3. London – the capital city of England and
the United Kingdom lies on the River Thames,
which winds through the city. Its many bridges,
including London Bridge, are famous sight.
The most distinctive is Tower Bridge, which
was designed to blend in with the nearby
Tower of London.
The Tower, which is guarded by the
Yeomen Warders, was built in the 11th century.
In the medieval period London grew rapidly in
size and importance.
4. Westminster Abbey and the Guildhall date
from this time, and the Palace of Westminster
became the meeting place of Parliament. In
1666 many buildings were destroyed in the
Fire of London.
This provided an opportunity for architects
like Christopher Wren to redesign much of the
city.
As London’s population increased, new
streets, squares and parks were added, and
many public buildings.
London was heavily bombed in World War
II, after which a new cycle of rebuilding began.
5. London is a busy commercial and cultrural
centre. Many important financial organizations,
including the Bank of England and the london
Stock Exchange, are located in the area called
the City.
Part of the old port in east London has been
redeveloped as a business centre, called
Docklands. In the West End there are theatres,
cinemas, museums and shops.
Many people who work in London
commute by train or bus from the suburbs
because buying a house or flat near the centre
is very expensive.
6. Different parts of the city are linked by the
famous red London buses, black taxi cabs and
the London Underground, often called the
Tube.
People from all over the world have been
attracted to London and it is now a
cosmopolitan, multicultural city.
People from other parts of Britain
sometimes think that it is very noisy and dirty.
7. Many go there only for the ‘bright lights’-
the theatres round Shaftesbury Avenue or the
shops of Oxford Street and Pegent’s Street.
Others take their children to see the sights,
such as Buckingham Palace, where the Queen
lives, and the clock tower from which Big Ben
chimes the hours.
Young people are attracted to the bars and
comedy clubs of Covent Garden, to live music
concerts, and the stalls of Camden market and
the cafes and pubs of Notting Hill and similar
areas.
8. Festivals in Britain
In Britain, tickets of festival may be
expensive. This tends to restrict the number
and type of people who go to the main
festivals, and many festival-goers are middle-
aged, middle-class professional people.
This in turn can affect the type of music or
drama that the organizers put on.
Some festivals, such as the Edinburgh
Festival, have been running for many years.
9. A special feature of the Edinburgh Festival
is the Fringe. Fringe events are usually avant-
garde and attract a wide audience.
They also get a lot of attention from the
critics, and this can help the careers of younger
performers.
In Wales, several eisteddfods celebrate
Welsh culture and include competitions for
composers and artists.
Many festivals concentrate on music.
In Britain, the Aldeburgh Festival was founded
by Benjamin Britten.
10. The most famous British music festival,
however, is the Proms, held each summer at
the Royal Albert Hall in London.
Concerts contain a mixture of old
favourities and new, specially commissioned
pieces.
Festivals of rock and pop music often
huge informal open-air events attended by
thousands of people, many of whom camp
overnight in a nearby field.
11. The biggest rock festivals in Britain include
Glastonbury, Reading and the Download festival,
Donnington.
The main event in Britain is the London Film
Festival, run by the BFI. There is also the Celtic
Film and Television Festival, which promotes
Celtic languages and cultures and takes place in a
different town each year in Cornwall, Ireland,
Scotland, Wales or Brittany.
In Britain the town of Hay-on-Wye has a
literary festival, and Stratford-upon-Avon has a
poetry festival every summer.
12. Holidays & Vacations in Britain
Holiday in British English also means a
period of time spent away from work or school,
usually of a week or longer. This is called
vacation in American English. So, the period of
several weeks around Christmas when schools
are closed is called the Christmas holiday in
Britain and the Christmas vacation in the US.
Holiday and vacation are also used to refer to
the period when people go away for a time to a
beach resort or to the country, or go travelling.
British people have about four weeks’ paid leave
from their jobs.
13. Most take their main holiday in the
summer. People without children of school age
often go on holiday in the off season when
prices are lower and there are fewer other
holidaymakers.
Some people stay in Britain for their
holiday, but many rent a cottage in the country
or go to beach resorts in Europe for one or two
weeks. Some travel to the US or visit India, the
Far East and other parts of the world.
14. Many British people going abroad buy
package holidays sold on the internet or
through high-street travel agents, which
include transport, accommodation and
sometimes excursions in the price.
Some people see their holidays as an
opportunity to relax in the sun, but others
prefer activity holidays during which they can
visit famous buildings or go walking in the
countryside.
15. A few go to a holiday centre, often called a
holiday village, such as Butlin’s or Center
Parcs, which provides entertainment for all the
family.
People often arrange their holiday a long
time in advance and look forward to it through
the winter. Many people also have a short
break, usually three or four days, e.g. at a
country cottage in Britain or in a European city.
16. The New Year Holiday in Britain
New Year’s Eve is on 31 December, the last
day before the New Year begins. In many places,
people do the parties, bars or restaurants with
friends in the evening. Sometimes they meet
outside in a big square. In New York, thousands
of people go to Times Square; in London, they go
to Trafalgar Square. Just before midnight, people
look at the clock, and together they count the last
ten seconds before the New Year begins: ‘Ten,
nine, eight… ’At midnight they stand in a circle,
join hands and sing an old song called ‘Auld
Lang Syne’.
17. A Scottish man called Robert Burns wrote the
words of this song about two hundred years ago.
It is about remembering old friends. Many
people drink a glass of champagne, light some
fireworks, or dance until the sun comes up.
In Scotland, New Year’s Eve has a special
name: Hogmanay. At Hogmanay, there is a
tradition called first footing.
The first person to come into the house in the
New Year is the first foot: if he is a tall, dark man,
and someone you do not know, he will bring good
luck. He must carry some food, some money, or a
piece of coal for the fire.
18. New Year’s Eve
In Edinburgh, there are house parties and
street parties, Scottish music and dancing, parades
and lots of fireworks.
People often eat special food at this time.
19. Haggis
The traditional Scottish food for festivals
is haggis, which is like a large round sausage,
usually made from sheep meat.
20. New Year’s Day is 1 January, the first day
of the New Year. It is a holiday for most
people, and the banks and many shops don’t
open.
Many people stay at home on that day and
rest. Most people go back to work on 2
January, but in Scotland they have two days’
holiday and go back to work on 3 January.
At this time of year, a lot of people make
New Year’s Resolutions.
21. They decide to do something different to be
a better person. For example, they say ‘I’m
going to stop smoking’ or ‘I’m going to learn
something new’ or ‘I’m going to work harder.’
The shops are very busy in January sales.
This means things are cheaper than before
Christmas, so it is a good time to buy winter
clothes.
The first time people see friends in the
New Year, they usually say ‘Happy New Year!’
