British Habits I Can't Stop Doing

[@charlestaylor9424]

I knew someone with terminal cancer. He decided that 3 weeks before he died that he would hold a wake. He invited friends. his father and his kids. Everybody knew he was dying but we had a great night, telling stories and reminiscing.

[@garyblower1921]

Love the vlog hope your keeping safe and are well

[@JosephHaig]

The 'browsing time' is to extend the reduced shopping hours on Sunday. Technically they are not trading so they can add the extra time to the end of the day and since it is normally going to take some time for shoppers to get to the tills they might as well keep them closed for an hour. There is nothing offensive about saying that you feel like the Queen reminded you of your grandma. I think that is precisely one reason why so many people feel such affection for her.

[@ozelhassan8576]

I’m in my 50s now but when I was a kid I loved walking down the high street on a Sunday when all the shops were closed, I must admit I miss this

[@Brookspirit]

I remember riding a bus down Oxford street in London on a Sunday and there was nobody there at all, i'm in my early 50's.

[@paulhanson5164]

I'm in my 50s, I don't miss everything being shut on Sundays and by 6pm in the evening. I was at work when everything was open, which made shopping for anything a real pain.

[@Tom_YouTube_stole_my_handle]

I remember when shops closed at noon on Wednesday too.

[@lottie2525]

The shop thing, it's the law for larger shops on Sundays, they can't sell anything before 10am, but they open so people can go around and get their stuff ready to check out at 10am if they want to. I remember when all shops were shut on a Sunday. It was so nice to walk through a deserted city on a Sunday.

[@TheSpeegy]

Not quite right, shops can only sell for 6 hours on a Sunday. They can decide when to use those 6 hours. In London on a Sunday the shops often don't open until midday..just depends when they get most footfall.

[@lottie2525]

@@TheSpeegy Yeah but it has to be only for up to 6 consecutive hours between 10 and 6, not before or after those times.

[@lulib6372]

Yes I use a bowl in the sink. The bowl also gets used for taking water to places where you need a bit of water, it is smaller than a bucket and right there in the sink. We might use the bowl to take water out to water the plants when there is a bit of a shortage, it is useful to have the bowl if you need to clear the sink quickly to do something which is pretty useful for hand washing, if someone needs the sink just take the bowl out. The bowl gets used for things like defrosting the freezer, my mum also uses hers for warming plates in hot water. I only realised how many times the bowl got used when I didn't have one.

[@cathrynbagley8005]

A bowl in the sink uses less water and keeps the water hotter for longer - and if you have a pan soaking you can pour the dirty water away down the sink.

[@wayne7521]

Or on the plants ....most plants don't mind ....Heck I'm sure the weeds love it 😂😂😂😂😂

[@paulknox999]

a plastic bowl to wash dishes has many advantages but for me the water stays hotter for longer, doesnt make as much noise

[@eze8970]

Thanks Alanna, yes, it's a big learning curve. Crisp sandwiches alone are an art in themselves! 🙏

[@steveallen3434]

but today you have to almost have to use two bags to make a one

[@iainholmes2735]

A crisp sandwich and a glass of lager: (and maybe a good film): sheer heaven.

[@BritishBeachcomber]

The main reason we go to the pub after a funeral is so we can meet family we've not seen for ages. Just to remind ourselves why we've been avoiding them for decades.

[@AdventuresAndNaps]

😂

[@adamwest8711]

Damn t that’s so true

[@mac_uk5464]

WE all promise to get togeather one day Without some dying, but we nether do. (Acvtually, one of my cousins did hold to this, & she hosts a family get togeather once a year now.).

[@Motherhubbard170]

@@mac_uk5464 yuk

[@duncanliath]

Spot on! 👍 I’m Scottish but moved to England many years ago and married an English lass. The first time she met my extended family was when one of my aunts died and we travelled up to Scotland for the funeral. We arrived at my sister’s house about 10pm the evening before the funeral. Sis had a large pot of broth and chunks of bread waiting for us (to line our stomachs) while brother-in-law had bottles of whisky and vodka on the table. Around 3am, the girls retired to bed but Jimmy and I decided it was so late we might as well stop up (the funeral was early in the morning) and he put another bottle of whisky on the table. After the funeral (as Alanna describes) all the mourners piled into a local hotel. Lots more drink was consumed, there was a lot of banter, humour, fond memories of my late aunt, lots of talk about what a whale of a time we were having, how my aunt would have loved to see the wider family meeting up together and we should do it more often. Then, two of my aunts demonstrated why we don’t meet up more often. They started bickering - apparently an insult from one to the other at a previous family gathering was suddenly remembered. The bickering grew louder and louder and the language more foul. So much so that the hotel manager asked them to be quiet. They told him to ‘f%@k off’ He threatened to call the police so they were quiet for a while. A bit later, one of them went to the loo. The other followed her. Next, one of my cousins who’d gone outside to have a fag burst back into the room to say my two aunts were fighting in the car park. While their husbands went outside to try and pull the two women apart, the police arrived. Suddenly confronted by a common enemy, my two aunts, their differences momentarily forgotten, joined forces and began swinging fists and kicking out at the two cops. More cops arrived. My aunts were restrained and bundled into the back of cop cars. Their husbands returned to the hotel to finish their pints 😁. As we sat in the taxi afterwards going back to my sister’s house, my wife said she’d never enjoyed a funeral so much before and insisted I make sure we attended the next funeral of my Scottish relatives because Scottish funerals were so much more fun than sombre english funerals!

[@dprid]

The plastic bowl also reduces the amount of hot water you use, which saves money. Bear in mind that back in the day many people got their hot water by boiling a kettle, or maybe from a small hotwater tank if they actually had a heating system rather than just a fire, but either way hot water was not freely freely available so people used it sparingly. My mum had a combi-boiler for the last 15 years so instant hot water, but she still had a bowl in the sink and used as little as she could, and criticised anyone she regarded as using too much.

[@janrogers8352]

Sunday trading laws only allow the stores to trade (i.e., take money) for 6 hours. However, to maximise sales, customers are able to start filling baskets ready for when the tills open. Using a washing up bowl allowed you to use less water in a very large sink, it also meant you could throw the water on the garden. We were saving water back when it wasn't as important as it is now.

[@gutinstinct4067]

I think the ' Bowl ' came about when women used to go outside and scrub the doorstep , it was used to carry wet washing to the washing line in the garden too , and it just stuck with us i suppose =-)

[@morganetches3749]

I’m British and I’ve never noticed the browsing hour thing! I don’t think I’ve ever been up early enough on a Sunday to have this experience

[@davebirch1976]

I think the bowl in the sink thing might come from many years ago when kitchen sinks were used for multiple jobs like hand washing clothes and washing other various things, so people might have thought it seemed more hygienic to wash the pots in a bowl to prevent any contamination.

[@peterdurnien9084]

I remember mum bathing me in the kitchen sink.

[@leohickey4953]

@@peterdurnien9084 You were lucky! Our mam used to ...

[@ethelmini]

Takes less water & stays warmer longer. I don't know what we did before polythene bowls though???

[@shellieeyre8758]

I think bowls for washing up were to protect breakables in porcelain or stone sinks. Before that it was customary to put a tea towel in the bottom of the sink. The other advantage is that, in the days before double sinks were everywhere, it's possible to dispose of things down the sink without ruining the washing up water.

[@bikesandcats52]

We have a bowl in the sink. I think it comes from people having Belfast sinks which were far too large to fill with water for washing up.

[@davidjones332]

I think the washing-up bowl goes back to the days when most houses had a "Belfast" sink (which you can still buy). These are huge, and were used for washing clothes, and for bathing children in the days before most houses had bathrooms. Hot water would have to be boiled on a coal fire, or later drawn from a gas-fired geyser, and had to be used sparingly, so because it takes a lot of water to fill a huge Belfast sink, the bowl made a lot of sense. It also protected crockery against being broken through contact with a hard ceramic surface.

[@karenblackadder1183]

Glad I'm not the only one on here old enough to that. It was also the reason most people only had a bath once a week.

[@karenblackadder1183]

*remember

[@martinlaffey328]

Funerals can turn into cracking days because on the whole you can see friends and family who you've not bumped into for years and the catch up can be brilliant...and we get really pissed.

[@angelique_cs]

We never had the bowl in the sink ever in my experience here in California. Until about 6 years ago, that is. Because water conservation is such a crucial thing here, it helps me save some water and creates a "double sink" for rinsing. So, I like it now! Excellent video as always 😊

[@RobbofromCronulla]

Down here in Oz we typically have the double sink, but don't use the smaller one.

[@MARKSTRINGFELLOW1]

You can can use the water for watering outdoors

[@sarahclifford2015]

Being British I have always used a bowl, but for the last few summers it has been even more useful. It collects the water when I wash my fruit/vegetables or hands, which I then use to water the plants. Even the washing up water goes onto the plants, if it is not too dirty. I have heard that aphids do not like washing up liquid, so that is a bonus.

[@primalengland]

I was born in 1954, so remember shops closed on Sunday and also Wednesday afternoon. Yep….. Wednesday afternoon.

[@golach420]

Regarding funerals... I bought a very expensive bottle of Brora whisky for my Dad as a birthday present. We'd ask him all the time for a dram, but he kept saying to keep it for his wake. Well, he had the last laugh. He passed over 12 years ago. We cracked the wax and poured everyone a nip and it was bloody awful. I'm sure he knew.

[@AdventuresAndNaps]

So sorry for your loss, but what a great lasting memory - sounds like my Dad lol

[@England91]

Sounds like it turned into vinegar

[@charlestaylor9424]

@@England91 whisky doesn't do that once it's bottled it's static. Brora is a Highland fruity whisky so if you're used to Islay malts it's a very different taste.

[@jillhobson6128]

Re funerals, a lot of family and friends like to meet after a funeral, have a buffet and perhaps a drink but their homes are far too small to invite everyone. That's why they sometimes hire a room in a pub, village hall or somewhere everyone can gather. We don't all live in big houses.

[@golach420]

@@England91 an acquired taste lol. I bought it because I went to high school in the neighbouring town. I was on my way home on my first ever overseas business trip and knew Dad would have been asking lots of questions. He was a scholar and a gentleman, brought up in tough circumstances, something our family appreciate to this day.

[@malcolmross8427]

A “Wake” is a very British thing. They do lighten the mood after a somber ceremony!

[@Yo-ItsYo]

Sunday is a day to relax. No " go go go " .. so large stores won't open until 10am. And they close early. Just do your shop on any other day 24/7. Sunday is the one day of the week where things are not "go go go" 24/7. It's a nice thing.

[@oaktreeman4369]

My old dad, who was born in 1924, still remembers the old days, when everything was shut on Sundays. After the church service was over, the women headed home to put the Sunday roast on, while the men headed to the pubs. Pubs did good business on Sundays in those days!

[@GenialHarryGrout]

I was born early 1960's and I remember shops being closed on a Sunday. The only places open were the newsagents until about midday and a garden centre which opened from about 11 til 5 and not surprisingly, was a very popular destination for bored families to go to.

[@Elwaves2925]

@@GenialHarryGrout Beginning of the 70's for me and all shops were closed on Sundays during my childhood. Like you, except for newsagents which opened for a few hours in the morning. Nowadays, the only day bricks and mortar shops aren't open is Xmas Day but I suspect that'll change soon, if it hasn't already in some places.

[@rachelpenny5165]

When I was a kid the shops were closed on a Sunday and Wednesday afternoon. This was in the local village in a rural area. We just adapted and would usually shop once a week in a big supermarket 10 miles away. I was born late 1972 (near Christmas) so will be 50 later this year.

[@Elwaves2925]

@@rachelpenny5165 We still do the 'big shop' once a week, although now it's two supermarkets and there's occasional trips in the week to places that are farther away. Don't think that habit will ever change. I also remember closed on Wednesday afternoon being a thing now you've mentioned it.

[@DaveBartlett]

It's not about having staff working, so even though there are no staff visible, they will be present in the building to open up the store, and even to work behind the scenes in the warehouse, office, etc. The 'browsing' hour was brought in by many stores, because shops above a certain size are only allowed by law to TRADE for six hours, but they're not (legally) trading until payment is made, so adopting the browsing hour allows the shop to open for SEVEN hours, but no money changes hands for the first hour, thus getting around the limitations of the Sunday trading laws. So for example, you can shop at your leisure from 9am providing you don't check out until 10am, thus making the store's opening hours 9am until 4pm, though their trading hours are still within the law at 10am until 4pm.

[@keithwindow4435]

The bowl in the sink served several practical uses 1. If you had a butler sink or porcelain sink it would protect the sink from frying pans, saucepans and other metal objects which would scratch the finish. If you used aluminium pots and pan they would leave black marks on the sink which could be difficult to remove 2. In the days before throwaway nappies you would need to wash towelling nappies the sink before you boiled them in a big saucepan on your stove/cooker..remember in the 60s not everyone had washing machines or separate bathrooms. 3. Gardeners use the washing up water on their roses to kill greenfly easier if you use the bowl. 4. As I said in 2 you used to wash yourself using a bowl in the kitchen which if necessary you could take to another room to soak your feet in it. You could also bath the baby in it. Sunday trading those 6 hours of trading means money being taken during those hours. They can open up earlier and take orders as long as money is not changing hands. Before this change in law, furniture and carpet shops could open on Sundays so people could browse and place an order but would pay later.

[@peterdurnien9084]

Bacon is now either streaky or back bacon, but my mum always bought the through back with the rind on.

[@peterdurnien9084]

Shops used to close on Sundays but only those that were a family business could open on Sundays. There also used to be early closing days, in Coventry it was Thursday, so the day came to lunch and then it was closed until Friday morning, exceptions were news agents. A lot of small shop keeper used early closing days to go to the wholesale market and restock.

[@mariacurtis9247]

I do not remember early closing days on Thursdays neither does my partner

[@Phiyedough]

I have been to too many UK funerals but I've never been to one where people were getting drunk. It is common practice to book a function room at a hotel or pub and there will be buffet food, wine etc but the ones I've been to have been quite civilised. The washing up bowl thing is mostly about not wasting hot water or washing up liquid. A bottle of washing up liquid lasts me for months but I've seen people who use a squirt for each item they wash.

[@paulm2467]

The Irish wake is the exception, it’s a celebration of a life and drinking is pretty much obligatory, it’s considered rude to not drink to the deceased and tell the stories of his life.

[@merrytrek]

Current Sunday trading laws are a compromise between large stores (who weren't previously legally allowed to open on Sundays (although many did, particularly DIY stores, the fines weren't large enough to be a disincentive) and religious groups who wanted to keep Sunday special. Shops over 280 sq metres have trading hours limited - some stores have try to get around the legislation by opening early for 'browsing'. The current law benefits small local grocery stores who make a disproportionate amount of their income on Sundays because their hours aren't limited and have reduced competition. They argue that they provide a vital community service and might have to close if Sunday restrictions were dropped, causing problems for those who can't drive. In summary, next time go to a smaller store or go later.

[@No_Rice_No_Power]

I never questioned the bowl as a kid, and stopped when I moved out and didn't realise it was 'a thing' till you mentioned.

[@Judgles]

When I was a kid we used to have sugar butties - just buttered bread with sugar sprinkled on the butter. Magic! Thanks for another great video, Alanna! x

[@eze8970]

Ah yes, the 'sugar sandwich', only brown sugar though.

[@kieranbarker1902]

There's a similar thing in Australia called fairy bread! en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairy_bread

[@Elwaves2925]

Never had that but Jam and crisp butties was a thing in my younger years. I seem to remember a milk sandwich as well, possibly started as a joke by Tiswas, but I'm not sure on that one.

[@steveallen3434]

@@Elwaves2925 There is almost nothing I have not put between two slices of bread at sometime and even tried coco-ice and chips😀

[@klondikechris]

Sprinkles (100's, and 1000's for the Brits) work as well. Even better if you can find the chocolate ones!

[@Scrumpy00]

Fun video. I especially enjoyed watching you fannying about discussing bum bags and getting all embarrassed, lol. And yes, that's another legit British saying and not rude at all! Context is everything :o) cheers m'dears x

[@phoebus007]

Yes, it was amusing to watch Alanna trying to explain the British meaning of "fanny" to a North American audience without using a term that might offend their ears. We Brits know full well that fanny can be a very mild euphemism for female genitalia and are probably much more familiar with far more robust Anglo-Saxon language.

[@mouseketeery]

The shops can't trade on a Sunday until 10am. But some of them will open their doors earlier to allow people to fill their trolleys beforehand. Most people have families, they're not just buying a couple of items. The doors are opened before formerly trading as a courtesy to them.

[@Brookspirit]

Lots of people used to have (and many still do) a large ceramic Belfast sink, with those it's much easier to have a plastic bowl. Those types of sinks take too much water to fill and things are easily broken in them.

[@rosemarielee7775]

If you don't have a plastic bowl, where do you tip tea dregs, and other liquid leftovers? You don't want to tip it into the washing water?

[@Brookspirit]

@@rosemarielee7775 I do have a bowl. lol

[@ianjones3568]

I've lived in UK all my life and never knew about 'browsing time'! I'm definitely not a morning person. Mum used to have a bowl in the sink when I was a kid but don't have one now, although I can see the advantages. I thought they were used to tip the water out onto the garden after washing up.

[@necronom]

I've never heard of a browsing hour either. We do have a washing up bowl, and I don't think I've ever seen anyone not have one.

[@ianjones3568]

@@necronom for the uses stated earlier?

[@necronom]

@@ianjones3568 The bowl? So the things don't get damaged against metal, so I can rinse things between the gap or get the water hot in the gap, so I can lift it out if it has things in and use the sink for other things like filling a bucket with hot water. Lots of reasons. It would also just feel really weird to not have it.

[@saxon-mt5by]

'Browsing time' was new to me too; there are three supermarkets local to me and they are all open at 6am on a Sunday.

[@kendee4421]

Bowl in the sink goes back to days when most houses had outside toilets. Men did not like going out in the cold so took the bowl out and.....😄 Old enamel sinks were very big so putting a bowl in used a lot less water and filled quicker. You could also remove it with washing up in it to prepare vegetables, bath the baby, etc.

[@robyn2791]

I'm not going to justify Sunday trading hours because they do my head in, but the delay to service is not to do with staff working hours, it is to with permitted trading hours. The browsing hour is a loophole that shops have implemented to enable shoppers to do a full week's shop and check out at 10 am when the shop is permitted to start trading. Technically, with all tills closed the shop is not trading. Consider the browsing hour less of an inconvenience and more of a chance to do your shopping before 10 am and get out as early as possible rather than the way you've interpreted it, which is more that the browsing hour is an inconvenience which is more about your own misunderstanding of the purpose than the actual intent.

[@jfergs.3302]

Back bacons best for butties. Streaky bacons really only useful for drapping over your turkey at Christmas, and wrapping around those little sausages.

[@carolineskipper6976]

Bowl-in-the-sink. As you said, it protects the dishes from the hard sides of the sink. Also it means you use less water, as it's smaller than the sink. Another thing is that here, traditionally (although less so now with modern kitchens) we have only one sink bowl, so if you have filled the sink itself with water there is nowhere to pour away any dirty contents before washing - and also if you rinse the dishes after washing them in soapy water- if you have no bowl, the sink gets fuller and fuller of water, and the suds get diluted. But each to their own ;)

[@ethelmini]

I reckon it does more to protect the sink.

[@BennyH11]

When using the bowl it protect the sink from scratches from cutlery, pans etc. Plus you can still rinse things under the tap without diluting the soap water or overfilling.

[@Malfie657]

You started with Bacon butties, so you had me interested from the get go. As it turned out the rest was really great as well and most of it had me smiling , even about funerals!! It'll be interesting to see how you go about covering the Queen's passing too!

[@scottlarrabee9527]

Certain sized shops cannot legally trade on a Sunday, but will still have all the operational costs of being open. The browsing time essentially allows them to hit the ground running when the tills open instead of effectively losing another chunk of trading time as you collect your shopping.

[@hmmslagathor9285]

My mum still uses a bowl, I asked her, she said the plastic bowl is smaller so cheaper to fill with hot water. Plus if she needs to do anything else in the sink she can remove all the ‘still to do washing up’ in one go, use the sink then put it back when she has finished. We don’t use a bowl, but sometime I wish I still did, when I want to wash boots or something else.

[@scottyoung2602]

In Scotland the big stores are open 24/7 (ASDA, Tesco), smaller stores are open near normal hours (maybe a couple of hours shorter compared to their week day hours). The only exception is the Outer Hebrides, where all commercial activities stop on a Sunday.

[@jamesalexander3893]

@The reason why the legislation wasn't applied to Scotland was that it was assumed that the Scots would never tolerate Sunday opening. But the Outer Hebrides maintains that traditional position.

[@DaveBartlett]

Butties are a big part of life in my house, especially on a Sunday at breakfast time: alternate weeks we'll get up late and have a full English breakfast as a brunch, (thus missing lunch!,) with bacon, sausage, eggs, black pudding, mushrooms, tomatoes & baked beans, but on the other, alternate Sundays we'll have Bacon & Egg butties or Sausage & Egg butties, often with mushrooms or tomatoes in them too. Basically just the full English, split into two, but without the black pudding or baked beans.

[@andymcgarty3099]

Alanna, more spot on observations. I thought a bowl was used in a sink to save water, especially hot water. But I've never had one. Great video x

[@Phiyedough]

Yes, I've never been to Canada but I've seen plenty of mainland Europeans washing dishes and they nearly all keep the tap running the whole time.

[@terencecarroll1812]

The browsing time works if you are getting a trolley full of shopping as there is hardly anyone around to get in the way and shops are usually fully stocked from the night before so you can get everything you need and then not wait in a queue to checkout

[@laura-leeoconnor6298]

I’m Canadian and have used a dish pan when I have only had a single sink. Very helpful when rinsing :)

[@TheMagicGeekdom]

We've had quite a few people recommend your channel and I just watched several videos. You are such a joy to watch. You had me laughing about bowls in the sink. We've come across a few Airbnbs in the UK with them and were quite confused about that situation. 😂

[@johnwatson5235]

Hey Alanna when I was young my dad used to fill the sink bowl with hot water and steep his feet in after work! Next time you have a bacon sandwich instead of buttering the bread try dipping it in the pan the bacon has been cooked in,delicious😋 great vid. X

[@Phiyedough]

Yes, I would never use butter on a bacon sandwich.

[@jonathanbloxam3666]

Hey Alanna. I came across your hilarious posts a few weeks ago and have been binging them all since,even the ones from 5-6 years ago. Signing off with one of those confusing X's X

[@t.a.k.palfrey3882]

Try shopping on a Sunday in Spain or Germany or Sweden or even on Sunday mornings in the Netherlands. You'll be dead out of luck! As a schoolboy in England, a treat sandwich after choir practice or sports (60 yrs ago) might be a sugar sarnie or a crisp butty. One of my roomies loved to crumble a Cadbury Flake in a sandwich. 🤢 Vis a vis washing dishes, my wife simply used to say that she married an imported dishwasher.

[@fourthdrawerdown6297]

The 9/10am opening/shopping thing provides valuable biscuit selection/decision/phone home and ask someone time. The washing up bowl allows one to transport the dishes to a friend or relatives house and use their dishwasher. British funerals are traditionally accompanied by four weddings and directed by Richard Curtis. ( Hugh Grant subject to availability).

[@normanbrown3833]

The washing up bowl’s principal purpose is to save water and energy. It effectively reduces the size of the sink and therefore you use less water to fill it and less energy to heat that water - something everyone should be doing.

[@stevehill5071]

The washing bowl thing came out much earlier than saving water or energy. Most homes pre 1970 had porcelain sinks and they chipped very easily. By using a bowl it protected the sink from damage.

[@kevinparkes417]

Hi Alanna. Another great vid. I remember before 1994 when I was young (er) all shops were closed on Sunday. There was a huge debate at that time with many people wanting them open, but some religious groups said that would destroy the spiritual side of British life, and some labour groups felt it would erode employee's rights. The compromise in the 1994 law was that shops over a certain size like supermarkets could open on a Sunday, but only between 10 am and 4pm. Smaller shops could open normally if they wished. They included a weird rule that larger shops could open earlier than 10am "for browsing" but could not sell anything until 10am. Strangely, most smaller shops still close on a Sunday and most people don't bother going to them. Not sure why. Another British quirk I guess. We all know it's out of date but I don't think we can be bothered to change it. Did you know that in some parts of the UK pubs weren't allowed to open on a Sunday either? I'm sure when I lived in West Wales in the early 1980s Sunday was dry.

[@mikeh020011]

From Parliament.uk On Sundays, large shops may open for no more than 6 continual hours between the period 10am and 6pm. All large shops must close on Easter Sunday and on Christmas Day. In contrast, there are no opening restrictions for small shops (under 280 square metres or 3,000 square feet).

[@alexvaraderey]

You can't work out why i, as the owner of a small shop, open Monday to Saturday, aren't open on a Sunday? Because it's my day off.

[@2ridiculous41]

@@alexvaraderey why not open Tues-Sun and get the busier Sunday shopping and close on the quiet Monday?

[@alexvaraderey]

@@2ridiculous41 Not a bad idea, but it would only work if a lot of shops did it and it became a normal thing. The other problem would be that on a Sunday, the bank and the Post Office and the suppliers are all closed.

[@frankbrodie5168]

Wow.. I just looked it up.. The afternoon shutdown was introduced during the First World War lol. A ridiculous premise anyway. Because it wasn't at all enforced at national level. And removed in Scotland many years before England. Blackpool certainly totally ignored the afternoon closedown law. And who could prosecute their licensed premises for flouting the law? Only the local council. Which would hardly shoot their own tourism industry in the foot.

[@allysonhughes6138]

Sunday shopping: I believe as mentioned the law says supermarkets can't be open long hours on a Sunday. I think when the debate of when to open came about 10.00 was the first plan. Some people thought that was too late so the final idea was 9 - 9:59 you can do your shopping and 10:00 can go through check out. 😁

[@moggy823]

One of the reasons for using a bowl in the sink is because the sinks in older houses used to be quite big (Think Butler sinks), and as water had to be heated on the coal fire (Or Range) you could use less hot water to do the washing up rather than having to fill the big sink. Nowadays with smaller sinks, and multiple bowl sinks, the washing up bowl has fallen out of fashion, but it was important at one time.

[@braces2]

Shops above a certain size are not allowed, by law, to sell anything before 10.00am on Sunday. Great video btw.

[@davebirch1976]

I can remember when shops were closed on a Sunday and pubs only opened on a Sunday lunchtime so guys could have a couple of pints while 'er indoors cooked Sunday lunch 😆

[@caw25sha]

When I was a kid we used to go to Scotland quite often, and on Sundays you'd get locals in hotel bars because the pubs were shut.

[@davebirch1976]

@@caw25sha I'm in my 40s and I don't know why but I've always felt buying or even drinking alcohol before midday just seems wrong 😆

[@richardsinger01]

The bowl in the sink saves on hot water, allows rinsing and is kinder on the glass and China. It’s also in the way at all other times. Oddly it also doubles up as a handy receptacle for sick children to vomit into. Next day it’s used to wash the dishes again…

[@mariacurtis9247]

After it has been sanitised of course

[@daijay9084]

As a child in Wales my father was told off by a local police officer for cutting the grass in his families front garden on a Sunday, the Sabbath! Personally, as a child I loved Saturday and Sunday because all our parents were home. We all had 'family' time visiting grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins. It was also the time for household chores. It my seem rose tinted glasses, but no one I knew got in any real trouble because not only were their parents there but those parents were expected to maintain standards for their children and homes. Even now I avoid Sunday shopping because I don't wish to make others do (work) on a Sunday when I wouldn't do it myself. Obviously my little protest is futile but it's also a matter of principle.

[@minskysfeedbackyianni1302]

@Dai Jay totally agree, not on a religious basis just that we all need a break, down time from the world!

[@Phiyedough]

Yes, I live in Croatia which is a Catholic country. I have wood burning central heating and in winter I have to cut logs each day with a chainsaw. I did wonder at first if I should avoid using the chainsaw on Sundays but everyone else seems to do it.

[@gdclemo]

I would have thought that most shops that open on Sundays could find someone to work the Sunday shift rather than having the same person behind the counter 7 days a week, even if it's a small family business.

[@garethifan1034]

@Nicky L And love it!

[@michaelscott7166]

Given your knowledge of how British sandwiches work I am now compelled to suggest you dedicate a whole video to the Wigan Kebab.

[@fil668]

Good call Michael, just about to bring Wigan Kebab to the attention of Alanna.👍

[@TheRattyBiker]

I'm gonna be controversial and say its a whole Northern thing, I lived in Yorkshire for 14 years about 20 years ago and all the chippys did pie butties or pie butty with bits and extra gravy 😉 {scraps to some people} Wigan kebab is a cute name but IMO it also makes zero sense... the place should be respected for being pie and a rave central... Who doesn't love a pie and a rave??? Not merely for just a pie butty....

[@michaelscott7166]

@@TheRattyBiker I'm from Yorkshire, almost on the border with the wrong side of the Pennines and whilst you can get it in Yorkshire chippies it's definitely more a Lancastrian thing. It reminds me of the old joke "Why do meat pies have holes in't top of them?" "So Wiganers can pick a 6 pack up wi one hand!"

[@alanloan66]

My late wife worked at a chippy and before the shop closed she would put a mince pie in the fryer for me to bring home ( mmmm nice crispy mince pie delish )

[@TheRattyBiker]

@@alanloan66 sounds bob on that!

[@scotstrucker127]

Well great vid Allanna I remember when pub's were closed on a sunday you could drink in a hotel but not a pub. In Wales different counties had different drinking law's all you had to do was go to the next county.

[@NathanEllisBodi-bf5zo]

As someone who worked for many years in retail, hopefully it will cheer you up to know that whenever someone runs around 'on a misson' on a Sunday, we're all going 'they don't know it's sunday' in our heads.

[@catherinehaywood7092]

Shops over a certain floor space are not allowed to open by law to sell until 10am. That said you can get your shopping done and check out at 10 so that’s a win. They also have to close at a certain time on Sunday’s I’m 64 and have never used a bowl in the sink.

[@deannawoolvine5725]

Bowl in sink is years ago it was used so you didn't heat to much water for dishes as most pre war housing only had cold water taps

[@sticklebacksummer]

I think the bowl in the sink comes from after the war when rationing was here,saved water, they used to also put a brick in the toilet system.

[@colinseeney471]

I have a bowl in the sink. Small flat and no space to have twin sinks to wash and rinse. The browsing hour is a con, the large shops can only open for 6 hours on a Sunday in England. They open early for browsing, then there's carnage at check out when finally the open to take payment. Its old fashioned but try the rest of Europe.

[@miaschu8175]

I tried to do without the washing up bowl, but found that it takes too much water to fill the sink to a decent depth. Plus, I had to take cups to the bathroom to throw away the dregs of the not quite finished drinks. When you use a bowl, you can tip drinks and cooking water into the sink without overly dirtying the soapy washing water. The washing up bowl is back to stay!

[@-j5t-893]

The browsing time is to reduce redundancy at the tills in store. They are forced to only 'trade' for 6hrs in the larger Supermarkets on a Sunday but if they opened their doors at 10am on the nose then they would have a period of £0 takings whilst the shoppers made their way around the store. This way they guarantee maximum takings for their 6hrs and it allows shoppers a bit more flexibility in the time they can visit.

[@SteveGouldinSpain]

I'm having trouble saying King Charles without subconciously adding Spaniel. I fear further trouble ahead as his successor is lightly to be King Willy.

[@scottlp2323]

The text 'x' has always been a little odd for me too. I'm a Brit, I use it all the time and usually in 'xXx' form but, also, as a Brit, I will avoid it's physical counterpart in real life as much as possible. :) I think it's a pressure release valve of hundreds of years of 'stiff upper lip-ness' that us Brits will throw 'exes' all over typed text to compensate for other Brits kindly staying at a respectable distance in any actual social interactions. Haha! :)

[@ethelmini]

Telegrams, that's why.

[@ElliesPets]

I believe the whole, open at 9, tills open at 10 is actually to do with trading hours. On Sundays, Im pretty certain you're only meant to trade for 6 hours, as its the more official day of rest. Shops love to open the hour earlier to boost sales! During the week though their able to be 24 hours. Take, Asda, Tescos etc for example - Although after covid there aunt many 24hour shops anymore!

[@madpixie2]

Unfortunately i am old enough to remember when shops first started opening on Sundays. There was a mixture of joy & outrage and promises that nobody would have to work Sundays if they didn't want to (that soon got forgotten!). Anyway, there were all sorts of tricks used in the early days to try & get around the limited hours rules and this is the only one that remains. I think the idea is that if you need to do a big shop you can get it in the trolley & out the door at 10.10am rather than getting there for a 10am opening and out the door at 11.10am. I know it seems odd to the 24/7 'want it now' generation but i quite like it. There's always corner stores for your essentials. x

[@Hippyanon]

Bowl in the sink - i always thought it was so you can use the bowl water in your garden after dishes

[@grahvis]

A bowl in the sink means the sink can still be used to a degree, while you are washing up. I remember the American student where I worked, saying how her British boyfriend told her not to call it a fanny bag.

[@heskeyisgod8039]

Great video Alanna. I have a washing up bowl and if i think about it I really don't know why I use it 😂

[@darrellpwilson]

Recently got one and use it to provide water for pot plants

[@jillhobson6128]

Bowls stop your sink getting scratched. You might have a half finished cup of tea you forgot about. You can empty it into the sink at the side of the bowl. You can rinse things round the side of the bowl.

[@lesallen1557]

I’m a Brit and yes I use a washing up bowl. And to be honest I’m not actually sure why. It’s just always been what you do in my family. It’s useful when washing up and you have forgotten to empty your tea cup . You can just tip it down the sink

[@annegenner2220]

Hi Alanna, I really enjoyed this video, especially about the bowl in the sink!! I never realised that's a British thing! Regarding the funerals, though, I've never experienced going to the pub afterwards, it's always been a function room in a hotel, booked for the funeral party, and there's usually a buffet and a selection of drinks, usually sherry, whiskey and wine. (Sadly) I've been to funerals in Yorkshire, Lancashire, Essex and Monmouthshire and it's never involved a pub 🙂

[@lottie2525]

You're right about the sandwiches. I love putting leftover dinners like spag bol in a sandwich, but with pickled beetroot. Yeah, I know, weird, but don't knock it till you've tried it.

[@xneurianx]

None of the shops near me do a "browsing hour". I live in a city, it would just very quickly become "extremely high levels of shoplifting hour".

[@ecoomber]

Canadian in the UK here as well. The washing up bowl thing is so weird to me. Something else I found that was weird was the 24-hour supermarkets that aren't actually 24/7!

[@gerardacronin334]

Alanna, if you like the social aspect of British funerals, you should try an Irish funeral some day! I’m Irish-Canadian, and I do have a bowl in the sink. I got it after I broke a delicate glass while washing it in my stainless steel sink. I also had a slight leak from the washer underneath the sink, and having the bowl in the sink enabled me to postpone calling the plumber!

[@richt71]

Hi Alanna. I think the funeral thing is part of the British way of lightening the mood post the sombre funeral ceremony. Hey nothing wrong with packing a fanny!! 😁

[@brianwhittington5086]

My daughter got a nice heavy duty bum bag, with twin pockets from Primark Alanna , think it was around £6. The Washing Up Bowl will make more sense if you're ever in a property that has a water meter where you pay by the cubic metre you use. Yes it really does save water, and allows you to multi task with your sink. Some people go a step further and have a plastic bucket too.

[@stephenlee5929]

On funerals, it used to be common for the funeral to leave and return to the deceased house. Mourners would normally be invited back for a 'cup of tea'. Some homes are too small to allow this, so the local pub would be used (it is a 'public house') note even when there were restrictions on opening hours, these events were generally seen as private functions. It might also happens when the house would be remote (farm maybe). The vicar/priest is normally expected to attend for the 1st 'sherry'.

[@mac_uk5464]

When large out of town shopping complexes came to England, there was a concern that smaller hight street shops would loose out. So they came up with the large shops can't open before 10am. so as to protect smaller traders. Why we go to the pub after a funeral is, the deceased home is probably to small, or handed back to the council, & it.s cheaper than renting a function room, that costs money, & to have a chat with family you haven't seen for years etc.

[@Tom_YouTube_stole_my_handle]

The bowl in the sink saves on hot water from a time when many people only had running hot water on Sundays for a bath and it allows you to rinse items outside the bowl without cooling the hot water in the bowl. I don't like the bowl either but it takes too long to fill the sink with hot water even from the tap!

[@pabmusic1]

My understanding is that the bowl in the sink dates from the days of water rationing (WW2?) and was a method to reduce the amount of water used for washing dishes. It then became a habit with most families and has been passed down.

[@lesjones471]

It's bringing everyone together who knew that person & to talk about the loss etc,etc.

[@andrewcook8093]

The bowl in the sink, a) uses less water, b) means you don’t need fish around in the water to pull out the plug, c) is something that I don’t use either.

[@mariacurtis9247]

A wake after a funeral is to remember the loved on and you raise a glass in their memory

[@shearerslegs]

I wasn’t aware that bum bags are in fashion again I won’t be buying one but I got a laugh at how awkward it was for you to talk about them. Thank you for the video and I hope you and the butler are having a great week

[@England91]

Yeah same it see them as more of a thing drug dealers user

[@seasorb]

Scottish shops have always opened on Sundays and usually same hours as most days.

[@gdclemo]

Alanna you know we celebrate everything with alcohol in the UK. Births, weddings, deaths, Tuesdays, the lot! Speaking of which, the pub is open. Love you too x

[@nigelsmith6077]

Chip Butty when I was at School many moons ago! My school friend will go halves on a un cut loaf of bread, Ask the bakers to cut in half this loaf, The pull out the middle white part, Then go to the Fish & Chip shop get a portion of chips, The fill the half loaf with chips, Then eat the whole thing. Yum! 😋😝🤪😜

[@naitchb16]

My mum (who isn’t British) properly detests the bowl in the sink and always tuts if she sees one 😭 I loved a chip butty (with cheap white bread) as a kid, as well as shoving crisps in my sandwich at school 🤤 This was a great list, Alanna. I really enjoyed it

[@AdventuresAndNaps]

You mum knows best! 😂

[@dave_h_8742]

Chip butty or bacon butty with real butter on cheap white bread, comfort food !

[@eloisepasteur]

But how are you having a bacon butty without brown sauce?

[@texbankuk]

Bacon or sausage butties with brown sauce (HP or Yorkshire Relish ) No butter! That's my fave Alanna. Another which makes a good base sandwich is fried onions! Boiled onions are worth a tryout too but they taste best while still on the warm side OK?

[@lawrenceglaister4364]

@@AdventuresAndNaps I banned the bowl many years ago as people just put stuff in it and walked away , so when people asked were it was I just said " do what you do when eating out , put any food left on one plate , knifes and forks on another and stack the plates together and leave all on the counter and I'll fill the dishwasher " ( see two problems solved in one go ) lol . A long time ago shops were closed on a Sunday and also for half a day during the week , this was to give the workers a rest due to employers over working the staff and not giving them time off , the Sunday was for church like you said , things changed over the years with people working longer hours and not having time to shop plus of course more women working , Morrisons leave you a choice , hang around at home then go shopping after 10 or wait outside another shop until they open at 10 or go early run around and do your weekly shop and be first in the queue , of course just shop local in a small shop . My favourite sandwiches are normally toasted bread on both sides with butter ( the butter is to stop any juices making the toast soggy and floppy ) and use back bacon and either have it on its own or with anyone or more of the following -- egg , sausages , chips , tinned tomatoes ( defo with bacon mmmm ) .

[@Psylaine64]

I think browsing time is also so shops can offer a full working day to the staff (7-7.5 hrs) while abiding by the 6hr trading time :)

[@christycheray]

This comes from my experience with a self checkout at Sainsburys. I am a foreigner from the United States. I used my bank debit card. The till ran it as credit and I had to sign my receipt after the store manager came over to print out a receipt. I think that if the checkout time is at 10 then it keeps us foreigners on a level basis with the regular British people.

[@johnmusgrave3179]

Many British kitchens, especially in older properties, will only have one sink and as a result one drain. Imagine washing up in the actual sink and then finding that a saucepan is half full of water, soaking burnt on food remnants. Where do you throw away that water if your sink is full of hot soapy water? You can't access the drain so the plastic bowl is pretty much essential. We have no second sink or half sink and no dishwasher. The washing up bowl is highly useful.