TOP LIES ABOUT BRITAIN | AMERICAN REACTS | AMANDA RAE

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[@davidedbrooke9324]

I get fed up of immigrants not knowing about the moral crusade of Britain to end slavery not only in out empire but throughout the world at great cost in men and money!

[@jeddaniels2283]

The West African Squadron.

[@jrpeacock8695]

the overall cost of Britain ending slavery was fially paided off in 2015 even though slavery was abolished nearly 200 years before hand. think on that British people have been paying taxes towards the bil from abolishing slavery even though in the modern west world have never know or owned a slave.

[@davidedbrooke9324]

@@jrpeacock8695 yes and that’s our reparations all Paid up!!

[@justincarter5167]

Not just migrants. Many people, especially younger ones think that none of that happened. They are the computer generation but won't search wikipedia.

[@threepot900]

If you’re going to tell the history of the English involvement in slavery, don’t miss out the the fact Liverpool, Glasgow, Bristol and many other port cities became wealthy from the slave trade, or it’s fruits. London and other metropolitan areas did well out of the human suffering. Once the abolitionists had won their argument and slavery was abolished, many of those who ran plantations in the Caribbean and other areas were paid damages from the PUBLIC PURSE when slavery was abolished, as it was acknowledged they had suffered a material loss to their business, because “equipment” had been lost. There is no record of the slaves being compensated for their maltreatment or loss of liberty in the preceding years. In fact many were forced to work for free or a pittance, and their lot didn’t change at all. Still, some folk are acknowledging their past and trying to make amends. www.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/04/british-slave-owners-family-apologise-reparations-trevelyans

[@kennyblair8483]

The best one I heard was a US tourist asking if the Wallace Monument (built in tribute to Sir William Wallace) was built to honour Mel Gibson after Braveheart.

[@robharris8844U]

Thats because they do not know what Wallace actually looked like, however the Wallace statue put up fairly recently, looks amazingly like Mel Gibson😂

[@kennyblair8483]

@@robharris8844U Yeah that one is horrendous 😂

[@kw8757]

I heard an American tourist at Edinburgh Castle ask a warden "what time will the one o'clock gun be fired? 🤣

[@kennyblair8483]

@@kw8757 😂👌🏻

[@davehoward22]

Heard of an American tourist complaining that a castle they were visiting was built too far away from the car park.

[@andrewq159]

The claim that all the food is awful is false. All UK cities & large towns have a wide variety of food.

[@pem...]

All foreign to be fair though!

[@kw8757]

@@pem... Fish and chips isn't foreign.

[@B-A-L]

​@@pem... So is American food.

[@pem...]

@@kw8757 yes of course fish and chips are ours and i love a good pie mash too. I was just thinking take you other out for a meal type places👍🏻

[@pem...]

@@B-A-L i love us brits, when someone says something slightly against us we instantly think, american! I know american food is all foreign too.🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

[@malcolmhaldin717]

I was in Kansas on holiday a few years ago, and an American woman asked me if there were unicorns still in England !!! I said probably some in Scotland

[@larstveiten4164]

Well, well. A friend of mine got asked by an American tourist on a ship sailing in Norwegian waters; "Do you still have problems with these Vikings?"

[@wanderingfool6312]

The swan ownership goes back to medieval times when they were often centrepieces of high status banquets. So to prevent poachers from taking all the swans, a royal covenant was placed on such tasty wildlife, with probably horrendous punishment for those caught.

[@jeroenschoondergang5923]

Mute swans (not a native species in the UK) were very popular as presents by Russian monarchs to royals all over Europe.

[@scrappystocks]

@@jeroenschoondergang5923 Absolutely wrong Jeroen! Mute swans (Cygnus olor) are a native species to the UK and were mentioned in the 12th century by King Richard I and archeaology and ornithologists have found remains of these swans dating back 10,000 years. We also have native Whooper swans (Cygnus cygnus) that over winter here from around October to March and Bewick swans (Cygnus columbianus). Bewicks, our smallest swans, are sadly in decline but could be described as a Russian migrants, not because they were introduced here but because they chose to come here, which is no suprise.

[@jeroenschoondergang5923]

​@@scrappystocks Thanks for correcting me on mute swans being an introduced species, they are indeed natives. I did however read that mute swans were a popular gift among royalty in medieval times. BTW, the swan shown in the clip (first video) are trumpeter swans from North America. We do get a yearly visit (winter) from large herds of whooper and Bewick's swan over here (The Netherlands).

[@tonys1636]

@@jeroenschoondergang5923 Herds? They do tend to flock over in flocks from colder climes in winter.

[@jeroenschoondergang5923]

@@tonys1636 the collective noun for swans is herd or bevy.

[@waynegoodman3345]

Many think the Union Flag is the flag of England....in fact it was a Scottish king James I that founded the Union Flag.

[@tonybaker55]

Southwark is pronounced "Sutherk". Just a point of accuracy for the video commentator. I used to live about 12 miles south of London as a child and I do remember a smog in the early 60s.

[@geoffreyjones6019]

His pronunciation of a few words was a bit interesting, e.g. era became error, dynasty pronounced dine-asty, perhaps he lives in the USA.

[@Keith_Butcher]

and Clerkenwell is pronounced Clarkenwell

[@johnnywarnerperfectroad66]

😂 I was wondering where South Walk was. Good thing Lady Godiva was from Coventry and not nearby Warwick really and didn't have a sister in Derby 😅

[@Keith_Butcher]

@@johnnywarnerperfectroad66 don’t even mention Happisburgh

[@johnnywarnerperfectroad66]

@@Keith_Butcher did he not mention the candy striped lighthouse? I'm certain he said heading through Costessey towards the coast you'll find Haze Borough, perhaps I misheard I'm getting old 🤔

[@Pippins666]

Richrad III did indeed have scoliosis. That did not stop him wearing armour and leading his troops into battle, and personally taking the fight to Henry £All accounts note that King Richard fought bravely and ably during this manoeuvre, unhorsing Sir John Cheyne, a well-known jousting champion, killing Henry's standard bearer Sir William Brandon and coming within a sword's length of Henry Tudor before being surrounded by Sir William Stanley's men and killed.[141] Polydore Vergil, Henry VII's official historian, recorded that "King Richard, alone, was killed fighting manfully in the thickest press of his enemies"." I attended Richard's funeral when he was laid to rest in Leicester Cathedral, just a stone's throw from where his body had been recovered

[@engineeredlifeform]

Hmmm, and Stanley didn't exactly act in a chivalrous manner.

[@craigoliver3709]

Richard of York should be buried in York

[@heidijames8825]

@@engineeredlifeform Why should he? Richard was keeping his nephew (Thomas Stanley's son) hostage.

[@forthfarean]

Apparently, his twisted spine was not particularly noticeable when he was clothed.

[@alanbeaumont4848]

@@heidijames8825 That's why he ought to have done. The hostage survived, so there can't have been a strict kill order.

[@wilmaknickersfit]

FUN FACT - I know the woman who has been the official Lady Godiva in Coventry for the last 40 years. Her name is Pru Porretta and originally she rode her white horse wearing a flesh coloured body suit and a very long wig. These days she wears more traditional medieval dress. She's represented Coventry all over the world and also runs a charity called the Godiva Trust. Pru is very well respected and has received many awards including an MBE and an honorary degree. There's a beautiful statue of Lady Godiva in the centre of Coventry.

[@royporter4232]

Whatever happened to Peeping Tom ?

[@blacktronlego]

@@royporter4232 He was an even later addition to the story. For those who don't know according to the story, when Lady Godiva rode naked through the city, the people did not look. Peeping Tom did look and was struck blind for his sin.

[@payne4047]

I live there.😂

[@wilmaknickersfit]

@@payne4047 Me too (well, just outside these days). 😎

[@guppywibble3752]

​@@royporter4232it's now a Hickory's Smokehouse. 😏

[@jackwaycombe]

Dealing with tourists in Scotland - admittedly a while ago (and not all American to be fair) - asking which part of England Scotland might be found in, my favourite tactic was to direct them to the pub across the road where I assured them there were people who knew the answer...

[@DavidSmith-cx8dg]

A few misconceptions , tradition and history play a more important part in our lives than we may care to admit . No real surprises in this but the fact you weren't either is nice to see . As always , pleasant viewing Amanda .

[@sambrooks7862]

And both are being systematically eradicated

[@timjones6255]

The matching bell in Rome is called Biggus Bennus

[@kitmoore9969]

Biggus Tickus?

[@user-rb3zh6sz1b]

Monty python fans you two? 😂

[@deanrolph6912]

The Monarch can tell the army to stand down if a politician or military leader attempted a coup as all members of the military swear allegiance to the crown not the government.

[@Pippins666]

The reason for the rat myth is that there are so many politicians in London - Downing Street and Westminster is particularly rat infested....

[@Simonize41]

Another random KZbin recommendation…. As a Brit, a Yorkshireman, this video intrigued me. Without meaning to sound like a spoff, I knew the answers to the questions within the video you reacted to (I’m a history and GK nerd). And I even got punched in the face once when I kept telling a guy that Big Ben is the bell, not the tower. He wouldn’t have it, eventually he lost his temper and I got a sore chin for my knowledge. Hey-ho. Why should I back down? Anyway, I love your delivery, your voice and your calm and patient nature. You are incredibly pleasant to watch. Subbed. I hope you love living here. All the best. Simon

[@markborder906]

I remember going to school (late 1950’s) in fog so thick I had to guide myself by holding on to fences and hedges. Crossing roads (I had to cross 2) was frightening. I literally could not see my hand help at arms length.

[@jupitersailing]

Honestly Mark, you and that Gand of yours!

[@markborder906]

@@jupitersailing Corrected, thank you.

[@jupitersailing]

@@markborder906 I’m sure we all understood mate. I recall my Battersea-born and bred mum saying she would go out at night during the war to meet her mum from night fire-watching work. They would then slowly make their way the half mile or so back to their house by following the fences and railings, all of which they knew by heart. Mum couldn’t bear thinking of her mum out in that alone. The smog was like pea soup, in fact they’d say “It’s a real pea-souper out there”. After the war smokeless fuels came in, and then all fires were banned. But you can still see the black tarry deposit on buildings here and there. Most have been cleaned, but of course vehicle engines aren’t helping.

[@gordonwallin2368]

Another sweet video, Amanda, thanks. Cheers from the Pacific West Coast of Canada.

[@paulhooker6346]

Hello Amanda, I'm a londoner and one of my forefathers was imprisoned for shouting out to lady cadiva, get your hair cut. That was a lie also but a good joke. I'm pleased that the myth of big Ben was corrected and the tower was called st. Stephen's tower and only a few years ago it got renamed the queen Elizabeth ll tower. The lie that makes me laugh is everyone thinks cockney come only from east London. The bow bells are on cheap side in the middle of the city of London which is a city within a city. Take care x

[@lolocaust4967]

I've found more people think you're a Cockney if you're from anywhere in London. They don't know anything about the sound of Bow Bells.

[@shirleygreaves9650]

Your vlogs are so fascinating and amusing and I love your voice.❤️

[@urseliusurgel4365]

Godiva's original name in Old English was Godgifu, pronounced something like, 'god-givoo'. It meant 'gift of God'.

[@guppywibble3752]

Yeah definitely pronounce Godiva like that Amanda. I sometimes met friends in the Godiva pub, in Coventry, when I lived there. Was locally known as "the dive". And it was! 😆

[@jackthelad8182]

I remember coal fires as a child, also there was a lot of industrial factories when it became foggy in the winter,mixed with the smoke it became smog,I think with sherlock Holmes and Jack the ripper films it was always thick fog and set in London,I wondered what part of the country you were in amanda,I heard there is some banging pubs in Essex,Buckingham Palace has over 600 employees from what I read somewhere,I remember going to Blackpool with my son the dungeon tour explains about the black plaque or bubonic plaque and how it started it lasted many decades,have a fantastic week

[@stevegee7593]

I remember one of the smogs. Mum asked me to post a letter. To get to the postbox I had to hold on to the fences, because I could only see a few feet in front of me. As for the RATs there were more in the square mile of London due to all the big food markets. Like Spitalfields fruit and veg market, billingsgate fish market, Smithfield meat market, and just on the border Covent Garden flower and veg market. Also lots of small street markets. All with the rubbish just dumped on the floor. Now all the bigger markets have been move to the outskirts of London, and the street markets have mostly move to non-perishable stuff.

[@lesleyhawes6895]

And places which do still sell food, like.Borough Market or even Petticoat Lane, are either indoors, or very carefully inspected and regulated.

[@nigeh5326]

Enjoyed the video thanks. You have a laidback style which is a nice change from the more earnest delivery on many KZbin channels. 👍

[@philcollinson328]

As a Brit- Australian citizen...I love your laid back attitude ..and the ink.

[@catlucky9815]

Hate the ink on such a lovely woman. Ink (IMO) is never attractive or feminine on a woman.

[@stuartrawson5057]

Very interesting video Amanda I always enjoy your videos ❤

[@Gomorragh]

swans hearts was a delicacy .... Richard iii is just one example of history being completely rewritten by the victors, making anything we know subject to the whims of whoever won the battles and the war

[@whir4us]

On number 3 and Top lies about Britain, should be renamed ''Top lies about England or London'.

[@SteveMrW]

I love watching your videos, remember Britain has a letter ‘T’ in the middle🤣

[@AMANDARAEUK]

Lol! 😂

[@user-rb3zh6sz1b]

Unless you're a cockney then it's got a glottal stop between Bri and an!

[@lesneill7802]

You can see Big Ben (the bell). If you apply to your local MP to sponsor you to a tour of the tower and the Bell for free. This is only available to residents of the UK.

[@alanshave8010]

Amanda you were wondering about the staff at Buckingham Palace, if you remember the Queens funeral when the coffin passed the Palace all the staff were stood on the pavement outside, and yes its quite a few.

[@xhogun8578]

Over 600 people are employed at Buckingham Palace.

[@harrybarrow6222]

The staff provide 24 hour coverage, so there will be quite a few.

[@southron_d1349]

He mis-pronounced Clerkenwell and Southwark, too. I could tell and I've never been to the UK!

[@celine4evauk]

Buckingham Palace has 775 rooms in total, including 188 staff bedrooms, 52 Royal and guest bedrooms, 78 bathrooms, 19 State rooms, 92 offices. Several hundred people work at the Palace/within the grounds. It was about 800, but since The Queen died the number is probably lower now.

[@chrisw3745]

Your comment of "It's a bit broing" sums up all of watch mojo! Spending more time commenting on their opinions than actual content! You are still great so no worries there! Keep up the great content, UK is great and we welcome you with open arms :)

[@jkpole]

As always a great video... THANKS

[@NeilJames1982]

Here's a suggestion for your next review - The Play that Goes Wrong performing at The Royal Variety Performance 2015

[@jono.pom-downunder]

Current estimates for Buckingham palace staff is around 600 full time staff and around 1,200 to include all royal households (grounds staff, secretarial, kitchen, maids, valet, drivers, security, etc)

[@chrisblinman9150]

I think a better one would be that the union jack is actually the union flag. Its only the union jack when flown from the jackstaff of a ship.

[@Trebor74]

No,it isnt. It's the Union Jack. The issue was debated in parliament and was made official,in the early 1900's I think

[@chrisblinman9150]

@robert o having done further research, you are correct, the rule was relaxed in the early 19th century

[@deetee5861]

I'm English and learnt a lot. I didn't realise about the swans, the rat idea confused me as I barely ever saw one living there, or that St Stephen's Tower was renamed to Elizabeth's Tower and I always wondered how the plague was stopped by a bit of London burning as growing up in London I knew so much that was untouched by it. THANK YOU for sharing this Amanda!

[@Joanna-il2ur]

The prevailing wind was west to east, so the western fringes and Westminster escaped. The great fear was that the majority of the gunpowder in England was stored in the Tower, which of course is east of the City. Had that gone, most of London would been gone forever.

[@deetee5861]

@@Joanna-il2ur thank you. That's amazingly accurate info. Im quite taken back.

[@jupitersailing]

I was showing American cousins around the Normandy landing beaches and we suddenly heard a Scotsman ask us from behind if we knew the way to Omaha Beach. We both looked round but there was only a Chinese chap behind us. Fortunately he then repeated the question, and it turned out he was from Glasgow. Ever since then we call Chinese people 'Scots', and Scots people Chinese.

[@lordprefab5534]

Ten lies about Britain and he starts by saying Britain is country, which is a lie.

[@ianprince1698]

I was out that day aged about 6 when the thick smog came down, could not see your hand in front of your face. normally the smoke goes up but because of the weather but it sunk down to ground level soon after that they passed the clean air act and later cleaned the thick soot off the buildings so they were white for the first time in years

[@garystroud6153]

I was about the same age and living in London at that time too

[@elizabethanthony3916]

I think she said this happened in 1952, the year I was born, now I know why I'm asthmatic at 71 years old. 🤔

[@PeterMackett]

I remember "Willard" and it's follow up, "Ben" with the iconic Michael Jackson song, the old horror films were the best!, i have a friend who worked as a footman in Buckingham Palace so i will ask him how many staff are there at any one time.

[@solalexander674]

Awww ❤ u Miss Rae!

[@philipellis7039]

I haven’t been back to Coventry for a few years but as well as the Godiva statue there is/was the Godiva clock and Peeping Tom comes out to look at the naked lady. [ there are clips of the clock on KZbin if you want to make sense of this!]

[@Jack-fs2im]

The Shoreditch foundry of the Big Ben bell Also made the US Liberty bell in Philly

[@andrewmurray5542]

It was actually in Whitechapel, but Shoreditch, but sadly closed a few years back.

[@davidaemayhew]

Fog was lovely

[@josephthompson1318]

The bell's unusual sound is because it was cracked * repaired.

[@SquidLegz]

Wooo! Essex!

[@elnadematos3388]

Thank you. I really only learnt about difference between GB and UK now 🤦‍♀️

[@doubleplusgoodthinker9434]

Nice to see you and hear your silky voice again. I have just filled in a rat hole in my garden and I live in a country area. Apparently they are quite common but I have never actually seen one.

[@duntalkin]

Swans used to be on the menu, so they were protected 😂🎉❤

[@AMANDARAEUK]

Ahhh okay lol

[@davidwenham9522]

All Swans belonged to the Queen so I guess now KC 3

[@davidwenham9522]

Fog in London used to be common. Not now

[@petejones879]

​@@davidwenham9522 only the buick swans

[@davidwenham9522]

@@petejones879 I only learned that today

[@eileencritchley4630]

The saying 'oh there's Big Ben' come's from hearing the Bell Sound on the hour and someone would say 'oh there's Big Ben'

[@martinbootneck]

Welcome to Essex Amanda

[@iriscollins7583]

I remember that fog.😊 Cars were abandoned every everywhere. You couldn't see to drive.

[@lesskeels3417]

Hi Amanda. I live in Kent (southeast of the UK), which like the US Midwest, supplies a lot of this country's food requirements. It's also a very picturesque county, the "Weald" which runs from Lamberhurst to Smarden, has some pretty little villages, and pubs as well!! Canterbury (where I live) has a world-famous cathedral, where Thomas a Becket was murdered in 1170 (see the Martyrdom, where the dirty deed happened), Ashford, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells have good shops, and let's not forget ghostly Pluckley, the most haunted village in the UK (so they say) with no less than 12 different spooks inhabiting 12 different locations. Kind regards.

[@Joanna-il2ur]

I grew up near Wye, a place I would recommend. Likewise Chilham. For something bigger, Tenterden is very worth a visit, likewise Cranbrook.

[@martinconnors6200]

Amanda, I'm from Essex too. A native of Basildon, but I live in Stanford-Le-Hope

[@aaronwarrior]

The motto for my home town would be “come to Widnes, the most polluted and smelliest town in England. Also the place that no one has heard of but still gets pronounced wrongly even by its residents😁” awesome video as always ❤

[@AMANDARAEUK]

Haha thanks Aaron!

[@eamonnclabby7067]

​@@AMANDARAEUK Birkenhead was the home of Paul O,Grady and Elvis Costello....and me...😅😅😅😅

[@ianpodmore9666]

Joint smelliest with Runcorn.

[@B-A-L]

The motto for St Helen's is 'We may be sh!t but at least we aren't Widnes!'

[@wiganfan3373]

@@B-A-L St Helens, where they have 6 fingers and smell like cabbage

[@AnimeManiac1987]

I work in retail and we sell bird food and our building is right next to a bread factory so there are always a chance of seeing a rat or two a year. however when a grocery store was built over the road the development disturbed rats nests in the foundations and every building in a 1/4 mile radius and rentokill who serviced our road said they were collecting up to 50 rats in some of the more unluckier companies who had something edible that wasn't kept in ten inch thick steel bunkers, cause rats can chew through metal pipes. i was lucky enough only to see a handful in my 17 years of service

[@robinwhitebeam3955]

Richard III will take part in the Tewkesbury Medieval Festival 8th to 9th July. The Battle Of Tewkesbury will be re-enacted on each day by a few thousand knights, archers, cannons and horses. Richard was a good horse rider and soldier, at the time he was the Duke of Gloucester aged 18 and led a large part of King Edwards army.

[@jezfield8547]

😁😁😁Hi Amanda. Happy St Georges day, im quite sure you knew all that anyway, just to say swanupping is when they catch all the young swans to measure and weigh them and check them over, a bit like an MOT, or a SOT haha did you get your alarm call today? Thanks Amanda

[@AMANDARAEUK]

I sure did, did you? 😂 scared me as I forgot about it 😂

[@eamonnclabby7067]

Happy Saint George's day, Jez and Amanda...😊..

[@garystroud6153]

Involved in "Swan upping" are two of the oldest liveried companies in the city, The Doggets Coat and Badgemen. Originally "watermen" on the Thames.

[@andrewq159]

The perception that the climate is similar to that of Newfoundland is false. Lisbon & Rome each receive significantly more rain than London. Many overseas visitors to Southern England are puzzled by the lack of snow.

[@martinsmith6049]

Take a look out the window. It is, as always, raining.

[@andrewq159]

@@martinsmith6049 You know that's not true. It only rains for a small minority of the time. In London, less than one day in three have rain.

[@martinsmith6049]

@@andrewq159 I'm sat in Croydon

[@andrewq159]

@@martinsmith6049 Why do you falsely claim it always rains? If, for example, it rains for five hours per week (out of 168 hours), that's 3% of the time.

[@scrappystocks]

Rainfall or precipitation across the UK varies dramatically with location. However in New York they have more rainy days than London and around twice the rate of "precipitation".

[@ashleywetherall]

The Swan law may have something to do with a Goose law from the late 14th century. Goose feathers were used for Arrow Fletching's and the king claimed the right to own all Geese in the UK so he could control there slaughter and get the feathers for his archers. This also might apply to Swans but as they were wild he might have enforced this law for them to stop poaching..

[@cuthbert246]

Good vid 1st fact in a a menu supposedly eaten by Henry VIII included a Swan as part of menu...also in recent times the RSPCA were investigating someone for stealing and eating a Swan by the time they got into the Kitchen the bird was mixed up with other meat...impossible to detect. There are admin staff in Bucks Palace as well as cleaning staff. The Monarch still as the power to veto a Act of Parliament by I think not signing an Act, BUT the constitutional crisis that would follow could bring the monarchy down... the last time (I think) this happened was in Queen Anne time. Best Wishes.

[@AMANDARAEUK]

Thank you for sharing 😊

[@peterforfun210]

Hi sweet lovely lady you mentioned you live in a Essex town I was born in a village high beach then Epping now loughton you are now a a Essex girl a nice part of the country. Have fun

[@1951woodygeo]

They are the most graceful looking of all birds and is frowned upon anyone harming them.

[@richards1929]

I think I'm hooked

[@christianbrunsdon3520]

Hi, in regards to the part about rats in London I would recommend the Rat triology by James Herbert. They are in the following order, Rats, Lair and Domain. Exceptional horror book by and truly talented horror writer.

[@johngoward9708]

My first job after leaving school was in a warehouse I'll never forget being first in and switching the lights on and seeing the rats scattering everywhere.

[@educatednumpty71]

It's hard to say how many work at Buckingham Palace as it depends on if the Royal Family is in residence or if there's an event happening etc. However, it's claimed that it takes a minimum of 400 staff members to keep the palace running and up to a thousand for special events and when the Royals are in residence. There are 188 staff bedrooms but it doesn't mean that they have staff permanently living there unlike the Beefeaters at the Tower of London.

[@TheVigilant109]

Very interesting

[@alunchurcher7060]

It wasn't fog in London but smog a mixture of smoke and fog. It was the smoke particles which killed so many at the time, an old nickname for London was the smoke.

[@nigelsmith6077]

Lady Godiva there is a statue in Coventry of her on horse back.

[@Daniel-qw9dm]

Biggest things for me: We all have bad teeth The food is terrible in the uk We can’t speak any other languages It’s always raining

[@jackwaycombe]

The food in the UK can be awful, for people who never go further than fast food places. I've eaten in the UK, and in Europe. I've had very bad and very good everywhere, and that includes the UK. And I'm not talking posh restaurants. I'd also argue, from experience, that most Brits do speak at least 2 languages - English and shouting.

[@IVIasterKush]

There is a 'swannery' in Dorset the last one in existence. Swans used to be a food source until after WW2! Yep -big ducks, but now people prefer to just look at them.

[@frivolousmule6098]

The origin of the legislation about swans was because they were a prized delicacy back in the day. Marking of beaks was used as three organisations were also allowed to own swans with ownership indicated by the marks on the bird's beaks, unmarked birds belonged to the crown.

[@ksmyth999]

The problem in London was really the Smog. This was smoke combined with fog which was pretty unhealthy. In the 1950s preventive medicine sponsored and controlled by the government was managed by a country wide network of executive doctors known as Medical Officers of health. At the time my father was responsible for an area in the midlands which was also affected by dirty air. He and his colleagues initiated a clean up campaign to clean the air in Britain. It took about 10 or so years and then it was worthwhile to start cleaning the buildings in London. One of the last to be cleaned was the Albert Memorial. I was shocked visiting the Albert Hall, probably around the turn of the century but I can't quite remember, to see the once black monument in all its golden glory. So it had taken something like 40 years to clean the pollution in London!

[@Suliiskk]

Your voice so beautiful, great show and I'm very sorry about Morris-dancer

[@judithhope8970]

I hear so often that we love queueing which really isn't true, we will do so if we have to and we will do it well, but if we can avoid a queue, we certainly will. The royals and other toffs used to eat swans at special feasts. They didn't want the peasants to have any so they claimed them for themselves. Rats make great pets and are really cute, however, a wild infestation isn't good. Nice reaction, your voice is so easy to listen to.

[@dominofox]

Your titles for the past few weeks entitles you to be an honourary Brit. I f'ing love you and the more you see these videos against your home the more we love you. You have the right idea.

[@chromenewt]

We do actually pronounce our Ts. Even in the accents that seem not to. So when people think they're being funny with the whole "bo'ol ov wa'er, mayt" we just audibly eyeroll. And Richard III's hunchback was asymetical muscle development. He was a warrior of considerable ability, and swinging a lot of one handed weapons from horseback will do that to you. English longbowmen had similar because each arm requires strength in different ways and the draw weight was considerable.

[@andrewward2010]

1 thing maybe people think about the UK is that it rains 24/7 lol! Does rain a lot but not 24/7 everyday and we do get Sun 🤣

[@britbazza3568]

Hi Amanda great show as always well done. A couple of little known facts about Big Ben 1 big Ben's sound is because of a crack in the rim of the bell gives the ring a distinct ring the crack causes a flat note sound. In fact it is the same sound as the USA's Liberty Bell this has a crack in the same place as big Ben does in the rim of the bell. This isn't just a coincidence because the size of the two bells is similar but it isn't very well known that both bells were cast in the same bell foundry which just happens to be the Whitechapel bell foundry in Whitechapel London England. This very bell foundry only closed its doors for the final time in the last ten to fifteen yrs

[@shaunfarrell3834]

Knew the Whitechapel bell foundry well, walked past it innumerable times as a student in the 70s.

[@markhutton6824]

OMG it is the Union Flag... The late Queen Elizabeth II's favourite residence was Windsor Castle and in lockdown and after the death of Prince Philip she was at Windsor more than Buckingham Palace... only going there for state occasions, such as his and then sadly her funeral...

[@mortyjhones4068]

Roast Swan is a delacacy, eaten at special Ocashions. Very tasty, a jucy chicken.

[@dmisso42]

My grandfather died in in the London smog of 1952. (smoke + fog)

[@Bridget410]

'In August 2012, the University of Leicester in collaboration with the Richard III Society and Leicester City Council, began one of the most ambitious archaeological projects ever attempted: no less than a search for the lost grave of King Richard III. The last English king to die in battle. Incredibly, the excavation uncovered not only the friary of Grey Friars but also a battle-scarred skeleton with spinal curvature. On 4 February 2013, the University announced to the world's press that these were the remains of King Richard III.' Found under a car park not far from Leicester Cathedral.

[@blacktronlego]

Talking about Buckingham Palace and Rats, there did used to be a problem with rats in the less used areas of the palace. I'm told the Queen Mother at one stage used to go into the rat infested areas with a gun and practice shooting the rats.

[@bettyswallocks6411]

Why does Lady Godiva chocolate have a wrapper?

[@paulryan9640]

Not bad amanda .😂 one of my cousins had a pet rat called willard .😘😘

[@AMANDARAEUK]

Haha 😂

[@krisjonesuk]

There’s a factual error in the video. It states that the Clock Tower on the Palace of Westminster (now named the Elizabeth Tower), used to be known as St Stephen’s Tower. This is incorrect. St Stephen’s Tower actually stands above the public entrance to Parliament, which itself is called the St Stephen’s Entrance.

[@colinnewlands743]

Never mind Americans, being Scottish it irks me that so many English people think UK and England are interchangeable.

[@TaSwavo]

On a walk I do I sometimes(in the countryside) come across a rat and his entourage (one or two others). They are lovely, wild critters. Not sewer rats, I've seen then eat seeds and old nuts mostly. The lead one even has a name... no idea how he came up with it but his name is Ratty. I suspect London and New York have more rats. There is a theory that more human consumption of tomatoes leads to more rats, as tomato seeds "go through" a human and are great food for rats like seeds would be.

[@bespincustompropsbombarta8300]

Big Ben is referred to as such because you can hear in London, and people would say can you hear Big Ben and thus the whole tower is referred to as such.

[@garykidson4489]

You were also told that the UK flag is called the Union Jack (he even said it in this video). Its called the Union Flag unless its flying on a ship.

[@bigal3055]

A common misconception, but it's not correct. The Admiralty itself proposed to Parliament that Union Jack become an official name of the national flag, sometime around the turn of the 20th century. The act was approved and both names are perfectly acceptable when flying or displaying the flag on land. Has been the case for over 100 years.

[@shelleyphilcox4743]

​@@bigal3055Its only been 100 years, so it's a very modern innovation to call the flag flying on land as the Union Jack...we just aren't used to it yet 😂

[@silasfatchett7380]

Even now, London is often referred to as 'the Smoke'.

[@andrewdobson813]

My favourite is Bill Maher's 'Northern Ireland is part of England, right?'. Cue Scottish anger.

[@andyt8216]

My ex and I did see the Queen leaving Windsor Castle one morning in 2011. She was driving and had an older male companion with her (not Philip!)

[@garystroud6153]

Could have been a relative but also her police bodyguard

[@andrewmurray5542]

Her fancy man? 😮

[@andyt8216]

@@andrewmurray5542 Oo, the minx!

[@robertpayne4033]

One point of interest: Big Ben, the bell, was made by the same company that made the Liberty Bell. (They also made Big Tom, the bell in Salisbury cathedral.) Also, The Plague was not "The Black Plague". There were more than one such pandemic; the Black Death (which, as I understand, has not actually been identified, yet), and the Plague, which is still extant, and now known as bubonic plague.

[@Joanna-il2ur]

The Black Death is Yersinia Pestis, the same as the 1665 Plague. Y. Pestis returned many times after 1348. It existed as the Plague of Justinian, which killed half the population of Europe in 540 AD.

[@robertpayne4033]

@@Joanna-il2ur - thank you for that. Every day is a learning day.

[@marymellor7214]

Hi Amanda, love the vids! Speaking as a brit, have always called big Ben but Ben even though I knew it related just to the bell. I think that the evidence that dick3 seized the crown from his brother and killed his nephews is pretty overwheling. However, in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries totals were not squeamish about getting rid of possible threats to their throne, henry7 and henry8, Mary1 and Elizabeth1 were particularly good at this. Going up in england always thought England =Britain . Wasn't till teenager really appreciated the differences.the far thing reminds me of a visit were made to our daughter in mid wales, we broke down and while waiting for rescue, we saw a rat bigger than a car just saunter across the road ahead of us! Again love the vids ! Keep on keeping on!