7 Things We Learned In The UK (British Culture)

[@alanoh3069]

The UK also have overseas territories.. Mainly to annoy Argentina and Spain 😉 😂 😂

[@Gingerninja800]

and so that the claim that the sun never sets on the British is still true

[@maximilianolimamoreira5002]

@@Gingerninja800 sure.

[@robertgrason393]

@@Gingerninja800 the reason the sun never sets on the British empire is that even god would not trust an Englishman in the dark

[@Theringodair]

Gibraltar.

[@owenshebbeare2999]

@@robertgrason393 Funny, we Brits say the same about Americans and Germans.

[@oogaftw]

Very pleased there's atleast one American who can pronounce Leicester correctly.

[@lassievision]

Have to watch out for those Shibboleths kzbin.info/www/bejne/o4DHZJ-todqEf9k

[@crystalkirlia4553]

Same but Norfolk. That's literally the only reason I subbed to them.

[@theotheseaeagle]

Yea I’m from Leicestershire and it makes me cringe when I hear foreigners trying to pronounce it ._.

[@tomroberts5543]

Remember many people will have a coffee to wake up in the morning and then have cups of tea throughout the day

[@peterquintiliani3954]

The reason why is that Drinks Machines dispense a reasonably drinkable Coffee while their teas are disgusting. while T

[@grahamsmith9541]

@@peterquintiliani3954 Your comment reminds me of when I worked at BBC television center. The fresh brewed coffee used to taste so bad. That if we wanted a decent cup We would get it from the machine.

[@ethelmini]

I'm wondering what the survey actually counted. I can easily see it being true if it's hot drinks bought out in cafés etc. Not sure teabag sales will have slumped that much though, they still seem to get as much supermarket shelf space as ever.

[@cyberash3000]

I hate coffee. Tea all the way for me

[@leonie49]

Yep, I definitely have a coffee first thing in the morning to wake up then rest of the day water and I may have one more coffee mid afternoon when I hit a slump if I’ve had carbs for my lunch.

[@tonycasey3183]

We tend to call school students "pupils" and reserve "student" for those in tertiary education.

[@capitalb5889]

Actually, the term "student" has been growing for years - first it was used for those in sixth form colleges, but it is now creeping all the way down to primary level. I am a school governor and always check myself to make sure I don't use it.

[@WanderingRavens]

Good to know!

[@OrganMusicYT]

@@capitalb5889 That's Americanisms creeping in, I hear a lot of younger people saying "pants" instead of trousers too.

[@gemmarobinson4185]

OrganMusicYT we have always done this in the north!

[@littleun1990]

@@OrganMusicYT pants as a term for trousers has been common in some areas in North-west England for as long as folk can remember. The words are interchangeable. Maybe due to the links to Ireland? or just holding onto an older use of the the word that fell out of fashion elsewhere?

[@JimpZee]

While it's an incredibly tired old cliché to say that when visiting England you *must* get out of London (as is so often shouted by Brits at American visitors), in your particular case I'm so glad that you did venture beyond the capital while you were over here. Having watched many of your past videos and got a small sense of the kind of people you are and some of your interests, I do think that you'd be happiest in rural villages and small towns that have a good sense of community. Such places retain a sense of Englishness (in attitude, way of life, and surroundings) that has long since been lost in the UK's bigger cities (many of which have become totally unrecognisable in recent years). I have a feeling that you'd be very much at home living somewhere in the scenic English countryside rather than in the middle of chaotic frenetic urban sprawl.

[@bethpurslow4469]

The English never burnt “witches”, it was mostly Scotland or Germany that burnt “witches”, we hanged them instead and we made it into a festival where people would go and have a picnic whilst watching the hangings. Weird I know 😂

[@cogidubnus1953]

But Bloody Mary did burn the Protestant Martyrs...so in deepest Sussex each Bonfire Night...well...let's just say for folk well into burning, google Lewes Bonfire Night...

[@JensterEx]

Yeah. Burning was reserved for Catholics and occasionally protestants (depending on the faith of the monarch). Witches were hung or drowned. A common belief in medieval times was that witches floated (like wood...there's a hilarious Monty python sketch where they explain the theory) or couldn't drown. Witches would then thrown into water or even tied to heavy things and submerged. If the woman floated, or managed not to drown, she was clearly a witch, and so would be hung. If she drowned then she wasn't a witch, would be exonerated. She would still be dead, but since she was innocent she'd be in heaven so that was ok. The definition of a witch was spurious, and entirely depended on the views of the local magistrate. Because of this mobs would often "test" a witch before taking them before the local magistrate. A failure to drown being as good as having forensic evidence these days.

[@lizzym1112]

cogidubnus1953 lewes bonfire night is honestly amazing

[@YourBeingParanoid]

Don't forget the drowning

[@welshdragon99]

Anne Boleyn was beheaded for being a witch, it wasn't because her husband fell in love with someone else and wanted rid of her or anything, she was clearly a witch...

[@infinitepossibilities1601]

I’ve seen two KZbin videos of Americans making a British cup of tea. One even put it in the microwave (horrors!). They also both put lots of milk in so it looked like watery milk. Please can you explain properly to your American fans how to make a proper British cup of tea. Your channel is so great and you’re the only ones I’ve seen who know what they are actually talking about. Keep up the good work xx

[@WanderingRavens]

NOO!! The horror! We'll set them straight forthwith!

[@stayforthepeelpronpls4774]

I saw that video. It genuinely hurt my soul.

[@robbiemcneil34]

Distance oneself from those who can't make tea, away with them.

[@Llian_C]

It's not just the Americans, I had to record a video of making tea on whatsapp for one of my italian friends.

[@ianmills9266]

I've seen this video, it's being treated as an act of war.

[@Heresskip]

I feel like in the UK if a some lads come to do work on your house and you Dont offer them a cup of tea people are gonna think you're really strange. Theres a reason its called a builders brew. Like, offering a tea to the plumber or home hairdresser is Ingrained.

[@WanderingRavens]

Ohhhhhh, we always wondered why it was called a builders brew :D

[@ShiningBlueCircle]

.... and it is always taken with sugar. I don’t take sugar myself but always keep some for when I’ve got the builders in (not a euphemism this time - does have another meaning)

[@Cheezsoup]

Lydia Stewart "builders brew." Only such if it has at least 25 sugars. :O)

[@martinunitt]

I'm actually drinking a mug of tea and having a slice of Victoria Sponge whilst watching this video.

[@WanderingRavens]

Sounds lovely!

[@watchtheskies]

I'm dunking Jaffa cakes in my tea :)

[@peteradams408]

you cany whack it, hope you enjoyed the cake.

[@pwalker8814]

I'm rather partial to Tunnocks Teacakes

[@antonycharnock2993]

Ooh! Cup o' tea and a nice slice o' cake! kzbin.info/www/bejne/lX3Hh5WFodCAorc

[@KernowWarrior]

It would be the utmost rudeness not to offer a guest a cup of tea the moment they walk through the door.

[@richardsevern2973]

When my family requires someone to leave, they ask ......"Would you like a cup of tea before you go?"

[@Colsey616]

just pls no

[@qwadratix]

When you say 'student', you mean pupil. You don't get to be called a student until you go to university in the UK.

[@WanderingRavens]

We didn't know! Thanks for letting us know how the word "student" is used in the UK :D

[@Bob_just_Bob]

To Americans the definition of Student is: one who studies Be it a kid in kindergarten or one in university, an employee on a training course, an 85 year old taking courses at a community college or someone like myself who as a hobby studies astrophysics and might refer to myself as a student of the sciences.

[@slightlyconfused876]

6th formers are also students. Student means people who stay in education after the legal age limit.

[@qwadratix]

@@slightlyconfused876 No they ain't. They'd like to imitate the US system because they think it gives them more status - but they're not. 🤣

[@stevenr6397]

@@qwadratix well i left school and went to college for my sixth form years where you are most certainly a student, it is after all voluntary further education that i feel defines the term

[@rachaeljones837]

I grew up close to an old parish church and they used to practice bell ringing every Thursday night too. Then, of course, on Sunday morning the bells rang for church services. I loved to hear them and really miss it. 💒

[@shadow1653]

I’m so impressed by grace she pronounced all the British place names right

[@tracymorgan-roberts9704]

I really respect the amount of research you do, and how genuinely interested you are in British culture. I never comment on videos usually but just wanted to say I really enjoy your videos and think you are a great couple. Cheers!

[@izziefletcher3385]

i think it’s pretty important to learn the differences between england, the uk and britain because a lot of people i know from the uk that aren’t from england get very offended by the mistakes.

[@RKbebop]

Coffee consumption in the UK has increased and tea consumption declined in the last fifty years because of the increased use of drinks machines in offices and factories. Coffee from such machines is not too bad but tea is ghastly.

[@WanderingRavens]

That makes sense!

[@nickmason279]

I need to correct you. Coffee from vending machines is diabolical and the tea is really diabolical. 😃

[@martynnotman3467]

@@nickmason279 but neither are as bad as hot chocolate from vending machines..

[@davidjones332]

@@martynnotman3467 We used to have a school vending machine that offered mulligatawny soup; now that was a crime against humanity!

[@MrPaultopp]

Look in the back of coffee machines, vile , gloopy, smelly, mouldy .....yuk no thanks

[@humphreywilson1125]

Greetings from someone imprisoned in quarantine in Hong Kong. Your videos have helped the time pass. One observation....when you say "student" we think "university student" who is usually at least 18 - you're referring to "school pupils" or "school children" wearing uniforms

[@WanderingRavens]

Greetings, Humphrey! So glad you enjoy our videos! Thank you for letting us know about the UK's use of the word "student." You're right, we were using it to talk about under 18s

[@schwamenian9074]

I wonder if this is a regional or generational difference. I work at a high school in the UK (age 11-18) and we exclusively refer to them as students. Pupils feels very old-fashioned to me.

[@humphreywilson1125]

Schwamenian hey that's interesting. I wonder if it's a contextual thing - I can imagine referring to school children as students in a professional context within a school, but I do feel that without context if someone just uses the unqualified word "student" fairly universally most people would think of adult students.

[@daviddempsey7675]

There was a move many years ago to abolish uniforms but the parents hit back as kids would come home as dedicated followers of fashion and it was found that it was a lot less expensive for kids to wear uniforms than not ...Just think how expensive sneakers (trainers) are and the results of pester power

[@WanderingRavens]

The uniforms make a lot of sense! Then you don't have to worry about rich kids making other kids feel inferior with what they wear.

[@lelem1052]

@@WanderingRavens 100% this still happens. I remember at primary school we didn't have a specified skirt. It just had to be grey. Some people went really basic. Some people had flowers on theirs and cute pleats or whatever. So it definitely still happens. Again with things like shoes, you can get cheap ones or expensive ones. I personally wear non-uniform to sixth form and I love it because I just throw on whatever and I can be comfy. I don't have to wear a blazer and I don't have to try and find a skirt that fits my waist but is way too short and I get yelled at for but that's just how our uniform skirts were.

[@anthony3557]

With regards to placenames, the ending -ingham means 'the homestead of ...'s people' in Anglosaxon. Historically, Nottingham was originally called Snottingham - you have to pity the guy called Snot! - and the radio show 'I'm sorry I haven't a clue' once claimed that the people of Scunthorpe inexplicably declined to follow their example ...

[@philiprandall473]

During the 1960s in Nottingham,We were taught it was called Snotingaham

[@sammygirl5835]

If the bells ring on the hour, possibly half and quarter hour - that’s mechanical. The Salisbury Cathedral clock mechanism dates from the late 14th century. What most parish churches and cathedrals have is a Ring of Bells, usually 6, 8 or 12. They are numbered by pitch going down. 1 is the treble, then 2 is the next lowest etc. The normal way these bells are rung is change ringing. If you ring 132456 you’ve rung one change, there are multiple combinations of changes that can be rung and it sounds wonderful. Change ringing originated in 17th Century England. Some British place names are literally descriptive - Norfolk = the north folk, Suffolk = the south folk. Northumberland = land north of the river Humber, Oxford = where the oxen can ford the river, Axminster = the minster church beside the river Ax .

[@Jamestruin]

All classes, but all can use the NHS....get with the program America! X

[@WanderingRavens]

We're trying!

[@Llian_C]

In regards to the bellringing. You do get automation from the clock hammer to chime on the hour and potentially playing something like westminster quarters. However the clockhammers are released when you are going to actually ring the bells (so they won't try and strike the bells when being rung which could cause a fair bit of damage). I spent a lot of my childhood around them as my dad was the tower captain of our village church. I learnt to ring myself when I was about 6 or 7 but I haven't been up in a tower for near a decade now.

[@veronicamcclure]

There is even a children's song about the different cathedral bells, and what ringing them means.

[@LongdownConker]

i live in a small town in the very north of Scotland where its mostly countryside and small towns and i would definitely say the class system is much much more watered down here, and we all tend to socialise with everyone. For tea and coffee drinking, here its customary to offer a guest a cup of tea or coffee when they arrive and every time they finish their drink lol. I actually end up drinking more tea than usual when im with friends lol. Its also customary to offer any worker (like builder, plumber, electrician, gardener etc) at your house a tea or coffee

[@welshdragon99]

The class thing is very similar to that in Wales. We have a few upper class people who keep themselves to themselves and everyone else is only really divided by rural/urban and geography.

[@mw01908]

Looking forward to the end of covid 19, when you can invite people into your house again, and offer them tea without worrying about making them ill

[@LongdownConker]

@@mw01908 definitely!

[@hectorthorverton4920]

Well done Ravens! You get so much spot on - Grace's pronunciation especially. Don't worry about class. Not only do much of us not care at all about it, but it's so subtle that every other person will understand it differently. In the end, for me it's just that we tend to make our friends among the people who use language in the same way, so that we won't fall out through misunderstanding. You two, as offcumd'uns (as my mother would have put it,) can be all things to all men, and class won't affect you at all.

[@WanderingRavens]

Yay! So glad to hear I got the pronunciations correct :D We're learning how to navigate UK city and town names 😂Also glad to hear that class won't affect us in the UK.

[@wencireone]

@@WanderingRavens not unless your rich 😉

[@ShiningBlueCircle]

@Wandering Ravens you are basically non-combatants in our class war.

[@hectorthorverton4920]

@@ShiningBlueCircle In that case we ought to be careful about 'collateral damage'.

[@oliverthew856]

I think it's less a case of loving tea but more a culture thing. I suppose it's more a sign off hospitality and generosity. It's something to do whilst having a chat. People aren't obsessed with the flavour, more the comforting factor of a warm drink

[@joegotts1695]

There is a large class system so it doesn’t really matter for most people so there are distinctive classes but I don’t think that generally it has a huge effect on who people talk to or really anything like that

[@personface5457]

Here's an interesting factoid re the British Class system for you guys. One key outcome that you might assume of the British Class system is that there is low social mobility between the various classes Vs the USA with its apparently class-free society. However, studies have found that there is higher social mobility in the UK compared to the US, and that the American people perceive much higher levels of social mobility within their own country than they actually do. British people on the other hand perceive themselves to have lower social mobility than they actually have. Source: The Economist.

[@lp6335]

I love how Grace has started to match Eric and his one shirt! 😹 Your videos are the highlight of the week in our house! Thanks guys x

[@WanderingRavens]

Aww, we're so glad you enjoy our videos!! xx

[@lolagraham8013]

Btw public schools means the opposite in the uk

[@WanderingRavens]

Thanks for letting us know, Lola!

[@paulspira]

@@WanderingRavens we call schools funded by the council "state schools" as in run by the state, or "comprehensives" because they are supposed to provide a comprehensive education, a public school is paid for by the "public" who send their children to it. We also have academies and various religious schools that are sort of part funded through the council school system but also recieve funding from external sources like universities or the church (C of E schools)

[@ozzymerkinrugsdownunder2485]

A public school is the same as a private school, but you have to pass an entrance exam I believe?

[@zoukatron]

We also have some schools we refer to as private schools - they tend to be smaller and less well known than the public schools.

[@humphreywilson1125]

@@MagentaOtterTravels I've seen two explanations for the term public school. Firstly, they were open to anyone in the public who would pay the fees. Secondly, they aimed to prepare their pupils for "public service" - army, civil service, etc.

[@stevetaylor8698]

The word, "student" is an Americanism which only took hold here in the UK in the 1980s. Prior to that, students were young people who were attending university or other post education establishments - technical colleges, nursing schools etc. Children still in mandatory education ie schools, were known as pupils.

[@WanderingRavens]

We weren't aware that the UK used "student" differently! Thanks for letting us know, Steve :)

[@stayforthepeelpronpls4774]

Yh student just means a young adult in education

[@rowanclarke5703]

@@EaterOfBaconSandwiches I doubt it, as High School doesn't mean the same thing in the US

[@Llian_C]

@@EaterOfBaconSandwiches We used the term high school (admitedly born in 1990) but I grew up in Worcestershire and the school progression in my area was Primary (yr1-5), middle (yr6-8) and high(yr9-11). I'm not sure what else they would have been refered to before high school when it's a 3 tier system in our area.

[@humphreywilson1125]

@@EaterOfBaconSandwiches isn't a high school a grammar school for girls?

[@clarezigner6028]

To understand the English Class System,you should read: Jane Austin, Thomas Hardy and Daniel Defoe. In Robinson Cruso, Robinson's father praises the Middle-class, the whole of Jane Austin and Thomas Hardy deal with Class Issues. Charles Dickens also deals with the Class System in his many novels.you will enjoy these authors and their works.

[@wonderland1985]

Not sure it’s correct to say ‘tea is on the way out’. I am tea, tea and more tea.

[@wencireone]

I think the survey was done by Starbucks 😉

[@WanderingRavens]

Good to hear! It would be a shame for tea to leave!

[@johnmccallum8512]

I drink lots of TEA at home but when I am away from home it is coffee all the time.

[@rachaeljones837]

Coffee is very popular here and we love a visit to a coffee shop, but tea is definitely not going anywhere! Not in my experience anyway. It's tea, tea and biscuits, another tea, tea and a chat, all day long. 😆

[@Butterflylion1]

Family of tea monsters

[@tomstorey8559]

You have to visit York it'll take you a good week to see and do everything, it's so historic x

[@WanderingRavens]

We can't wait to go North!

[@iandale948]

@@WanderingRavens york is a viking settlement theres a interactive museum there called the jorvic centre a national railway museum and you can walk round the perimeter of the city via the castle walls the streets are like walking down diagon alley from harry potter a very beautiful city to explore

[@ShiningBlueCircle]

@Wandering Ravens if you do get to York do not miss Betty’s Cafe Tea Rooms for afternoon tea. Don’t be put off by the queue outside it goes pretty quick. It is the law that you order a Fat Rascal to go with your tea. Also check out the mirror downstairs - Betty’s was a favourite for American Bomber crews during WWII and many left their signatures scratched into the mirror.

[@izziefletcher3385]

yes! i went to York and there are so many cool cultural things there! i loves how they had some really old narrow streets. they were so cool!

[@acinonyxjubatus9338]

I love York one of my favourite places to visit only a few hours from where I live and if you do go I recommend going to the dungeons as you can learn a lot about British history and it super fun

[@TheMattlockyer]

As satisfying as it is that you both love the UK I would still be interested to know your experiences and thoughts of France.

[@mollyonyxbox]

A town near me in Wales has an incredible long name which roughly translates to the directions to said town - “ St Mary's church in the hollow of the white hazel near to the fierce whirlpool of St Tysilio of the red cave “. I’ve always called the town Llanfair PG (occasionally Llanfair gogogoch) like most who live near by but it’s actually called Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch. It’s easier to say than it looks if you know the basics of the welsh alphabet/pronunciation and it’s a great party trick to my English friends who always ask about it.

[@WanderingRavens]

Haha, we've been avoiding trying to say that town for a long time 😂😂

[@mollyonyxbox]

Wandering Ravens the easiest way to describe how to say it is: Clan-fire-pull-gwin-gic-go geric-quin drob ich- clan toe silly oh- go go goch (that’s not totally accurate but it’s the easiest way to write it phonetically to somebody who doesn’t know welsh)

[@Rosie6857]

@@WanderingRavens Don't bother to try. The name is a joke and to my mind a tiresome one, concocted by a local trader who wanted to publicise the place over a hundred years ago. The proper name is Llanfairpwllgwyngyll, enough of a mouthful in itself and always abbreviated to Llanfair P.G. Some distance to the east is a similar name, Llanfair T.H. or Llanfairtalhaearn "the church of St Mary by the iron". There is also Llanarmon D.C. or Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog "the church of St Harmon (in the) valley of the Ceiriog". If you can get your mouth round these you will have my undying admiration even though for me (a sort-of Welsh speaker) they are a piece of piss, i.e. very easy.

[@kaitlinberanek4539]

also our monetary levels for 'middle class' differ to the uk! in the uk 'middle class' refers to higher incomes than in the us. it seems like our middle class encompasses a wider range of income levels generally.

[@madabbafan]

Lancaster - Yay my home city. (Yes you did pronounce it correctly) it would have been a fort town and the castle now stands where the fort would probably have been. It is where the Pendle witches were on trial. Also Lancaster still castle holds Lancaster crown court and this court has passed more death sentences than any other court room in the UK and is also the site of the most public executions outside of London.

[@Bob_just_Bob]

Those town naming conventions were very interesting thanks. As was the coffee/tea war info. When I was a teenager in CT our schools as you said didn’t have school uniforms but there was a Catholic school in the area and those kids did have to wear them. Also, in the area nearby there were some “Rich kids” private schools and they too had to wear uniforms. Love the show! Keep it coming!

[@WanderingRavens]

So glad you enjoyed this episode, Bob! We appreciate you!

[@Bob_just_Bob]

Wandering Ravens 😁😁😁

[@seejaybee71]

There are many more "hidden" meanings behind the names of towns. I live in Birmingham, which when broken down means "The homestead of the descendants of Beorma", being made up of the personal name "Beorma" plus the Anglo-Saxon "-ingas" meaning descendants, and "-hame" meaning homestead. The modern name has smoothed that out a little, but it's still in there. A "-by" would have been a Norse village, a "-thorpe" also a village, a "-ton" a farmstead, a "-borough" or "-burgh" a stronghold. A "-ford" will be at a river crossing, and a "-ley" may well be have been a woodland clearing. Look out for "Norton", "Sutton", "Aston" and "Weston" as these refer ro the compass points and may well be paired up with another placename (e.g. Aston Subedge and Weston Subedge, these being villages beneath - Sub - the ridge of the Cotswold hills - the Edge). The problem for Americans is that the early settlers from Britain often named their new settlements after the places they had left behind, but the name now lost its original meaning, so Plymouth MA is not at the mouth of any river, let alone one called the Plym. Given that, you can understand why it came as a revelation to the Wandering Ravens that the names meant so much. Of course, they come from a city whose name *does* have a meaning, being named after Chief Seattle, or is it Sia'hl, I was told by our tour guide ...

[@tvubaby4337]

I'm British and absolutely adore the US and Americans so it's nice to see the love is mutual lol. You two are awesome!

[@paulm5885]

Check out a jar of Mellow Birds coffee this was the type of coffee largely available in the 70's - one sip and you'll understand why

[@griffinf123]

Haha so true! Bless Joanna Lumley 🤣

[@tonywilliams1493]

My late mother drank that up until her passing in 2008. As if it wasn't disgusting enough, she would add 2 sugars and evaporated milk.

[@ThePurityControl]

Since you're talking about place names, time was that if you were on a train going through Castleford and Pontefract it would get announced as 'Cas Vegas' and 'Ponte Carlo'. Doesn't happen so often these days.

[@unknownregions5014]

A town with Regis at the end of their name like Bognor Regis, Lyme Regis or Bere Regis were all either opened by Royalty or had land own by royalty. Bognor Regis was declared with Regis in 1929 by the King at the time.

[@WanderingRavens]

Didn't know! Thanks for sharing that with us :D

[@ShiningBlueCircle]

And King George V last words are reputed to be “Bugger Bognor” it having been suggested that a trip to Bognor Regis would improve his health. It is also where Billy Butlin began his Career owning and running Butlin holiday centres (the first was in Skegness) - a great British tradition and the training ground for a lot of our entertainers.

[@anghinetti]

@@ShiningBlueCircle: King George V recouperated at Bognor following his serious illness of 1928 and he supposedly bestowed 'Regis' upon the town in recognition of this. His last words are supposed to have been "Bugger Bognor" but that was in January 1936. In fact, he 'uttered the words "Oh, Bugger Bognor" upon receiving a petition to bestow Regis ('of the king') upon the town. His private secretary responded to the petitioners to the effect the king was pleased to allow the petition.

[@Kieratinous]

The meaning of Pontefract is well known and easy to remember, because there's a pub there called The Broken Bridge. Also at 2:11 you put Beamish in there twice instead of Pontefract.

[@applejuice5272]

9:27 Well done guys! Usually we just say DEFRA (deaf-ra) - saves a lot of time!

[@ulrichvanfrog]

Place names in Wales normally describe what is nearby. For example:- Caer - castle as in Caernarfon, Caerphilly, Cardiff (Caerdydd in Welsh) Aber - river mouth as in Aberystwyth, Abergavenny. Bryn - hill Bach -small Castell - small castle Llan - enclosure or church Pentre - village Cae - Field Mawr - big Bont - Bridge

[@martinhughes2549]

Caer can also mean a Roman fort, eg Caerhun or Caerllion, or a hill fort.

[@hectorthorverton4920]

Interesting point about coffee. Have you noticed that European nations often traditionally get coffee from their ex-colonies? In France it's Algeria, Portugal Brazil, Spain, well, most of South America, UK Kenya and Tanzania. Netherlands coffee is to me some of the best, since it's from Indonesia (Java my absolute Fave) UK coffee in the 1970s was trash. One reason we drink more is that it's one of those (rare) things that has actually got better. A lot better.

[@rosiecass5837]

I am loving your content, as per usual! I would really love it if you could do a video on learning about the North of England and the North East of England (as this is where I am from). I think you would be so impressed and surprised by the history and facts of Newcastle upon Tyne. Love you guys! Also!... Perhaps you should do a Geordie dialect /slang quiz, much like you did with Scottish slang.

[@owenjefferiesmusic7732]

Omg, i've never been on any video on youtube this soon after posting. Also, please do more wales related videos please? Would love to see you eat some welsh delicacies. :) Cymru am Byth!

[@Trag1cVision]

Mae angen mwy arnom bob tro! Always left out, lol.

[@WanderingRavens]

Great idea, Owen! We'll brainstorm some Welsh video ideas!

[@owenjefferiesmusic7732]

@UCmGIqm1zxEHdRRoQiyjfZWQ Behave hahaha. The reason for all the sheep jokes is funny though. For anyone who doesn't know, I can't remember when, but at some point welsh farmers would cross the border to steal english sheep, getting caught thieving meant the removal of a hand (or maybe other appendage), but the punishment of buggery wasn't as severe. Thus the quick dropping of trousers and under garments.

[@WanderingRavens]

@@owenjefferiesmusic7732 Noo! Is that really why? Brilliant! 😂😂

[@owenjefferiesmusic7732]

@@WanderingRavens it's the story I've heard over and over and I think there might be evidence to back it up, though where you'd find that info, I haven't a clue. Looking forward to anything Wales related. 😊

[@rowanclarke5703]

You mentioned Bewdley with the derivation of Beau and Lieu and there is actually a place in the New Forest called Beaulieu; it's where the National Motor Museum is.

[@mikesaunders4775]

There is also a 'Belvoir' in Leicestershire,but in actual fact French-derived names are pretty rare.

[@wonderland1985]

Towns ending in “thorpe” are also Viking in origin and are mainly found on the east coast. Places like Mablethorpe or Scunthorpe.

[@derpimusmaximus8815]

I remember when the adverts told us that Typhoo put the 't' in Britain. I'd always wondered about Scunthorpe...

[@WanderingRavens]

We didn't know! Thanks for sharing that with us, Rob :)

[@iandale948]

i lived in a village called bilsthorpe in nottinghamshire a local history book said the word thorpe meant farm

[@anghinetti]

@@WanderingRavens: And place-names ending with 'ea' or 'ey' usually originate from the Saxon word for island, land surrounded by marsh or even a landing place by water - as in Chelsea, Battersea, Hackney, Swansea. Also can originate from a clearing in a wood, as in Bletchley. There are many more examples....

[@jimbo6059]

Also villages and towns ending in 'ley' are from the Viking danelaw period

[@vladhammer96]

Another interesting city fact is that in Scandinavian-heritage cities such as my own Derby (Darby), any roads that have the word 'Gate' in them, refer to what was found on that road. e.g. Friars Gate was where the local monastery was, Iron Gate had the Blacksmiths.

[@johnclements6614]

Tea is not on its way out.

[@camerachica73]

American blasphemers!

[@WanderingRavens]

Glad to hear you're fighting back, John! Would be a shame if it left!

[@wencireone]

It's on the way in , to every home 😉

[@johnclements6614]

@@WanderingRavens The most coffee seems to be drunk by older people.Just looked that up which surprised me. Not sure if younger people are drinking more tea. Thanks for the videos.

[@WanderingRavens]

@@camerachica73 Don't burn the messenger, we were just quoting a British government organization 😉

[@roncornfoot456]

The next time that you are in the UK you must try and visit a Victorian Sewage Pumping House you will then see the most amazing 150+year old engineering. Some of these places are just museums but some have been restored and work. Try and visit one when it working they are amazing and the decoration inside has to be seen to be believed. I would like to hear your comments on them. You can check on u tube to see pictures of these places.

[@StephanieG1]

Grace you pronounced "Edinburgh" perfectly! 😀

[@Alice-hn2cp]

Just a quick thank you for not doing five minute intros like A LOT of channels do, it’s so annoying when you just want to get to the video. So thank you 😊

[@thegingerwitch322]

The hour. half hour and the quarter bells ARE automatic. They aren't rung by people!

[@WanderingRavens]

Good to know!

[@NicholasJH96]

Wandering Ravens this also applies to clocks you see them in.

[@andysutcliffe3915]

Clock bells are automatic, it’s church bells that are rung by people

[@mw01908]

@@andysutcliffe3915 Correct

[@cmcculloch1]

Theres a village not that far from where i live called 'Pity Me' - no idea why though, but having driven through it a load of times i could take a guess

[@ianlegg9765]

Yes, not far from No Place and Quaking Houses. I'm from that neck of the woods but the country side is beautiful. Our favourite is Beamish.

[@sutzmiah4638]

I like how Grace is showing solidarity by wearing same colour shirt. Also it seems like you didn't really learn one thing from the documentary bout class, which is we don't have or say 'low class', it's 'working class'.

[@zukc3r850]

i must admit it made me chuckle when you said that George Washington is turning in his grave, the same way it makes me chuckle when you see George Washington in American TV and film speaking with an American accent, seeing he was an Englishman and lived in England for the majority of his life and was known to love Britain, he just disliked the king and primarily the prime minister, who did not really have the best interests of the British people (both native and colonial) in mind, a sentiment i'm sure a large amount of British people, including myself, share today.

[@iandawkins2182]

You should look at a Derbyshire village called Eyam that cut itself off to stop the plague in 1666 scarifying many lives. Very poignant in these trying times.

[@oasis4life014]

I live in Ilkeston only 20 miles away from there full of history going right back to the roman times

[@iandawkins2182]

@@oasis4life014 Hi, I live in Shardlow a very historic village in Derby not far from you, was once the larges canal port in the country. Derbyshire has a lot to offer in beautiful countryside and historical content for tourists.

[@ukmitch86]

@@iandawkins2182 big fan of Bakewell, these guys should go there. It's busy enough on a bank holiday as it is though!

[@mw01908]

@@ukmitch86 Bakewell is a must visit, for sure.

[@mmigesh4735]

I lived in Little London, East Sussex, which is one of several similarly named places around London where folk moved to for escape from the Plague. I now live near Little London outside Hereford (Welsh: Hen Ffordd - old road).

[@barefootdee1]

There is also Anglo Saxon "bury" which means a fortified place such as Banbury, Aylesbury, Shaftsbury

[@jerry2357]

Deadre Appleton It’s the same root as “burgh” and “borough” (and the German “burg” which also means a castle or fortified place).

[@mikesaunders4775]

It is very close to the Swedish pronunciation of 'Borg',which means the same thing. Goteborg,for example is pronounced 'Yerterborry '

[@laurensteenkamp7693]

The United Kingdom comes from when King James of Scotland took the English (and Welsh) throne after Queen Elizabeth the 1st died, King James I (I want to say he was the 6th James to rule Scotland) caused the Pendle witch trials thanks to the book (pamphlet) he wrote on daemons or something like that. Great Britain is the 4 component nations together, all of the Viking place names are in the north of England. In the UK we tend to call anyone ins school a pupil and anyone at university a student, also privately funded education= Public school whereas publicly funded education= State school

[@WanderingRavens]

Yes! Daemonologie was the book - freaky stuff haha

[@richouk]

Great Britain is the name of the island that consists of England, Scotland and Wales. That's why the UK is sometimes referred as the United kingdom of great Britain and northern island.

[@robbiemcneil34]

Actually no, you are thinking of James the IV and that was only a personal union of crowns due to him marrying Margaret Tudor, it was never a political Union. James the VI however did try to create a British Union of the Crowns, but was told no by Parliament, even though he tried it through proclamation it was never statute. Despite sharing a monarchy, Scotland and England continued as separate countries with separate parliaments for over one hundred more years. It was under Queen Anne that the Acts of Union 1707 where written into statute.

[@neilbuckley1613]

To be fair I doubt King James was aware of a witch craft trial in such a back of beyond place as Pendle. Evidence is that James's interest in witchcraft fell off markedly once he lived in London.

[@chelsal]

Great video guys , so pleased to see how quickly your channel is growing :)

[@WanderingRavens]

Thank you for the encouragement, Alan! We appreciate you! :)

[@lipkinasl]

For me: Tea = yummmmmy. Coffee = ewwww! I can't stand coffee taste as drink or in cake or chocolates, or any other places it is used.

[@Oddballkane]

This is me as well can't stand coffee.

[@WanderingRavens]

Grace agrees!

[@neilbuckley1613]

@@WanderingRavens I'm English, I love coffee [ the real stuff, instant is just about drinkable] and find tea to be nauseating.Colombian coffee seems consistently good.

[@thebeebster551]

The majority of people tend to stick to one or the other most of the time, in my experience.

[@rach_laze]

Speaking as someone from the area, Pontefract back then probably was a cool town. It was an important royal residence during the early norman period, now all it has is some castle ruins, a racecourse and plenty of low cost housing estates. Fun fac for.if anyone ever wants to know more about what used to be in an area without doing research look at what they've called their wetherspoons, the one in pontefract is called the broken bridge, the one in castleford town centre is in the old glass blowers and is surprisingly enough called the glass blower and the one at Xscape sits on top of a coal seam called the winter seam, no prizes for guessing what that ones called 🙄

[@tonycasey3183]

George Bernard Shaw, is a great example of one of the differences. UK Bernard pron. BURN'uhd USA Bernard pron B'n-ARD

[@lelem1052]

Class has always been a very prevalent part of English society. It really stems from william of Normandy again although there definitely was still classes before that. But the feudal system placed king, noble, knights, slaves. Again, before this we had the Anglo-Saxon system of king, the witan, eorls, thanes, ceorls. It was pretty difficult to move class systems at this point in time although ceorls could advance to thanes but no higher. Similarly, normandy slaves could by their way out or sell their way in to being a slave. So that is why there is such a strong sense of class in England and a lot of it still affects the way people percieve accents and the like in todays society. There has recently been schools attempting to ban slang in places such as Sheffield in order to help their children apparently get better jobs.

[@jasonhendry8136]

While there is breath in my lungs I will forever drink tea.

[@brianberry1931]

I am a resident of Pontefract In Yorkshire, so it was interesting to hear it referred to in the video. Pontefract Castle was one of the most important northern castles. It was one of the last English Castles to remain in Royalist hands during the civil war. Oliver Cromwell’s parliamentary forces finally brought about its downfall. They then demolished it so as to prevent it falling back into royalist hands. Later the grounds were used for the cultivation of liquorice, which was used for medicinal purpose before Dr Dunhill added sugar and invented sweet liquorice. The sweets are still made in Pontefract.

[@paulspira]

DEFRA... an acronym almost no-one remembers the meaning of XD well done for remembering it guys!

[@WanderingRavens]

THANK YOU! That's a much easier way of saying it 😂

[@GamerBaharroth]

@@WanderingRavens I was impresssed. It's a mouthful but they do have some overlap. The one that makes me laugh is Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (you see why it's usually called DCMS). It's like the department for "other" or whatever was left. I feel like the secretary for that is rarely on the news most of the time, and then you'll get a week where they're doing 3 interviews on 3 completely different topics. Multi-tasking job that.

[@ricmac954]

Saxon and Norman stylings are sometimes combined in place names such as Maltby-le-Marsh or Ashby-de-la-Zouche.

Share a common language? You mean separated by a common language. Edit: You mentioned GBS. Fair play.

[@libertinoradio4597]

As Tom says below, come to York! You'd love it. There is a medieval era street called Shambles and another street near it called Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma-Gate. The class system, most people in the UK are so used to it they don't really notice it. Once you notice it and think about it it's a bit like a form of racism. We have had 20 Prime Ministers (5 since WW2) from one school, Eton. Your class has an enormous impact on your life chances in many ways. I am drinking tea as I watch your video. You make a lovely couple by the way, glad you are having fun. Best wishes.

[@Ethan-qm9qt]

A good book/movie that’s taught in schools about the class system is ‘An inspector calls’ it’s set just before WW1 but deals with pretty much what you mentioned with Bezos about a very wealthy working class man wanting to be upper class

[@t.a.k.palfrey3882]

This book, of course, was derived from the Russian author, Gogol's, book called (in translation) The Government Inspector.

[@lelem1052]

Another example of william of Normandys names is Belvoir. It means beautiful view and belvoir castle is one of the first Normandy castles to be built. It was named by William the first.

[@thisisstuart7951]

you said all those places correctly Eric its a Glasgow kiss not Glasweign kiss

[@Cheezsoup]

stuart balchin ' Glescae kiss', surely?

[@davidmarsden9800]

Any town ending caster was originally a Roman camp or fort. The Normans were decended from Vikings, Rollo the Viking was raiding up the River Seine frequently until the French king granted him Normandy. He was also the founder of the Isle of Man.

[@tonycasey3183]

Bezos would be classed as nouveau riche.

[@WanderingRavens]

Where would that fit on the class ladder?

[@tonycasey3183]

@@WanderingRavens A middle class person might look up to him, but a baronet, even one working as a roadsweeper would look down their nose and consider them an upstart. That is not to say that they wouldn't try to cultivate a friendship in the hope that some of the wealth might run off.

[@davidbutler7602]

Wandering Ravens nouveau Roche is new money, quite vulgar!! 😂😂 it is exactly like you said, their kids would go to the right school, talk correctly, mix in the right circles etc.

[@ShiningBlueCircle]

He is in trade so he would at best be middle class. He doesn’t have a profession, all he has to say for himself is money and that cuts no ice. He would not be part of “the establishment”. Certainly never a gentleman. Buying a baronetcy or lord of the manor title would be a bit sad maybe even naff. In some ways the English class system is a matrix not a ladder. It is a criss-cross of different identities. If he aspires to build a family name he might send his children to a senior public school which would get them some connections. He might take up owning race horses if he wanted to hob-nob with royals. A football club if he wanted to suck up to metro elites. 100 years ago he could have bought his way into the class system by marrying his daughters to impoverished earls and dukes. But beware of being seen as flashing the cash obviously. If he wants a knighthood or something like that he will have to cough up a bit more in taxes from Amazon. (nb. I have tried to squeeze in as many English colloquialism as I can - even a couple of rhyming compounds of which we have a lot and Americans seem lacking)

[@laurafuoco7046]

Yeah came to say this. If you come from working class stock but are now a bazzillion-aore you'll be seen as new money, an outsider to both working class and the upper classes

[@catrionabain1663]

Most parish churches have both automated and mechanical bells. So the hourly bells are automatic but the wedding, christening and Sunday bells are typically done manually with different chimes meaning different things. As a kid I would have to be home by the last ring of The 7 or 8 o’clock bell

[@MrJoeshipley]

To my knowledge we use Upper, Middle and Working class as opposed to lower class.

[@MrJoeshipley]

And Bezos would not be considered working class. The class system is a lot more complicated now that working class people are given more opportunities that previously.

[@stephenjones3591]

The super rich might have left the working class, but they could still be Common. Hold their knives the wrong way, buy a personalised number plate, pronounce the T in Often, put their car in a garridge not a garage, try just that little bit too hard, the list of class denominators is endless. But the accent is the one certain test. And yes, you have to be British to play this game! Incidentally, it's not necessarily an advantage to be posh! You won't fit in easily with ordinary people. And it makes no difference how much or how little money you have. Either you're Someone Like Them, or you're not.

[@golfmk2driver]

Generally church bell towers in the uk are automated when they are ringing on the hour. I know my local church has a giant pair of weights that run a mechanical clock. One weight for the clock face and one for the hammer that rings the bell. But usually any musical tune being played is by people.

[@littlemisshappy2002]

Your love affair with haggis is hilarious 😂

[@alittlebitofkatie]

Most church bells are automatic. My parents parish has two CoE churches within 5 minute walk of each other, one rings every quarter of an hour during the day. It plays a four bar tune and plays a section of it depending on the time. So at quarter past it plays bar 1, half past it plays bar 1 & 2, quater too: 1,2&3 and on the hour it plays them all, along with a number of dings for the hour. As kids it was really helpful because wherever we were in the village you could have an idea of the time without a watch (and before the age of mobile phones). These kinds of bells are a pretty common arrangement across the country and pretty much all use the same tune, with the most well known one being big ben (yes that's not just a big ben thing). The other church bell doesn't ring during the day, but on Sunday morning before the service, the single bell is rung by a person 33 times as a "call to pray". (I loved doing it with my mum as a kid). Bell ringers such as you described are fairly uncommon, although I believe they're actually becoming more popular again. Uniforms in schools are in place for a variety of reasons, but the class system and wealth is one of them. If everyone is wearing the same thing, then nobody knows anyone else's circumstances just by looking at them. It also provides a sense of unity and community. You see someone from another school, you knew that you were supposed to jeer at them. I think that one of the reasons we don't have the 'school spirit' thing that you see in the states is because we wear a uniform. We don't have jumpers or shirts with our school sports teams on because we already spend half our time with the school logo emblazoned on us that we're quite enjoying wearing our own thing and not thinking about school. When I was at school I hated wearing a uniform. Now I'm so glad I did, because seriously waking up every morning and having to get an outfit together for work is such effort. Everyone I know who either wears or has worn a uniform during their adult working life says that they much prefer(-red) it as they never have to think about what they're going to wear.

[@awhite3747]

You're ok to say DEFRA (deff-ruh) instead 😁.

[@WanderingRavens]

THANK YOU. Much easier 😂

[@davidbutler7602]

Part of the great British Civil Service

[@adamdrabble6495]

I actually live very close to Pendle hill, cheers for the shout-out! Fun fact there a statue for one of the witch's alice nutter in Roughlee

[@mollyonyxbox]

Wales only burnt a few, I think 5, witches because Wales and magic has always had a deep connection with our history of druids and other myths.

[@mooremarriott2841]

Molly Owen It's what kept the Romans out all those warlocks and warriors high as a kite on magic mushrooms fighting like maniacs

[@MonkeyButtMovies1]

True, The Black Cauldron is an accurate representation of medieval Wales :)

[@CrazyInWeston]

There is a place in Leicestershire called Ashby-de-la-Zouch. It was called "Ashby" by the way of the Anglo-Saxon naming, but during the Norman invasion the La Zouch family owned the place and thus became "Ashby-de-la-Zouch"

[@loismiller9123]

I’m British but I hate haggis 😂 sorry! ❤️❤️

[@WanderingRavens]

Oh noooooo!! 😂

[@DamnedDave]

@@WanderingRavens Haggis is not British its Roman

[@idunnoyt6557]

HOW?

[@DamnedDave]

whisky is Chinese not Scottish

[@Alucard-gt1zf]

@@DamnedDave not it isn't, haggis is first recorded as being made in England and the first reference to whisky has been found in Scotland Stop spouting shit

[@markedwards9247]

Superb video Ravens. I am English, so I would like to clarify a few points : Tea v Coffee. 50 years ago, most British would wake up to a cup of tea in the morning, and drink numerous cups throughout the day as the "go to" beverage of choice. There were also a lot of tea shops everywhere. Today the morning brew of tea has almost entirely been replaced with coffee, although we do still drink a huge amount of tea tthroughout the day. Most of the small tea shops have been replaced with big chains that mostly do coffee as a hot beverage, McD, Starbucks, Costa Coffee for example. Your research into place names was very good. But the names of towns being descriptive doesn't end there. Did you know that most surnames in the UK are descriptive as well ? You would be surprised to know that children wearing uniforms to school has a lot to do with another subject you were talking about, the class system. When universal education became compulsory in the UK, a vast majority of children went to school through the "comprehensive" system. The strict uniform code meant that the class system was not bought into the schools because everyone looked the same, there was no differentiation between the middle and lower class. (The upper class generally went to private schools like Eton). Keep making the videos. Really interesting even from a British perspective, and most of it is totally bang on.

[@emdiar6588]

Hi guys. Love your vlog. You talked about place names revealing the history of a town. Later in the video you mentioned the Pendle Hill witch trials. Here's a related fact for you that ties these two things together: Pen or Penn is an ancient Cumbric word meaning hill, so the locals would simply call the place Pen. A simple descriptive name. Later on, speakers of Anglo Saxon/Old English (pre the 13th century) showed up. Their word for hill was hyll or hul, so keeping the name that had become lost in time which locals had been using for centuries, they called the place Penhul which eventually became Pendle. Basically they were saying Hill Hill. Then, as English changed, this meaning in turn became obscure so they ended up saying "Pendle is on a hill. Let's call it Pendle Hill." So Pendle Hill actually means Hill Hill Hill. The same thing happened at Bredon Hill. Bre was Celtic for hill. Don was Old English for hill and modern English 'hill' was added. Bredon Hill also means Hill Hill Hill' The etymology of old European place names is like archaeology. As you dig deeper into word origins they reveal the population changes through the centuries. American place names that have been taken directly from these countries simply tell us that the first European settlers were home sick so used names they were used to, occasionally adding "New" at the beginning. Hollywood, Washington, Boston, York, etc etc are all place names in Britain which reveal a history of those places that doesn't apply to the American versions. Keep up the good work. Your vlog is smashing :)

[@caralifetravelfun9287]

I think Coffee is popular when out and about, and tea is more homely. I confused so many American's by saying "Want one?" and nodding to the kitchen haha. Thorpe endings are Viking too. Non of my American friends knew what half-past is haha xx

[@lesleyannismay8295]

If you come back to the UK I highly recommend that you come to Co Durham in Northof England and visit beamish open air museum. It will give you a chance to see what the North of England was like in the 18, 19 hundreds and they are expanding. Its definitely worth a visit if you make it up north

[@coreygenovese]

Public schools and private schools are both pay for entry schools I.e the same thing, I know it’s confusing. We also have grammar schools and high schools which are all boy schools and all girl schools there is an exam at the end of primary school (ages 10-11) called the 11+ which you take to be eligible to go to one of these schools (they’re supposed to be better, I went to one they’re full of pompous twats) I moved to a “community/local” school for sixth form ages (16,17,18) as soon as I could. But you’re right all schools have a uniform, we hold non uniform days every now and then for fundraising for charity :)

[@TheYopogo]

There's a thing you're getting caught out on here at 4:25 . In England we ALWAYS say "state school" not "public school". It's kind of confusing, but in Englnd "public schools" are a specific kind of private school. Most state schools are "comprehensives" which means anyone can go, and a few are "selective" which means you have to pass an exam to get in. Most private schools are what's called "independent schools", which I think are similar to most American private schools, but a small number of the top, most elite, most prestigious and oldest private schools are called "public schools". Places like Eton, Harrow and Winchester. British public schools are a very peculiar institution, and are very closely linked to our class system. Really, they go well beyond just being school and are essentially training camps where you're indoctrinated into the aristocracy. Almost all of them are boarding schools and most are either all boys or all girls schools. 3 of the last 5 Prime Ministers have been to public school; two of them, including the current one, went to the same public school: Eton. And both were in the Bullingdon Club, which is a society for ex public school men at Oxford University. Eton especially has a very particular reputation as the school which a huge proportion of Prime Ministers went to.

[@grahamsmith9541]

Another one for place names. Den in the name. Goes back to Anglo Saxon times. When she south east was covered in forest a den was a clearing for keeping pigs. So where I live Hildenborough means Pig sty near the hill. Borough added on in 1349 to indicate an administrative area. One of the things that makes place names difficult is spelling changes. Without altering the pronunciation. For example near me. Ly became Lyghe now Leigh. Still pronounced as Li, not Lee like other places with that spelling.

[@paulknox999]

School insist pupils wear uniforms for a number of reasons but for me coming from a working class back round the biggest advantage is it is a leveler of wealth. All kids wear the same so no one is singled out because their family cant afford the designer gear that some kids will wear. That would end up causing teasing and bullying of the kids that would have cheap clothes or hand me downs. Uniforms are generally only available from certain outlets.

[@MonkeyButtMovies1]

And that idea has gone to shit now because many schools will only let you wear exact stuff from one particular shop that charges ridiculous amounts of money. When I was at school my blazer alone was £50, my mother couldn't afford to get me a new one every year like the other kids so she bought one that was too big so it would last. I had to wear it until the easter holidays in year nine, by then there were acrylic paint stains that wouldn't come out in the wash, I had to wear my brothers old blazer in the summer term; boys and girls blazers were very obviously different, and I got bullied for it, so my mam bought me a new one for September. You could still tell who the poor kids were...which wouldn't have been an issue if they would just let kids wear the jumpers they sell in the supermarkets for a fiver.

[@catherinerobilliard7662]

In olden days in the village, in addition to bells ringing out the times to stop work and pray, 3 bells were tolled as a dying person passed from great illness, to coma, to death - the last bell was the lowest note and known as the corpse bell. It gave people ample time to pray for that person's soul. The bells not only rang to indicate death and dying but would, in a time of plague, tell of which one had succumbed, such as 10 tolls to indicate a man, 8 tolls a woman, and 6 a child. At funerals sometimes a single bell is still rung slowly, but it's usually at weddings you hear a peal, more as a sign of joy and tradition than to chase away evil spirits. Ask not for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee.

[@julianb1474]

If you like to walk or cycle in the countryside it's important to know about a special feature that exists there - known as "Rights of Way" (ROW) and "Bridle Paths" (BP). These are ancient walking or riding trails that have existed for hundreds of years and usurp property rights. I don't know about the rest of the country but the South is covered in them. Today it's considered OK to cycle or ride a horse on a BP, but ROW's are for walkers only. They are shown on maps like Ordnance Survey. More recently new trails have been established. In the '60's there was a great dissolution of the railway system and some of those routes have been changed to "Railtrail" suitable for cycling or walking. So, for instance I could cycle all the way from Guildford to the South coast never seeing a road on the "Downs Link" www.westsussex.gov.uk/leisure-recreation-and-community/walking-horse-riding-and-cycling/downs-link/ Additionally my favourite trail was built as part of the South Downs National Park the "South Downs Way". A 100 mile trail that stretches across the South of England. www.nationaltrail.co.uk/en_GB/trails/south-downs-way/ If you visit and would consider a cycling holiday, these are fantastic resources.

[@charliemcluckie7713]

In Scotland towns beginning with Inver or Aber mean " a confluence of waters" or "river mouth". For example Inverness, Aberdeen.