. In an interesting turn of events, the government is now lifting the ban. The move will allow commercial broadcasters to place products in various TV shows, thereby advertising them.
The decision has not been announced officially but the speculation is that it will be made early this week. For sure, this announcement will be a controversial one, albeit much welcomed by TV producers. However, the ban will still remain for other broadcasters such as BBC as well as all children’s programmes, regardless of network.
So why has the government changed its stance? The Telegraph says:
The main factor behind the rethink by ministers has been the financial strictures faced by ITV and other commercial broadcasters during the recession, which have seen their advertising revenues badly hit.
Government sources also cite a European parliament directive which came into force almost two years ago permitting product placement in sport and light entertainment programmes – if national governments allowed it.
More than this, Britain is actually a little lagging in this respect. Other European Union members have already started allowing TV programmes to place products.
It will be very interesting to see how quickly the British networks are going to pounce on this opportunity. For sure, the primetime shows will have a wide array of choices as to which products to use. Bottom line, more cash will be flowing into the coffers because of this change.
Photo courtesy of The Telegraph
One of the hottest issues Britons face today is assisted suicide, or euthanasia. I am sure that you have heard of the couple who went to Switzerland to die together. After a rich and long life, they decided that it was time to end the suffering that they had been going through for the last few years of their lives. Their family supported it, and that clinic in Switzerland offered that option.
It is not the same in the UK, though. Technically, assisted suicide is illegal in the country. Indeed, doctors often freeze up at the very mention of the term. With these deaths becoming highly publicised, however, talk has been going on. Should we support or condemn assisted suicide?
From the perspective of the family of those who are suffering, assisted suicide should be an option. Indeed, for them, it is a much better option than living out one’s days in pain and inconvenience. Then we have those who believe that we should never take the lives of other people; that this is something that no human being should be made to do.
According to a story ran by the Daily Mail, there are about 800 Britons who are supposedly making plans for assisted suicide. But since this is not legal in the country, only people who are able to travel and who have the money to do so have the option. For now, the option is only available outside of the country. But it may not be far in the future that it could be legalised at home as well.
How do you feel about this?
The Prince is following in his mother’s footsteps – at least that’s what everybody is saying. He is currently on a visit in New York, and everybody there seems to be loving him. One of the things that people are raving about is the fact that he is continuing too champion the causes that the late Princess Di upheld.
While it is true that the Prince has had several mischievous incidents in the past, it seems that he is finally getting on the right track. He is young, after all, and young people should be allowed their moments of mischief, right?
Here are the thoughts of some people on Prince Harry:
Accountant Susan Docks, 58, applauded the visiting 24-year-old British royal for honoring the charitable efforts of his mother, the late Princess Diana.
“I respect how he’s following in his mother’s footsteps campaigning for issues like AIDS and poverty in Africa,” Docks said. “He may have made some foolish choices in the past, but blame it on his youth.”
Meanwhile, Capt. Ryan Miller, a 26-year-old soldier injured while serving in Iraq, praised Prince Harry for serving in Afghanistan as part of the British army despite his royal position.
“It was great to speak with someone who knows exactly what it’s like,” Miller told the Daily News. “Royal or not, he is one of us.”
It looks to me that the Prince has a bright future ahead of him. Here is to hoping that he will not be waylaid by other distractions that may change his current course. His mum is surely beaming with pride.
God forbid! While we all know that what we know as America today originated from the Britain of old, the idea of the “colony” influencing the traditions of the “mainland” is something that is just unthinkable! However, if the analyses of various people are to be believed, it might just be that the American culture is fast creeping up on the British culture.
Take for example what is going to happen to the Antiquarius Center on King’s Road. This place is where you can find all sorts of antique things – from cuff links to photos. In the very near future, however, the Center will be demolished to make way for Anthropologie, and American chain, which will feature a fashion emporium. How one can even think about exchanging something as culturally and artistically rich as the Center for a “personality-less chain,” I don’t know!
There are other things that point to our society being influenced by American culture. The stereotypical Englishman wearing a suit and a hat has been replaced by sneakers and blue jeans. The stereotype of bad English teeth is vanishing due to dental procedures that make them straight and pearly white. (Now this one, I really don’t mind.) Psychologists and psychiatrists are fast turning to medication for their patients. Fast food like KFC is becoming more and more popular. American urban music is finding its way into the hearts of the youth. The list goes on and on and on…
But does this really mean that Britain is being Americanised? And if so, is it necessarily all a bad thing?
Photo courtesy of http://www.darvillsrareprints.com/
There are only two things that are certain in life – death and taxes. And it seems that a Lanarkshire GP thinks that everything pleasurable in life should be taxed, including chocolate! I don’t know about you, but I see chocolate as being one of the little pleasures in my life. While there are some expensive chocolate brands, I can rest assured that I will always find an affordable bar of chocolate in a nearby shop. And I know that it will always make me feel better.
And now, this GP says that we should tax chocolate?! Even worse, a group of family doctors, who are of more than average intelligence, I would like to assume, have spent considerable time debating on whether or not to approve the proposal. Now how depressing is that?
The Times Online published a report on this issue recently. Dr. David Walker was quoted as saying:
“I believe that chocolate is a major player in obesity and obesity-related condition. What I’m trying to get across is that chocolate is sneaking under the radar of unhealthy foods. I would say the government taxing chocolate would not solve the obesity crisis, but it might slow the rate of increase of the obesity graph.”
Baloney! I know that a 5p increase in the price of a chocolate bar will not really deter me from buying one. But the fact that they actually considered adding the tax just makes me fume. Don’t these people have anything better to do than meddle with chocolate prices?
Today I read a feature article about the young black British men who have risen above their circumstances to reach where they are today. I suppose the issue of color has always been around but it has never been at the forefront as much as it is now. This is probably due to many factors, one of the most influential being Barack Obama’s historical win in the United States presidential race. However, we cannot ignore the countless other people who are carving their places in this world such as Lewis Hamilton.
Despite the fact that a large number of people in the world want to say that racism is an issue of the past, we have to admit that there are still stereotypes that exist and a lot of people are still hanging on to those perceptions. The article I read over at The Independent states:
Chris Wilson, 45, an educationalist who has had stunning success getting young black children into top academic institutions, feels their pain. “It is very demoralising,” he says, “because there is an exaggeration of negative stereotypes, an over-dramatisation.”
This kind of thinking, as much as many would like to deny it, exists all over the world today. That is why I found the article quite moving. It highlighted the work of people in Britain – people who are not afraid to stick to their principles and continue to help those who are in need of their help, in the hopes that one day, these young black British people will make a difference in their lives and in the rest of the world.
People in the UK – and Europe in general – are lucky to have a very good public transportation system. The railway system in particular is very extensive and a lot of British people make use of it on a regular basis. Truth be told, this system may be taken for granted by some, especially if they have not traveled to less developed parts of the world.
I am thinking that more Britons will realise just how lucky they are once the New Year starts because of the expected increase in train fares. According to the BBC, the expected increase can be anywhere from 6 per cent to 7 per cent! The news report continues:
Train companies said the revenue would be reinvested, but watchdog Passenger Focus said some rises were unjustified.
Gordon Brown believed it was important customers got “good value for their money”, said his spokesman.
Regulated fares – including season tickets – are generally based on a set formula which limits increases to 1% above retail price index (RPI) inflation, although there are some exceptions.
The government’s policy is to increase fares above inflation and reduce the contribution from the taxpayer.
Naturally, commuters are not happy with the news. In fact, a lot of noise is currently being heard from this sector. What will happen is yet unclear but it seems that the increase is going to happen. In the meantime, British commuters have to get ready for this and hope that the government will be able to do something about it.
Recognise these words? If you like Disney films, then I am sure you would. It still evokes images of the cute baby Simba prancing around the wild, singing to his heart’s content. This time, though, it is not a cute little lion that I am thinking of. Instead, the image of an austere Prince Charles is what is in my head.
The Prince turned 60 on Friday and this event highlighted the fact that he is still waiting to take the reins of monarchy from the present Queen. For Prince Charles, the wait started in 1952. It has been a long 56-year wait and the end does not seem to be in sight. I feel for Prince Charles, I really do, especially when you read write ups such as the one I just read in The New York Times, where he was described as:
In the meantime, he’s relevant — kind of — in a low-key way. He christens ships and travels to funerals. He speaks out on architecture and global warming and organic farming. He paints, he drives an Aston Martin that uses biofuels. He presides over meetings and charities.
But mostly, he waits for his mother, Elizabeth II, the Queen, to give up the throne in life or death. (And you thought your mother was a royal pain. Did she ever deny you the throne?) Unfortunately, she seems to be enjoying herself too much to quit. She still gallops horses and got the satisfaction of being played by Helen Mirren. Besides, she’s only 82 and her mother lived to 101. Time’s on her side.
Then again, he has those longevity genes as well, doesn’t he? So maybe, in 20 years time, he will finally ascend to the throne.
