The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Plan
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland
English language
British culture
Geographical location
Climate in Britain
Political system
Cities in Britain
Work and unemployment
Mass media
Literature
Science
Education in Britain
Health in the UK
Sports in Britain
Ecological problems
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland
The
full name of the country the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland. It consists of four parts: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland
occupies one third of the island
of Ireland. It borders on
the Irish Republic in the south. The island of Great Britain consists of three main
parts: England
(the southern and middle part of the island), Wales (a mountainous peninsula in
the West) and Scotland
(the northern part of the island).
England is the largest and
the richest country of Great
Britain. The capital of England is London but there are
other large industrial cities, such as Birmingham,
Liverpool, Manchester and other famous and interesting
cities such as York,
Chester, Oxford and Cambridge.
Scotland is a country in
the north of Great Britain.
It is a part of the UK.
Scotland
is divided into three natural regions: the Southern Uplands, the Central Lowlands and the Highlands
and islands. The capital of Scotland
is Edinburgh,
well known for its castle.
Wales is the country in
the west of Great Britain.
It is mainly a mountainous land with a chiefly agricultural economy and an industrial
and coal-mining area in the south.
Northern Ireland, also known as Ulster, is
still a part of the United
Kingdom. It is made up of six countries:
Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry, and Tyrone. One third of the population
lives in and around the capital, Belfast.
. The Irish population is divided into two groups: the Protestants and the
Catholics.
In
general the territory of the UK
is about 244,000 square kilometers, it takes the 75th place among
other countries in the world. The population is urban. The capital of the
country is London.
Now Great Britain
is separated from the continent by the English Channel,
the narrowest part of which is called the Strait of Dover.
The British Isles are surrounded by the
shallow waters of the Irish Sea and the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea,
the North Channel and the Atlantic
Ocean. The rivers of the region are short and of no great
importance as waterways. The longest of them is "the Father of
London", the Thames, which is a little
over 200 miles. The surface of GB varies greatly. The northern and western
parts of the country are mountainous and are called the Highlands.
But there are no high mountains in Great Britain. In the north the
Cheviots separate England
from Scotland,
the Pennies stretch down North England along
its middle, the Cambrian Mountains occupy the
greater part of Wales
and the Highlands of Scotland are the
tallest of the British mountains. All the rest (south, east and centre) is a
vast plain, which is called the Lowlands.
The
mountains, the Atlantic Ocean and the warm
waters of the Gulf Stream influence the
climate of GB. So due to the geographic location of Great Britain the type of the
climate is oceanic. There are no extreme contrasts in temperature in Britain because
of the current of warm water flowing from the Gulf of
Mexico called the Gulf Stream.
Fortunately, as Britain
does not experience extreme weather conditions, it is never very cold or very
hot. The temperature rarely rises above 32C (90°F) in summer, or falls below
-10°C (l4°F) in winter. The prevailing winds from the ocean to the south-west
bring rainfall throughout the year.
Great
Britain is a highly developed
industrial country. It is known as one of the world’s largest producers and
exporters of iron and steel products, machinery and electronics, chemicals and
textile, aircraft and navigation equipment. One of the chief industries of the
country is shipbuilding. 7 per cent of the population is engaged in farming. GB
is a country with old cultural traditions and customs. The most famous
educational centers are Oxford
and Cambridge
universities. They are considered to be the intellectual centers of Europe. The education is not free, it is very expensive.
All state schools in Britain
are free, and schools provide their pupils with books and equipment for their
studies. Nine million children attend 35.000 schools in Britain.
Education is compulsory from 5 till 16 years. Children start primer school at 5
and continue until they are 11. Most children are taught together, boys and
girls in the same class. At 11 most pupils go to secondary schools called
comprehensives which accept a wide range of children from all backgrounds and
religious and ethnic groups. At 16 pupils take a national exam called
"GCSE" (General Certificate of Secondary Education) and then they can
leave school if they wish. This is the end of compulsory education.Seven per cent of British schoolchildren go
to private schools called independent schools. Parents pay for these schools.
Some 16-year-olds continue their studies in the sixth form at school or at a
sixth form college. . Universities and colleges of higher education accept
students with "A" levels from 18. . Most students graduate at 21 or
22 and are given their degree at a special graduation ceremony.
The United Kingdom
is a monarchy and the Queen is the head of the state. But in practice it is
ruled by the elected government with a Prime Minister at the head. The British
Parliament consists of two chambers: the House of Lords and the House of
Commons. It sits in the House of Parliament in Westminster.
There are three
main political parties in Great
Britain: the Labour, the Conservative and
the Liberal parties. The Labour party with Antony Blair at the head is the
ruling party nowadays. There’s no written constitution in Great Britain
only precedents and traditions.
English language
On the 5th of September 1977,
the American spacecraft Voyager One blasted off on its historic mission to
Jupiter and beyond. On board the scientists who knew that Voyager would one day
spin through distant star systems had installed a recorded greeting from the
people of the planet Earth. A brief message in fifty-five different languages
for the people of outer space plays a statement from the Secretary-General of
the United Nations an Austrian named Kurt Waldheim, speaking on behalf of 147 member
states in English. The rise of English is a remarkable success story. When
Julius Caesar landed in Britain
nearly two thousand years ago, English did not exist. Today English is used by
at least 750 million people, and barely half of those speak it as a mother
tongue.
Some estimates have put that
figure closer to one billion. Whatever (he total, English at the end of the
20th century is more widely spoken and written, than any other language has
ever been. It has become the language of the planet, the first truly global
language. Three-quarters of the world's mail, and its telexes and cables, are
in English. So are more than half the world's technical and scientific periodicals:
it is the language of technology from Silicon Valley
to Shanghai.
English is the medium for 80 per cent of the information stored in the world's
computers. Nearly half of all business deals in Europe
are conducted in English. It is the language of sports and glamour: the
official language of the Olympics and the Miss Universe Competition. English is
the official voice of (he air and the sea, and of Christianity: it is the
ecumenical language of the World Council of Churches. The largest broadcasting
companies in the world (CBS, NBS, ABC, BBC) transmit in English to audiences
that regularly exceed one hundred million.
English is spoken
practically all over the world. It is spoken as the mother tongue in Great Britain,
the United States of America,
Canada,
Australia
and New Zealand.
A lot of people speak English in China, Japan, India, Africa
and other countries. It is one of 6 official languages of the United Nations.
It is studied as a foreign language in many schools. England's history helps to understand
the present condition of English. Many English words were borrowed from the
language of Angles and Saxons. Hundreds of French words came into English.
These French words didn't crowd out corresponding Anglo-Saxon words. There
exist «act» and «deed», «beautiful» and «pretty», «form» and «shape». Many new
words were brought by traders and travellers. These words came from all parts
of the world: «umbrella» —from Italian, «skates» — from Datch, «tea» — from
Chinese, «cigar» — from Spanish. Some words came into English directly from
Latin, which was the language of the church and the universities in the Middle
Ages. Some of the English words of today are derivatives. One way of creating
new words is to put together two or more older
English words. For example,
the words «railway», «football», “newspaper” are made in this way. Many of the
new English words — especial new scientific
ones — have been made from
Latin and Greek words instead of English ones. «Telephone» for instance, was
made from Greek words “far” and «talk».
Culture
As long as there is peace and prosperity people will travel.
Broadly speaking,
there are tourists and there are travelers. The first see a holiday as s chance
to switch off the brain and mindlessly follow a guidebook, or to park their
bodies on the sand between clear water and fine restaurant. The second see
things differently. They travel to learn, to discover a new pleasure or to
exercise the imagination. The world is filled with wonderful places to explore,
fascinating people to meet and opportunities to pursue.
Britain is rich in its
historic places which link the present with the past. The oldest part of London is Lud Hill, where
the city is originated. About a mile west of it there is Westminster Palace,
where the king lived and the Parliament met, and there is also Westminster
Abbey, the coronation church. Liverpool, the
«city of ships», is England's
second greatest port, ranking after London.
The most interesting sight in the Liverpool is
the docks. They occupy a river frontage of seven miles. The University of Liverpool,
established in 1903, is noted for its School of Tropical Medicine.
And in the music world Liverpool is a
well-known name, for it's the home town of "The Beatles".
Stratford-on-Avon lies 93 miles north-west of London. Shakespeare was born here in 1564,
and here he died in 1616. Cambridge and Oxford Universities
are famous centers of learning. Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument, presumably built by
Druids, members of an order of priests in ancient Britain. TintagelCastle is King Arthur's reputed
birthplace. Canterbury Cathedral is
the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury, head of the Churchof England. The British Museum
is the largest and richest museum in the
world. It was founded in 1753 and contains one of the world's richest collections of antiquities. The
Egyptian Galleries contain human and animal mummies. Some parts of Athens' Parthenon are in
the Greek section. Madam Tussaud's Museum is an exhibition of hundreds of
life-size wax models of famous people of yesterday and today. The collection
was started by Madam Tussaud, a French modeller in wax, in the 18 century. Here
you can meet Marilyn Monroe, Eiton John, Picasso, the Royal Family, the Beatles
and many others: writers, movie stars, singers, politicians, sportsmen, etc.
Traditionally
English people have three meals a day: breakfast, lunch and dinner. Breakfast
is served in the morning. It used to be a large meal with cereal, eggs and
bacon, sausages, tomatoes. But such a large breakfast takes a long time to
prepare and is not very healthy.Nowadays,
Britain's
most popular breakfast consists of cereal, toast with marmalade, juice and
yogurt with a cup of tea or
coffee. Lunch is a light meal.
Most people have no time to go back home for lunch so they eat at school,
cafes, pubs or restaurants. The main meal is dinner, which is usually between 6
and 7 p.m. A typical
evening meal is a meat dish with vegetables and dessert. The most important
meal of the week is the Sunday dinner, which is usually eaten at 1 p.m. The traditional Sunday dish
used to be roast beef, but nowadays pork, chicken or lamb are more common. On
Sunday evenings people have supper or high tea. The famous British afternoon
tea is becoming rare, except at weekends. Some people criticize English food.
They say it's unimaginable, boring, tasteless, it's chips with everything and
totally overcooked vegetables. The basic ingredients, when fresh, are so full
of flavour that British haven't had to invent sauces to disguise their natural taste.
What can compare with fresh pees or new potatoes just boiled and served with
butter? Why drown spring lamb in wine or cream and spices, when with just one
or two herbs it is absolutely delicious? If you ask foreigners to name some
typically English dishes, they will probably say «Fish and chips» then stop. It
is disappointing, but true that, there is no tradition in England of eating
in restaurants, because the food doesn't lend itself to such preparation.
English cooking is found at home. So it is difficult to find a good English
restaurant with reasonable prices. In most cities in Britain you'll find Indian,
Chinese, French and Italian restaurants. In London you'll also find Indonesian, Mexican,
and Greek... Cynics will say that this is because English have no «cuisine»
themselves, but this is not quite the true.
You can reach England either
by plane, by train, by car or by ship. The fastest way is by plane. London has three
international airports: Heathrow, the largest, connected to the city by underground;
Gatwick, south of London,
with a frequent train service; Luton, the
smallest, used for charter flights if you go to England by train or by car you have
to cross the Channel. There is a frequent service of steamers and ferryboats which
connect the continent to the south-east of England. People in Britain drive
on the left and generally overtake on the right. The speed limit is 30 miles
per hour (50 km/h) in towns and cities.
When you are in London you can choose from four different means
of transport: bus, train, underground or taxi. The typical bus in London is a red
double-decker. The first London
bus started running between Paddington and the City in 1829. It carried 40
passengers and cost a shilling for six km.The next to arrive were the trains; now there are
twelve railway stations in London.
The world's first underground line was opened between Baker St. and the City in 1863. Now there
are ten underground lines and 273 underground stations in use. The London underground is
also called the Tube, because of the circular shape of its deep tunnels. London is so large that
visitors must learn to use buses and the underground to get about. London taxis are too
expensive for any but the rich. You can get a map of the underground and the
bus routes at any ticket office. The word "Underground" across a
large circle shows you where the stations are. The London underground is called the
"tube". Bus stops are marked clearly. In the suburbs buses do not
stop unless there are passengers who wish to get on or off. These stops are
marked "Request Steps". Inside some buses you will see the notice:
"Please, state your destination clearly and have the exact fare
ready." It is easy enough to tell the conductor where you want to go to,
but not always possible to have the exact fare. The conductor will always give
you the change. The London
buses are very large. They have scats both upstairs and downstairs. English
children like to sit on the front seats of a big London bus. They can see everything that is
happening in the streets. Here are some of the things you may hear off a bus in
London:
"Fares, please."
"Four
pence, please."
"Full
up inside; plenty of seats on top."
"Standing
room only."
"No,
sir, this bus does not go to Victoria Station."
"You
want a number 11."
"No
more seats on top; five seats inside."
In Great Britain
traffic keeps to the left. Motor-cars, buses and cyclists must all keep to the
left side of the road. In most other countries traffic keeps to the right.
There is heavy traffic in London
and you must observe traffic rules.
William Turner, a
great romantic English landscape painter. Was born in Devonshire
in 1775. He lived with his uncle in Middlesex, where he began to attend school.
His first drawings are dated 1787. When he was only twelve years of age. His
childish sketch-books, filled with drawings, are still preserved in the British Museum. When he was 21, he began to
exhibit oil paintings as well as water-colours at the Royal Academy.
The first, «Fishermen at Sea» is now in the Gate Gallery. He traveled much in France, Germany, Switzerland,
Italy But he never lost his interest in his own country. As a landscape painter
Turner was interested mainly in light and colour effects. One of his famous
paintings is even called «Light and Colour». His work is high praised by great
critics. Turner died in London
in 1851. His pictures and drawings became the property of the British nation.
William Turner is considered to be one of the world greatest painters.
Geographical location
The full name of
the country the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland
occupies one third of the island
of Ireland. It borders on
the Irish Republic in the south. The island of Great Britain consists of three main
parts: England
(the southern and middle part of the island), Wales (a mountainous peninsula in
the West) and Scotland
(the northern part of the island). There are no high mountains in Great Britain.
In the north the Cheviots separate England from Scotland, the
Pennies stretch down North England along its
middle, the Cambrian Mountains occupy the
greater part of Wales
and the Highlands of Scotlandare the tallest of the British mountains.
There is very little flat country except in the region known as East Anglia. Most
of the rivers flow into the North Sea. The Thames is the deepest and the longest of the British
rivers. Some of the British greatest ports are situated in the estuaries of the
Thames, Mersey,
Trent, Tyne, Clyde and Bristol
Avon. Great Britain
is not very rich in mineral resources; it has some deposits of coal and iron
ore and vast deposits of oil and gas that were discovered in the North Sea. The warm currents of the Atlantic
Ocean influence the climate of Great Britain. Winters are not
severely cold and summers are rarely hot.
The United Kingdom
is situated on the group of islands lying just off the mainland of
north-western Europe. The British
Isles include Great
Britain, Ireland and a number of smaller islands.
The total area of the British Isles is 325 000
square km. Many ages ago the British Isles
formed a part of the continent. The rocky highlands of Scotland, for
example, resemble the Norwegian coast. Another evidence that the islands were
the part of the continent is the shallow ness of the water between them and the
mainland. Now Great Britain is separated from the
continent by the English
Channel, the narrowest part of which is called the Strait of Dover. The British Isles
are surrounded by the shallow waters of the Irish Sea
and the North Sea, the Norwegian
Sea, the North Channel and the Atlantic Ocean. There are wild desolate mountains in the
northern Highlands of Scotland The Pennine Range in northern England and the
Cambrian Mountains in Wales are much
lower. The rivers of the region are short and of no great importance as
waterways. The longest of them is "the Father of London", the Thames, which is a little over 200 miles. Britain's
principal ports are London,
Liverpool, Manchester and Glasgow. They have splendid harbours, for the
coast line is very indented. Owing to the shape of the country, any point in Great Britain
is no more than 70 miles from the sea.
England is the largest and
the richest country of Great
Britain. The capital of England is London but there are
other large industrial cities, such as Birmingham,
Liverpool, Manchester and other famous and interesting
cities such as York,
Chester. Oxford and Cambridge. Stonehenge is one of the most famous prehistoric places
in the world. This ancient circle of stones stands in Southwest
England. It measures 80 metres across and made with massive blocks
of stone up to four metres high. Why it was built is a mystery. Not far from Stonehenge stands Salisbury Cathedral. It is a splendid
example of an English Gothic Cathedral; inside there is one of four copies of
Magna Charta and the oldest clock in England Chester is very important town in
the north-west of England.
In the past it used to be a Roman fort; its name comes from the Latin word
castra, meaning «fortified camp», In Chester there is a famous museum which
contains over 5000 ancient and modern toys. Oxford is the home of the oldest university of England. The most famous college is Christ Church.
It has a great hall which was built during the reign of Henry VIII and its
chapel has become the Cathedral of Oxford. Cambridge is the home of Britain's
second oldest university York
was the capital of Northern England. It is one
of the best preserved medieval cities of Europe.
It was built by Romans, conquered by Anglo-Saxons and ruled by the Vikings. Birmingham is often
called the «City of 1500 trades» because of the great variety of its
industries.
Scotland is a country in
the north of Great Britain.
It is a part of the UK.
Scotland
is divided into three natural regions: the Southern Uplands, the Central Lowlands and the Highlands
and islands. A lot of places in Scotland
are a natural paradise, still untouched by man. The capital of Scotland is Edinburgh, well known for
its castle. Glasgow
is the industrial capital of Scotland.
It is the third largest city in Great
Britain. The typical products of Scotland are timber,
whisky, salmon. Golf is the Scottish natural sport and it seems to have
originated in this country. Scotland
is also the land of myths and mysteries; every castle has its ghost. Glamis Castle
is said to have nine of them. And of course everyone knows about the Loch Ness
Monster. «Nessie» is said to be about six meters long, with a long, thin neck.
The first report of the monster in Loch Ness was in 565 A.D. Since 1934 thousands
of people claimed to they had seen the monster. Scientists have investigated
the Loch and taken pictures but no scientific
explanation of the mystery has been given.
Wales is the country in
the west of Great Britain.
It is mainly a mountainous land with a chiefly agricultural economy and an industrial
and coal-mining area in the south. The landscape is beautiful. Many English
people move to Wales
when they retire. Cardiff,
a large city in the south, was chosen as the capital of Wales in 1955,
mainly because of its size. Since 1536, Wales has been governed by England and the
heir to the throne of England
has the title of Prince of Wales, but Welsh people have strong sense of identity.
There is a Welsh National party which wants independence from the United Kingdom
and the Welsh language is still used in certain parts of the country. Welsh is
an ancient Celtic language, similar to Breton, spoken in Brittany, France. In the
60's Welsh was given equal status with English as an official language and is
used in the law courts. It is taught in school and some TV programs are
broadcast in Welsh. However, only about 20% of the population speaks Welsh.
Northern Ireland, also known as Ulster, is
still a part of the United
Kingdom. It is made up of six countries:
Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry, and Tyrone. One third of the population
lives in and around the capital, Belfast.
Belfast is also
the most important port and commercial and industrial centre. Some parts of the
territory, those that are not close to the capital, have remained mainly rural.
The Irish population is divided into two groups: the Protestants and the
Catholics. The Protestants are of British origin. They are descendants of
British settlers who came to Ireland
in the XVIth and XVIIth centuries, during and after the Reformation. The
Catholics are mostly natives of Ireland.
The Protestants were the majority and dominated the Catholics with strong
discrimination. In 1968 the Catholics began the movement for equal civil
rights. The fightings between the two groups of the population continue to this
day. Northern Ireland
has a strong cultural tradition: songs, dances, literature and festivals. It
has its own Art Council, and there are orchestras, theatres, ballet and opera
companies.
London
As well as being
the capital of England,
London is the
capital of the United
Kingdom. London was founded by the Romans in 43 A.D.
and was called Londinium. In 61 A.D. the town was burnt down and when it was
rebuilt by the Romans it was surrounded by a wall. That area within the wall is
now called the City of London.
It is London's
commercial and business centre. It contains the Bank of England, the Stock
Exchange and the head offices of numerous companies and corporations. Here is situated
the Tower of London. The Tower was built by William
the Conqueror who conquered England
in 1066. He was crowned at Westminster Abbey. Now most of the Government
buildings are located there. During the Tudor period (l6th century) London became an important
economic and financial centre. The Londoners of the Elizabethan period built
the first theatres. Nowadays the theatre land is stretched around Piccadilly Circus. Not far from it one can see the British Museum and the Covent Garden Opera House.
During the Victorian period (19th century) London was one of the most important centers
of the Industrial Revolution and the centre of the British
Empire. Today London
is a great political centre, a great commercial centre, a paradise for
theatre-goers and tourists, but it is also a very quiet place with its parks
and its ancient buildings, museums and libraries.
Climate in the UK
The common ideas
people have about the weather in Britain are: "It rains all the
time, it's very damp"; "There's a terrible fog in London, just like in Sherlok
Holmes'...", 'The sun never shines in July or August". Britain has a
variable climate. The weather changes so frequently that it is difficult to
forecast. It is not unusual for people to complain that the weathermen were
wrong. Fortunately, as Britain
does not experience extreme weather conditions, it is never very cold or very
hot. The temperature rarely rises above 32C (90°F) in summer, or falls below
10°C (l4°F) in winter. Summers are generally cool, but due to global warming
they are starting drier and hotter. Newspapers during a hot spell talk of "heatwaves"
and an "Indian summer" (dry, hot weather in September and October).
Hot weather causes terrible congestion on the roads as Britons rush to the
coastal resorts. Winters are generally mild, with the most frequent and prolonged
snowfalls in the Scottish Highlands where it is possible to go skiing. If it
does snow heavily in other parts of Britain, the country often comes to
a standstill. Trains, buses and planes are late. People enjoy discussing the
snow, complaining about the cold and comparing, the weather conditions with
previous winters. Contrary to popular opinion, it does not rain all the time. There
is certainly steady rainfall throughout most of the year, but the months from
September to January are the wettest. Thanks to the rain, Britain's countryside
is famous for its deep green color. Since the 1950s, most British cities have
introduced clean air zones. Factories and houses cannot burn coal and must use smokeless
fuel. The dirt caused by smoke used to cause terrible fogs, particularly in London. Such fogs are now
a thing of the past, but you can still see them in old films where they add
mystery and atmosphere to murder stories and thrillers. Due to the geographic
location of Great Britain
the type of the climate is oceanic. There are no extreme contrasts in temperature
in Britain
because of the current of warm water flowing from the gulf
of Mexico called the Gulf Stream.
The prevailing winds from the ocean to the south-west bring rainfall throughout
the year. The total national rainfall average is over 1100 mm annually. March
to June tend to be a driest months, September to January the wettest. The
rivers of the Great Britain
are abundant, and they never freeze. The main rivers are the Thames,
the Tyne, the Severn,
the Mersey; the biggest lakes are the Loch Lomond, the Lough Neagh. A considerable area of land
is covered by meadows and heaths. The grass remains green all the year round.
Thanks to climate conditions, Britain
in truth looks like one great well-ordered park with its old trees, green
meadows and hedges.
Political system
The party which
wins the most seats in the General Election forms the government in Britain. The
leader of the winning party becomes Prime Minister. As leaders of their
political parties and leaders of the country. Prime Ministers are powerful
because they have the majority support in Parliament and they can choose their
own ministers and government. The PM, chooses a committee of ministers called
the Cabinet. This is made up of a selection of senior MPs from the House of
Commons and some members of the House of Lords. Each member of the Cabinet is a
minister responsible for a government department: for example, the Secretary of
State for Education and Science is responsible for all the schools,
universities and teachers in Britain.
The Cabinet of ministers runs the country. The Cabinet meets at the Prime
Minister's house 10 Downing Street.
The cabinet works as a team and all ministers must accept the decisions of the
"group". The team of ministers must always agree in public because
they are collectively responsible for the decisions they make. If a minister
cannot agree with all the others, he usually resigns from the cabinet. Cabinet
meetings are held in private and the details must remain secret for at least 30
years. Margaret Thatcher tried to change this style of the Cabinet and was
forced to resign when the other ministers could not agree with her. Cabinet
ministers cannot, however, do as they please! They are responsible to
Parliament and must answer questions from backbenchers from the House of
Commons. Even the Prime Minister must answer questions every Tuesday and
Thursday in the Commons — this is called Prime Minister's Question Time Everyone
wants to know what has been decided behind the closed doors of the Cabinet
Room.
Britain is administered
from the Palace
of Westminster in London. This is also
known as the Houses of Parliament. Parliament is made up of two chambers — the
House of Commons and the House of Lords. The members of the House of Lords are
not elected: they qualify to sit in the House because they are bishops of the
Church of England, aristocrats who have inherited their seats from their
fathers, people with titles. There has been talk of reform in this century
because many Britons think that this system is undemocratic. The House of
Commons, by contrast, has 651 seats which are occupied by Members of Parliament
(MPs) who are elected by the British public. The United Kingdom is divided into
constituencies, each of which has an elected MP in the House of Commons. Each
of the major political parties appoints a representative (candidate) to compete
for each seat. Smaller parties may have a candidate in only a few
constituencies. There may be five or more parties, fighting for one seat, but
only one person — the candidate who gets the greatest number of votes — can
win. Some parties win a lot of seats and some win very few, or none at all. The
Queen, who is the Head of State, opens and closes Parliament. All new laws are
debated (discussed) by MPs in the, Commons, then debated in the Lords, and
finally signed by the Queen. All three are part of Parliament in Britain.
Parliament is the
most important authority in Britain.
Parliament first met in the 13th century. Britain does not have a written
constitution, but a set of laws. In 1689 Mary 11 and William III became the
first constitutional monarchs. They could rule only with the support of the
Parliament. Technically Parliament is made up of three parts: the Monarch, the
House of Lords and the House of Commons. The continuity of the English monarchy
has been interrupted only once during the Cromwell republic. Succession to the
throne is hereditary but only for Protestants in the direct line of descent. Formally
the monarch has a number of roles. The monarch is expected to be politically
neutral, and should not make political decisions. Nevertheless, the monarch
still performs some important executive and legislative duties including
opening and dissolving Parliament, signing bills passed by both Houses and
fulfilling international duties as head of state. The present sovereign is Queen
Elizabeth II who was crowned in Westminster Abbey in 1953.
The House of Lords
comprises about 1 200 peers. The house is presided over by the Lord Chancellor.
The House of Lords has no real power but acts as an advisory council for the
House of Commons. As well as having legislative functions, the Lords is the
highest court of appeal. The House of Commons consists of Members of Parliament
who are elected by the adult suffrage of the British people in general
elections which are held at least every five years. The country is divided into
650 constituencies each of which elects one Member of Parliament. The Commons,
therefore, has 650 Members of Parliament. The party which wins the most seats forms
the Government and its leader becomes the Prime Minister. The functions of
Commons are legislation and security of government activities. The house is presided
over by the Speaker The government party sits on the Speaker's right while on
his left sit the members of the Opposition.
Margaret Thatcher
(Margaret Robins) was born in 1925. Her father had a grocers shop but he was
also very interested in local politics. Margaret was a good student and won a schoolarship
to Oxford to
study chemistry .Then she worked as a research chemist until she met and
married Denis Thatcher, a successful businessman. Then she decided to study
law. She was already involved in politics and gave up law when she was elected
to the Parliament in 1959. From 1970 to 1974 she was Secretary of State for
Education. In 1975 she became leader of the Conservative Party which was the
Opposition. In 1979 she heat the Labour Party and took office as Prime Minister, Britain's first woman Prime Minister. Thatcher
privatized publicly-owned industries and made cuts in state education,
hospitals and welfare benefits. In early 1980's, Britain was facing unemployment,
inflation, problems of Northern
Ireland. In 1982, Britain became involved in an
undeclared war against Argentina
in the Falkland Islands. After the victory in
the Falklands, she had an image of a strong,
authoritative leader. Inthe 1983
election campaign, she won with a large majority of votes. In 1987 she won her
third term as Prime Minister defeating the Labour Party which suffered from
loss of votes due to the newly formed alliance with Liberal.
On November 22, 1990, Mrs. Thatcher
resigned. The “Iron Lady” who believed it was her destiny to reshape the
British nation shed tears as she made the historic announcement. Three men were
candidates for the post of Prime Minister. John Major was to win.
At present the
British royal family is headed by Queen Elizabeth. When the Queen was born on the 21st of April 1926, her
grandfather, King George V, was on the throne and her uncle — was his heir. The death of her grandfather
and the abdication of ' her uncle
brought her father to the throne as King George VI. As a child she studied
constitutional history and law as well as art and music. In addition she
learned to ride and acquired her enthusiasm for horses. As she grew older she
began to take part in public life, making her first broadcast at the age of 14.
The marriage of the
young Princess Elizabeth to Philip, Duke of Edinburgh took place in November
1947. She came to the throne after her father's death in 1952 and was crowned
in Westminster Abbey in June 1953. Among Queen Elizabeth's many duties are the
regular visits she makes to foreign countries, and especially those of the
Commonwealth, whose interests and welfare are very important to her. The Queen
has allowed the BBC to make a documentary film about the every day of the royal
family. She also started the tradition of the "walkabout", an
informal feature of an otherwise formal royal visit, when she walks among the
public crowds and stops to talk to some people. The annual Christmas broadcast
made by the Queen on radio and television has become a traditional and popular
feature of the season, and there were widespread celebrations and special
programmes of events in 1977 to mark her Silver Jubilee. The Queen's husband
Duke of Edinburgh, was born in 1926 and served in the Royal Navy. He takes a
great deal of interest in industry, in the achievements of young people (he
founded Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme in 1956) and in saving raise wild
animals from extinction. The Queen's heir is Charles, Prince of Wales, who was born
in 1948, married Lady Diana Spencer and has two children, Prince William and
Prince Harry. The Prince of Wales is well-known as a keen promoter of British
interests. In recent years he has become outspoken on such controversial topics
as modem architecture, violence in films and on television, and the standard of
English teaching in schools. His wife Diana, Princess of Wales (often called in
mass media Princess Di), won the affection of many people by her modesty,
shyness and beauty. Unfortunately, she died in a car accident in August, 1997.
The Queen's other children are Princess Anne (born in 1950), Prince Andrew
(born in 1960) and Prince Edward (born in 1964). Anne, Princess Royal, has
acquired a reputation for being arrogant, but in recent years has become quite
popular with the general public. The Queen is widely known for her interest in
horses and horse-racing. She is now president of the Save the Children Fund,
Chancellor of the University
of London and carries out
many public engagements. Prince Andrew, Duke of York, served as a helicopter
pilot in the Royal Navy. In 1986 he married Miss Sarah Ferguson (Fergie, for
short) and has two daughters. Prince Edward is keen on the theatre. This
interest began while he was at university. He quit the Royal Marines, and is
now pursuing a career with a theatrical company. The Queen Mother, the widow of
the late King George VI, celebrated her one hundred birthday in 2 000 and
continues to carry out many public engagements. The Queen's only sister, Princess
Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, is well-known for her charity work.
Diana – the
People’s Princess
Diana Spencer was
born on the first of July
1961 in Sandringham in England. She
had two older sisters and a younger brother. In childhood she liked games,
swimming, running and dancing. She wanted to become a dancer. Besides she loved
children very much and at the age of sixteen she worked in schools for very
young children. Diana became princess, when Prince Charles, the Queen's son,
asked her to be his wife and they got married. They seemed to be a happy couple
at first. They had two sons. They travelled a lot they worked a lot, they
visited many countries together. But Diana was not quite happy because they did
different things and Charles didn't understand her. Why was Diana the most
famous, the most beautiful, the most photographed woman in the world? Why did
she win the hearts of millions and millions of people in many countries? Why
did so many people come to London
to remember her when she died? Why did the car accident which took her life, become
such a total shock to crowds of people? Why did people feel the need to be in London at the funeral?
Why did the tears and love at the funeral move the world? The answer is so
simple. Matthew Wall, a student at St. Michael's College in Burlington said: "She was such a lovely
lady. She did so much for those people less fortunate that herself”. She was a
kind woman. Hundreds of people talked about Diana's kindnesses. She liked
ordinary people, though she was rich and had many rich friends. Wherever she
was, she was always ready to lend a hand. She was devoted to the sick and the
poor. She visited hospitals for people with AIDS and for lepers and wasn't
afraid to touch them, talk to them, listen to them. She worked on children's charities,
and had teamed up with Hillary Clinton in an effort to ban landmines. And it's
not only money, that she wanted to give people. She wanted to give them a part
other soul, to make them happy because she was unhappy herself. She wanted to
give them love, because she needed love herself.
Rock stars (Sting, Elton
John), pop singer George Michael, film stars and producers (Tom Hanks, Steven
Spilberg, Nicole Kidman, Tom Cruise) and other famous people were among her
friends. But she had more friends among ordinary people. Diana was seen many
times in floods of tears, because of the pressures other loveless 15-year
marriage. It is not a secret that Diana was hounded and humiliating to the
point of mental breakdown and was able to pull through only because she knew
she had the love of the people to buoy her in her darkest hours. She was,
indeed, the People’s Princess.
Cities in Britain
Nobody can deny that Britain has a
lot of enchanting, charming and fascinating cities that are very different.
Some of them are medieval, walled and peaceful. These cities have a lot of
trees, flowers so they are leafy.For
example Darlington is a small, remole and
sleepy city with a population about 100000 people. It is rather far from London and hot coastal,
so there are no big paints and manufactures. But I think that it is a great
advantage. Because today plants pollute air and water, so the health of the
people is changing for the worse. But also there are a lot of sprawling,
overpopulated, manufacturing and fast-growing cities. I think living in them is
a great torture. May be these cities are simply unworkable, undeserving of any
praise, plagued by unemployment, city of impressive government building and
expressways, but they are also centers of a high crime rade, lot of gambling
establishments. Today new, gateway or big capital city can boast its modern
apartment block of concrete and glass, enormous human and economic potential,
magnificent architecture and numerous amusement parks equipped with video games
and high-tech virtual reality attractions. The streets here are home to some
striking contrast, because there cities are fast-changing. Also streets are
promenades for residents and tourists, pickup artists and pickpockets, they are
lined with small buy shops and coffee bars, pulse with energy and life and
sometimes are lined with a double row of trees. It is true that these cities
offer more than you can imagine. Nobody ca deny that a great example of these
of these cities is London-
capital of Great Britain.
It grew up around the first point where the Roman invaders found the Thames narrow enough to build a bridge. They found a
small Celtic settlement then known as Londinium and by A. D. 300 they had
turned it into a sizeable port and an important trading centre. Over 8 million
people live in London.
The city dominates British life. It is the home of the nation's commerce and
finance, the main centre of its legal system and the press. It has the largest
university and the greatest possibilities for entertainment and for sport in
the country. London
is one of the most famous capital cities of the world, and every year it
attracts crowds of visitors from home and abroad. They come to explore its
historic buildings, to see its museums and galleries, its streets and parks,
and its people. London
is a city of great contrasts. Its western part is the richest part of the town
with its cosy mansions, beautiful avenues, shops, restaurants and hotels. The East End is the district inhabited by the poor. Quite an
army of people live from hand to mouth in its slums and miserable houses lining
dreary narrow streets. Industry is chiefly found in that part of the city, grey
with soot and smoke. The heart of London
is the City — its commercial and business centre. Here is situated the Tower of London that comes first among the historic buildings of the
city. The River is the main approach to London
from the east. 1000 years ago William the Conqueror decided to build a strong
fortress to protect the City of London,
which he had just conquered, The Tower of London was one of the first and
most impressive castles after
the Norman invasion of England
in 1066. Since the times of William I various kings have built and extended the
Tower of London and used it for many purposes.
The Tower has been used as a royal palace, an observatory, an arsenal, a state
prison, and many famous and infamous people have been executed within its
walls. It is now a museum. For many visitors the principal attraction is the
Crown Jewels, the finest precious stones of the nation. A fine collection of
amour is exhibited in the Keep. The security of the Tower is ensured by a
military garrison and by the Yeoman Warders or "Beefeaters" who still
wear their picturesque Tudor uniform. St
Paul's Cathedral,
the greatest of English churches, is situated not far from the
Tower.St. Paul's Cathedral has always dominated the
centre of London.
It stands on the site of former Saxon and Norman churches. The latter were
destroyed in the Great Fire and the present building, completed in 1710, is the
work of the eminent architect Sir Christopher Wren. It is an architectural
masterpiece. Londoners have a particular affection for St. Paul's, which is the largest Protestant Church in England. Its high dome, containing
the remarkable Whispering Gallery, is a prominent landmark towering above the
multi-storeyed buildings which line the river-bank. Not far away, is Westminster, where most
of the Government buildings are situated, is Westminster Abbey. Westminster
Abbey is a national shrine where the kings and queens are crowned and famous
people are buried. Founded by Edward the Confessor in 1050, the Abbey was a
monastery for a long time. The present building dates largely from the time of
Henry III who began to rebuild the church, a task which lasted nearly 300
years. The West towers were added in the eighteenth century Since William I
almost every English monarch has been crowned in this great church, which
contains the tombs and memorials of many of Britain’s most eminent citizens.
One of the greatest treasures of the Abbey is the oaken Coronation Chair made
in 1300. Near the West Door of the Abbey the Unknown Warrior lies in a simple
grave commemorating the men who died in the First World War. The Abbey is also known for its Poets' Corner. Graves and memorials to many English poets and writers
are clustered round about.Walking
around London
one can also see and admire Trafalgar
Square. Trafalgar
Square is the natural centre of London. The square was so named to
commemorate Nelson's Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, and the
monument in the centre, known as Nelson's Column, is surmounted with a Statue
of Nelson 16 feet high. The pedestal of the Column is decorated with
bas-reliefs representing Nelson's most familiar victories. At the base of
Nelson's Column are four lions. The square has now become a huge traffic
island, the statues and fountains have enlivened the space so that it remains a
place of pilgrimage for visitors. When the square is not used for
demonstrations, it is full of visitors feeding the pigeons or watching the
traffic. On the north side of the square are the National Gallery and the
National Portrait Gallery. The National Gallery has an outstanding varied
collection of paintings from British, Italian, Spanish, French, Dutch and other
famous schools. It is an international, rather than, as it is named, a National
Gallery.
From
the centre of Westminster
Bridge, one can have a
splendid view of the Houses of Parliament which spread magnificently by the
north bank of the Thames. This structure is a
remarkable example of Gothic architecture. The Clock Tower, which contains the
hour-bell called "Big Ben", is known the world over.AARoyal Palaces and houses were
built along the banks of the Thames in medieval days. The Houses of Parliament,
called officially the Palace
of Westminster, were
formerly a palace for kings and queens. The palace was used both as a royal
residence and also as a parliament house until the sixteenth century In the
course of the sixteenth century when the royal family moved to the new palace
within half a mile of Westminster
— Whitehall Palace, the Palace of Westminster
was occupied by the Parliament and became its home. So the site of Westminster has been
involved with the government of England
for 500 years.
London is
one of the world's most enjoyable cities. Visited by tourists in the millions,
the city offers them an astonishing variety of scenes. In this historic city
the modern rubs shoulders with the old, the present is ever conscious of the
past, the great and the small live side by side in mutual tolerance and respect
and in every part of London's busy and complex life there is to be found a very
genuine affection for her traditions, and her fortunes.London survived the
Plague, which killed nearly 100.000 people and the Great Fire which followed.
Little damage occurred during World War I, but World War II brought tremendous
destruction. Many buildings of great historic value were laid in ruins and
today the face of London
is changed. Yet much was spared, including the Tower, St. Paul's Cathedral and Westminster Abbey. London has buildings that
express all the different areas of its history, for London manages in a unique way to reflect its
past and at the same time to fulfil the functions of a modern city. There is
always something new to be [discovered, some fresh approach to a familiar
scene, some curious piece of history to be investigated.
The great problem of all big cities is overcrowding, because they are
overpopulated. Overcrowding leads to the traffic jams. So most of the famous
cities are smoky. But nevertheless cities are full of charm and vitality and
comfortable place to live in. It would be right to say, that living in cities
gives much more opportunities, that living in the country.
Work and unemployment
Like every developed country the United Kingdom
has a problem of unemployment and finding a job there is no such thing as a job
life any more. There are a lot of interesting professions in the world, but nevertheless
many young men start down a false path to their true destiny. There is no doubt
that choosing the right job is one of the most critical decisions you’ll ever
make in your life. For many people their future seems cloudy and they don’t
mind hard physical job. Others have a very clear idea of what they want. They
find the right job that involves theirs best subject and gives opportunities to
expand their horizons culturally. I think that there are some of the most
attractive aspects of a profession, that insist on taking it: good pay,
responsibility, a pleasant place to work, quite short working day, maternity
leave, long holydays and opportunities for promotion. As you know the ticket to
long-lasting success in the modern world is higher education, but it is very
expensive, so not every man have an opportunity to have a lucrative and
enviable job. These people are forced to spend their life in a job they hate.
But a lot of people don’t have any job at all, they are unemployment. Even in UK this problem
is taking place. I don’t think that to live people must earn their bread in the
sweat of their brows and live hand to mouth. It is very humiliating. The most
important and, career-track and solid professions are teacher, economist,
doctor and political worker. These jobs require skills and responsibilities,
are challenging enough, attract idealistic types only and of course pay a lot
of money. For many people high earrings are more important than job
satisfaction, so, I think, that person, who likes this job is rather soulless.
His true to say that today the level of unemployment in UK is 3,1%. It
is rather low, but not enough.
Mass media
Today people all over the world have much
more television, than ever before and become a coach potato. Great Britain
is a very developed country with very developed television. The British Media
consists of the press and radio and TV broadcasting. There are too many mass
media companies. The most famous TV company in the UK is BBC. It has a great number of
correspondents. They seek out the news, publish sometimes damaging information,
always want to be first with the latest news, shine light on a lot of dark
places and even some correspondents, and dig into someone’s private life trying
to come up with dirt. I can say, that the press sometimes goes too far,
crossing the fine line between the public’s right to know, on the one hand, the
right of the individuals to privacy and the right of the government to protect
the national security, on the other hand, oversteps the bounds of its rights.
The BBC is run in the
interests of its viewers and listeners. Twelve governors act as trustees of the
public interest and regulate the BBC. They are appointed by the Queen on advice
from ministers.
Day-to-day BBC operations are
run by 16 divisions. Their directors report to the director-general, forming
the Executive Committee. It answers to the Board of Governors.
The BBC’s governors safeguard
its independence, set its objectives and monitor its performance. They are
accountable to its licence payers and Parliament, and publish an Annual Report
assessing the BBC's performance against objectives.
BBC governors differ from directors of public companies, whose primary
responsibilities are to shareholders and not consumers. BBC governors represent
the public interest, notably the interests of viewers and listeners.
Executive Committee
Runs the
BBC in the public interest by:
Proposing key objectives
Developing strategy and policy in light of the set objectives
Operating all services within the strategic and policy framework
Board of Governors
Ensures
the BBC serves the public interest by:
Setting key objectives
Approving strategy and policy
Monitoring performance and compliance, and reporting on both in the
Annual Report
Ensuring public accountability
Appointing the Director-General and other Executive Committee members
and determining their remuneration
It is a great
advantage for people to have television, because it informs the mind, changes
human consciousness, analyses events that have gone down in history, brings
events like the Olympic Games into millions of homes, but sometimes makes
school dull and books less interesting. I think, that British TV companies
prefer to show daily ten-minute snapshot of local crime, put too much political
output, interview people live and show films made for TV. Unlike Russia and
Belarus UK television doesn’t prefer to show many pornographic films. BBC has a
lot of different programs and shows: nature, quiz, public-affair, art, hot news
programs and on-air questions, gardening, modern shows. Also it has a lot of
news programs: local, International, the National, early morning, morning,
regional, breakfast, main daytime. As for me, I prefer television for
entertainment. Many British people like to read newspapers. Some of them have
thousands of copies. They write about people, who launder drug money, seize
hostages, live in poverty and inequality; and about other people who cry for
their very lives. Newspapers print news about different reforms, kidnappings,
hijackings, natural disasters and political scandals. There are a lot of gossip
newspapers. Most of them are tabloid and have a lot of interesting pictures,
like in magazines. But sometimes these newspapers make mistakes, so we must
learn the difference between fact and fantasy. Some people like newspapers that
publish crosswords or damaging information about our life. Many of them help us
to understand the world. I think it will be better if these newspapers include
the readers’ understanding of the events. All newspapers want to be at the
center of attention. So news in the front page can be grave, shocking,
manicured or well-written. I think that bad news sells newspapers. Many British
newspapers, even Herald Tribune, publish articles that can bring tears, but
other articles can take up an entire page and be a real eye-opener or they can
paint a very rosy picture of our life and bring tears and laughter. I suppose
solid newspapers like Herald Tribune can be a mirror of our society. Herald
Tribune is an authoritative source of news and a standard reading for diplomats
and government officials and also talks of rights, pictures the way people cope
with life. But not only newspapers help us to understand the world we live in.
There is no subscription in British
newspapers. You may buy any on sale. There are two main types of newspapers:
the "popular" papers and the "quality" papers. The popular
papers are less in size, with many pictures, big headlines and short articles.
They are easy to read. They are such papers as "Daily Express",
"Daily mail", "Daily Mirror", "Daily Star",
"The Sun" and others. The "quality" papers are for more
serious readership. These papers are bigger in size, with larger articles and
more detailed information. The "quality" papers are - "The
Times", "Daily Telegraph", "The Guardian",
"Financial Times", "The Independent". In addition to daily
papers we have just mentioned above there are Sunday papers. They have a higher
circulation than the dailies. Sunday papers in Great Britain are such
"quality" papers as "Observer", "Sunday Times",
"Sunday Telegraph" and such "popular" papers as: "News
of the World", "Sunday Express", "Sunday Mirror",
"Mail on Sunday".
Also there is a
great number of flashy magazines in UK. There are a lot of modern,
glossy and political magazines, which are crying for attention. The most famous
British magazine is “Time”. It is best-known for its serious publications and
has many beautiful pictures. This magazine doesn’t reprint stories from
established foreign magazines and sells readers to advertisers. As I said
before there is a great number of correspondents in UK. I think it is a very hard work
to follow the news, shine light on a lot of dark places and publish sometimes
damaging information.
An old law of advertising says share of
mind leads to share of market.
Literature
The invention of
paper played a very important part in the development of books. In the 11th
century the art of papermaking reached Europe
but no trace of printing was found in Europe
until 1423. It is known that Johann Gutenberg secretly tried out ways of
printing in Strasbourg, Germany, in 1440. The knowledge of
the methods of printing spread so quickly over the Continent of Europe that by
the year 1487 nearly every country had started printing books. Later people
began to learn how to make paper more quickly and cheaply and of better
quality. As a result of this, books became much lighter and smaller. The first
person to print books in the English language was, William Caxton.
Books and
literature play a really big role in the life of British people. There are a
lot of people there who like books, because they help them understand the world
we live in. They transport them into new worlds, introduce them to amazing
people who lived exiting lives and leave a mark on them. As for me, I treat
books as an essential ingredient of life like air, food and water. I think that
people in UK
are rather ordinary and read books for pleasure and curiosity. Many people like
to read books from cover to cover; others read only the passages that are
interesting. These days Great
Britain has a great number of writers and
poets. Why not be a writer? As a freelance writer, you can earn very good money
in your spare time, writing the stories, articles, books, scripts ect. That
editors and publishers want. Millions of pounds are paid annually in fees and
royalties. Earning your share can be fun and creatively fulfilling. I would
like to tell you about some very famous writers. William Shakespeare was one of
the greatest and famous writers of the world. Many people know and like his
works but many facts of Shakespeare's life are still unknown. William
Shakespeare was born in 1564 in Stratford-on-
Avon, a small English town. He studied at
local grammar school because his father wanted his son to be an educated
person. While studying at school, William didn't have much free time but he
liked to go to the forest and river Avon.
Young William liked to watch actors and actresses who visited
Stratford-on-Avon. He was fond of actor's profession and decided to become an
actor. William Shakespeare lived in Stratford
until he was twenty-one. He got married and had three children. At the age of
21 William left Stratford
for London to
join a company of actors. He was a very good actor and an excellent playwright.
William Shakespeare lived and worked in London
for 25 years. By the end of the 16th century William Shakespeare and
his friends had enough money to by build their own theatre — the Globe. In all Shakespeare wrote 37
plays, 2 long poems, a sonnet cycle of 155 small pieces. William Shakespeare
had a natural gift for comedy. In his comedies "Two Gentlemen of Verona", "As
you Like It", "The Twelfth Night" William Shakespeare describes
the adventures of young
men and women, their love, friendship, happiness. Shakespeare's tragedies
"King Lear", "Othello", "Romeo and Juliet" depict
noblemen who opposed evil in the world. Since they were written there has never
been a time when at least some of Shakespeare's plays were not staged. In England and
other countries it is the highest honour for an actor to be invited to play in
a comedy or a tragedy by Shakespeare. In the last 35 years all the plays by W.
Shakespeare have been filmed. Since 1879 Shakespeare's Festival has been held
every year at Stratford-upon-Avon.Besides plays Shakespeare wrote a lot of
poetry, which is translated into many languages and is well-known through- out
the world. William Shakespeare died in 1616. But his creations are still
popular now and millions of people still admire them. Stratford-on-Avon, where
Shakespeare was born, is now one of the most popular tourist centers. But it
was not so many years ago. In the 18th century only a few relics of Shakespeare
were left — his tomb. New Place (a large house which was built in place of
Shakespeare's own house), the mulberry tree that he had planted, and his
birthplace. People from London
and other places came to see these relics. Most of them came to New Place where
they wanted to see the famous mulberry tree in the garden. The owner of New Place wasn't
much interested in Shakespeare. He didn't like the fact that so many visitors
came to his house asking to see the mulberry tree. So in 1756 he cut down the
tree and his life became quiet. But it didn't last long. The people who came to
Stratford-on-Avon to see Shakespeare's tree at first were surprised, then they
got so angry that the owner of New
Place had to leave Stratford. After Stratford lost one of the most famous relics
of Shakespeare, the city fathers decided to do something to attract people
there. They asked the greatest actor of the time David Garrick to organize a
festival in Stratford.
Garrick planned to do it in the first week of September, 1769. He wanted the
festival to be the greatest outdoor festival staged in
England. At six o'clock in the morning of
Wednesday September 6 the festival was opened. Many people came to Stratford. The first day
was successful, and Garrick was happy. On the second day it rained hard. The
second-day evening ended as it began — in the rain. On the third day all the
people left Stratford,
Garrick returned to London
very sad. But his festival was the beginning of a tradition. Stratford is now famous for its Shakespeare
festivals. Every year a lot of people come to Stratford for the Festival season which lasts
from April to September.
Then I would like
to speak about Charles dickens, who was one of the greatest novelist in the
English literature. In his books he showed a real world and people of Victorian
England.
Charles Dickens was born in
1812.He lived in the south of England
when he was a little boy. His father worked in an office. He was a very clever
man, but he was very poor. Charles had many brothers and sisters, but he did
not often play with them. His father had many books and Charles liked to read
them. He learned to read very early. When Charles was 10 years old, his family
went to London.
There his father got into debt (as he had little money) and then into debtor's
prison. So little Charles began to work when he was ten. That was the beginning
of Charles' hard life. He worked at a small factory in London, pasting labels on blacking bottles.
He had to work in a dirty room with no windows. He did not like his work, but
he had to work at the factory for two years. Then he went to school for three
years, but he did not learn much at school. He learned much at home, from his
father and from other clever people. Later he worked as a reporter to the
Parliament and became a writer of short stories. In 1837 he published his first
novel "The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club". And the young
reporter became a famous writer. Then he published novel after novel —
"Oliver Twist", "Dombey and Son", "David
Copperfield" and many other good books. His books are very interesting.
They tell us about the hard life of the poor people in England of that
time. When we read his books, we sometimes laugh, but we often want to cry. Charles
Dickens died in 1870. He is one of the greatest novelists in the English
literature. Dickens lived more than a hundred years ago, but people in the
whole world like to read his books today, because in his books he showed a real
world and people of Victorian England.
So you see that
there is no doubt, that there are a lot of marvelous, powerful, prolific and
gifted writers in Great
Britain.
Science
and scientists
Sometimes in science the dark horse
comes in before the favorite.
It is practically
impossible today to live without science. All our life contains of different
science facts and discovers. Science help us to investigate why we act the way
we do, separate the hope from the hype and, of course, understand the secrets
of life. Many years ago people didn’t know why it was cold outside in winter.
But now people are more knowledgeable and can understand, explain and even
prove these things. It is very difficult to overestimate the role of science in
the life of human beings, because science and technologies really advance the
extension frontiers of human knowledge, give people a high standard of living,
revolutionaries the way we work, learn, entertain ourselves, communicate.
Science has given exciting achievements in medicine, in space exploration. The
first serious story of space travel was written in 1640 by Bishop Wilkins of England. He
described physical conditions on the Moon and he also said about the ways man
could possibly live on the Moon. All these things are helping to combat human
sufferings, poverty, hunger, war and disease, control and monitor nature.
Science has a tremendous effect on men’s lives and thought. There are so many
scientists in Britain.
A mankind owes people who work in different sciences a lot: they give their
chosen science all their time, strength, skills, even live. I think that
scientists are in some way crazy because many of them are fond of volcanic
eruptions, tycoons and tornadoes.
They carry out observations,
experiments and excavations, trying to find out new sources, products and
proofs, that their hyposises are true. They formulate theories and general
principles, seek new methods of analysis, race around the globe to study
different phenomena. They build up theoretical models and put forward ideas,
prove their fancies, some of them risk their life experimenting on themselves.
Energy and curiosity are their life-blood. In my opinion priorities should be
given to Sir Isaak Newton. Mankind owes a lot to this great English scientist,
astronomer, and mathematician who invented a new kind of mathematics,
discovered the secrets of light and colour, and showed how the universe is held
together.
Newton was born at
Woolsthorpe on December 25,
1642. He attended grammar school. As a boy, he was more interested
in the making of chemicaldevices than
in studying. His youth inventions included a windmill that could grind wheat
and maize and a water clock run by the force of dropping water. He left school
when he was 14 to help his widowed mother to manage her farm. But he spent so
much time reading, he was sent back to school.
He entered Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1661. He showed no exceptional
abilities during his college career and graduated in 1665 without any
particular distinction. He returned to Cambridge
in 1667 and became professor of mathematics at Cambridge in 1669. He lectured once a week on
arithmetic’s, astronomy, geometry, optics, or other mathematical subjects. He
was elected to the Royal Society in 1672.
Newton became active in
public life. He became the Cambridge
University member of
parliament in 1689 and held his seat until Parliament dissolved the following
year. He was appointed master of the mint in 1699, a position he held until his
death.
He left Cambridge and settled
permanently in London
in 1701. He became president of the Royal Society in 1703 and was reelected
annually until his death. Queen Anne knighted Newton in 1705. He died in 1727 and was
buried in Westminster Abby.
Newton discovered how the
Universe is held together. The concept of a universal force came to him while
he was alone in the country. He had been forced to flee there because of the
outbreak of bubonic plague in the city of Cambridge.
During this time, he suddenly realized that one and the same force pulls an
object to earth and keeps the moon in its orbit. He found that the force of
universal gravitation makes every pair of bodies in the universe attract each
other. The force
depends on the amount of matter in the bodies being attracted and the distance
between the bodies. The force by which the earth attracts or pulls a large rock
is greater than the pull on a small pebble because the rock contains more
matter. The earth's pull is called the WEIGHT of the body. With this theory, Newton explained why a
rock weighs more than a pebble.
Newton's discoveries in
optics laid the foundation for the science of spectrum analysis. This science
allows us to determine the chemical composition, temperature and even the speed
of such hot, glowing bodies as a distant star or an object heated in a
laboratory. Newton
discovered that sunlight is a mixture of light of all colours. He passed a beam
of sunlight through a glass prism and studied the colours that were produced. A
green sweater illuminated by sunlight looks green because it largely reflects
the green light in the sun and absorbs most of the other colours. If the green
sweater were lighted by a red light or any colour light not containing green,
it would not appear green. The study of light led Newton to consider constructing a new type of
telescope in which a reflecting mirror was used instead of a combination of
lenses. Newton's
First reflecting telescope was 15 centimeters long, and, through it, Newton saw the satellites
of Jupiter.
Newton is most famous for
his discoveries on the laws of motion and theories of gravitation published in
1687. This work, usually called PRINCIPIA is considered one of the greatest
single contributions in the history of science. It explained what happens on
earth and in the heavens.
So if there were no
scientists at all, now we would live in another building and couldn’t
understand different natural phenomena. Scientists play a very big role in the
life and society of Great
Britain.
Education in Britain
Even the best schools can’t teach everything
Today there is a great number of schools in Britain. Many
of them has a good reputation, no brick wall or iron fence separating school
premises from backyards of a long row of lodging houses or a with a focus in
Math’s and science. There are a lot of subjects, than are best developers of
mental muscle or the most important. In general school helps to equip future
citizens with all they require to take their place in adult society, encourages
each pupils to develop his or her interests in many areas. I fully agree with
the statement that school insists on having pupils memorize mountains of information
but provides good education but can’t enforce pupils to accept it. I partially
agree that students copy out their homework, play hooky, live on their
nerve-ends all the time, rebel against doing homework or even put off doing
homework until the last moment. But never the less some of them are capable of
accelerated learning and behaves properly.
All state schools in Britain
are free, and schools provide their pupils with books and equipment for their
studies. Nine million children attend 35.000 schools in Britain.
Education is compulsory from 5 till 16 years. Parents can choose to send their
children to a nursery school or a pre-school playgroup to prepare them for the
start of compulsory education. Children start primer school at 5 and continue
until they are 11. Most children are taught together, boys and girls in the
same class. At 11 most pupils go to
secondary schools called comprehensives which
accept a wide range of children from all backgrounds and religious and ethnic
groups. Ninety per cent of secondary schools in England, Scotland and Wales are
co-educational. At 16 pupils take a national exam called "GCSE"
(General Certificate of Secondary Education) and then they can leave school if
they wish. This is the end of compulsory education. Some 16-year-olds continue
their studies in the sixth form at school or at a sixth form college. The sixth
form prepares pupils for a national exam called "A" level (advanced
level) at 18. You need "A" level to enter a university. Other
16-year-olds choose to go to a college of further education to study for more
practical (vocational)
diplomas relating to the world of work, such as hairdressing, typing or
mechanics. Universities and colleges of higher education accept students with
"A" levels from 18. Students study for a degree which takes on
average three years of full-time study. Most students graduate at 21 or 22 and
are given their degree at a special graduation ceremony.Seven per cent of British schoolchildren go
to private schools called independent schools. There are 2.400 independent
schools and they have been growing in number and popularity since the
mid-1980s. Parents pay for these schools, and fees vary from about 250 pounds a
term for a private nursery to 3.000 pounds a term or more for a secondary
boarding school. Most independent schools are called prep (preparatory) schools
because they prepare the children for the Common Entrance Exam which they take
at the age of 11. This exam is for entry into the best schools. The most famous
schools are called "public schools" and they have a long history and
traditions. It is often necessary to put your child's name on a waiting list at
birth to be sure he or she gets a place. Children of wealthy or aristocratic
families often
go to the same public school
as their parents and their grandparents. Eton
is the best known of these schools. The majority of independent secondary
schools, including public schools, are single-sex, although in recent years
girls have been allowed to join the sixth forms of boys' schools. Independent
schools also include religious schools (Jewish, Catholic. Muslim etc.) and
schools for ethnic minorities.
Education in Britain
Even the best schools can’t teach everything
Today there is a great number of schools in Britain. Many
of them has a good reputation, no brick wall or iron fence separating school
premises from backyards of a long row of lodging houses or a with a focus in
Math’s and science. There are a lot of subjects, than are best developers of
mental muscle or the most important. In general school helps to equip future
citizens with all they require to take their place in adult society, encourages
each pupils to develop his or her interests in many areas. I fully agree with the
statement that school insists on having pupils memorize mountains of
information but provides good education but can’t enforce pupils to accept it.
I partially agree that students copy out their homework, play hooky, live on
their nerve-ends all the time, rebel against doing homework or even put off
doing homework until the last moment. But never the less some of them are
capable of accelerated learning and behaves properly.All state schools in Britain are
free, and schools provide their pupils with books and equipment for their
studies. Nine million children attend 35.000 schools in Britain.
Education is compulsory from 5 till 16 years. Parents can choose to send their
children to a nursery school or a pre-school playgroup to prepare them for the
start of compulsory education. Children start primer school at 5 and continue
until they are 11. Most children are taught together, boys and girls in the
same class. At 11 most pupils go to
secondary schools called comprehensives which
accept a wide range of children from all backgrounds and religious and ethnic
groups. Ninety per cent of secondary schools in England, Scotland and Wales are
co-educational. At 16 pupils take a national exam called "GCSE"
(General Certificate of Secondary Education) and then they can leave school if
they wish. This is the end of compulsory education. Some 16-year-olds continue
their studies in the sixth form at school or at a sixth form college. The sixth
form prepares pupils for a national exam called "A" level (advanced
level) at 18. You need "A" level to enter a university. Other
16-year-olds choose to go to a college of further education to study for more
practical (vocational)
diplomas relating to the world of work, such as hairdressing, typing or
mechanics. Universities and colleges of higher education accept students with
"A" levels from 18. Students study for a degree which takes on
average three years of full-time study. Most students graduate at 21 or 22 and
are given their degree at a special graduation ceremony.Seven per cent of British schoolchildren go
to private schools called independent schools. There are 2.400 independent
schools and they have been growing in number and popularity since the
mid-1980s. Parents pay for these schools, and fees vary from about 250 pounds a
term for a private nursery to 3.000 pounds a term or more for a secondary
boarding school. Most independent schools are called prep (preparatory) schools
because they prepare the children for the Common Entrance Exam which they take
at the age of 11. This exam is for entry into the best schools. The most famous
schools are called "public schools" and they have a long history and
traditions. It is often necessary to put your child's name on a waiting list at
birth to be sure he or she gets a place. Children of wealthy or aristocratic
families often
go to the same public school
as their parents and their grandparents. Eton
is the best known of these schools. The majority of independent secondary
schools, including public schools, are single-sex, although in recent years
girls have been allowed to join the sixth forms of boys' schools. Independent
schools also include religious schools (Jewish, Catholic. Muslim etc.) and
schools for ethnic minorities.
Health in Britain
People all over the
world suffer from different diseases: indigestion, depression, burns, severe
complications and other. Today they became a real part of our life, that’s a
pity. So I can say, that people in Britain also pain. Many of them
think that if they have a cold and treat it properly it will last seven days,
if they don’t it will last a week. But what is like to be ill. You wake up one
morning and your head aches, your throat is burning, you feel hot and shivery,
you have a pain in your legs, you feel sick, and you can’t imagine eating or
walking or even lighting. There is nothing for it but stay in bed. Perhaps the
doctor comes and pokes you about and soon after nasty medicine or pills have to
be taken. British have an excellent medical service. But nevertheless to
prevent illness and to keep their figure in good shape they go to fit-keep
classes. All people in Britain
go running every morning or jogging, do very energetic exercises or at the end
frequent discotheques. It is a great advantage, that being healthy is very
modern in British society. They prefer not to smoke, because smoking can be a
dangerous addiction, leads to lung cancer, is a deep-rooted habit and is very
bad for your health. Also it is forbidden in some places. Surgeon general’s warning:
smoking causes lung cancer, heart disease, emphysema and may complicate
pregnancy. So a sound mind is in a healthy body.
Sports in Britain
People all over the world are fond of sports
and games. People take up sports in order to be legendary, display skills and
physical powers, become folk heroes, reach celebrity status, improve
spiritually and emotionally and be media stars. All necessary facilities are
provided for them: stadiums, sport grounds, swimming pools, football fields.
Sport makes people swifter, higher, and stronger. I suppose, sport demands a
lot of training and physical fitness. Because if you want to know the thrill of
victory you must have a lot of training, and if you do this you can get
everything you want. You can make a lot of money and win recognition. But
sometimes you must risk your own neck, because sport is a very dangerous
occupation.
The British have a
reputation for being mad about sports. In fact they like watching sports more
than playing them. The British are spectators and the most popular spectator
sports are cricket and football. Football is the most popular game. Football,
or soccer, is an example of a professional game. The game of football was first
played in Britain,
and later people began to play football in other countries. There are many
amateur soccer players in Britain
who play the game on Saturday or Sunday afternoon. Amateur clubs often play
against professionals. Almost every school has its football team and every boy
in Britain
knows a lot about the game. He can tell you the names of the players in the
most important teams; he has pictures of them and knows the results of many
matches. Rugby-is another popular British
sport which is played in other countries. It is also called rugby football. The
story is told that in 1823 boys at Rugby
school in England
were playing football in the normal way, when suddenly one boy picked the ball
up and ran with it. That was how a new game was born. There are two forms of
rugby football: the amateur game and the professional game. The two games have
different rules. Football is the favourite winter game in Britain and
cricket is the favourite summer sport. Amateur cricket has the same rules as
the professional game. A typical amateur cricket match takes place on a village
green, an open space in the centre of the village. It is played between two
teams — the "home" team and the "visitors" who come from
another village. Cricket is considered to be the English National game. Its
rules are very complicated. It is played by two teams of eleven men each, the
player at a time tries to hit the ball with a bat. Golf is the Scottish
national game. It originated in the XV century and the most famous golf course
in the world, known as the Royal and Ancient Club, is at St. Andrew's. Lawn
tennis was first played in Britain
in the late 19th century. The most famous British championship is Wimbledon, played annually during the last week of June
and the first week of July. Those are the most popular kinds of sport in the UK. But there
are many other sports such as rugby, swimming, golf horse-racing and the
traditional fox-hunting.
Ecological problems
When it comes to protecting the environment, actions speak louder than
words.
The sharpest
problem in Britain
is a problem of the environment. It was not Man who created nature. Nature is
not ours, ours is only the possibility to live in it. To be part of it. Nature
never does any harm to itself, only changes and makes adjustments. It is Man
who ignores, contaminates and spoils the environment. Today it is impossible to
hide the chilling fates mankind has left for the planet. Man interferes with
nature dramatically: cuts down trees, roots jungles and forests in his dire
necessity, destroying the sources of oxygen, mines for coal, chemical
fertilizers, for gold, silver, minerals, and precious stones. Man demands much
of the Earth's resources and too often is an ignorant, selfish and thoughtless
caretaker because mineral wealth of the earth can not be recreated. A lot of
environmental problems stem from the economic activities of humans. Day-to-day
business of individuals and corporations leads to horrific environmental
degradation. Shortages of drinkable water are increasingly common. One fourth
of drinking water is unsafe. There is a decline of quality and quantity of
marine food. It is a very serious problem for more than half the people of
developing countries obtain more than 30 percent of their protein from marine
fish. Air pollution u monitored practically in every country. Millions of
people live in cities where the air is dangerous to breathe. Acid rains that
affect land, lakes and rivers become a problem not only of the developed
countries.
Salination and deforestation
are responsible for climate change. Poor water quality means diseases,
deforestation and overused land lead to soil and fertility loss and
environmental disasters. About one-quarter of the Earth's species risk
extinction within the next thirty years because the habitats of many species
are being destroyed. Industry produces a lot of environmental problems
everywhere. It consumes 37 percent of the world's energy, and emits 50 percent
of the world's sulphur oxides and nearly all toxic chemicals now threatening
the ozone layer with depletion. Pollution affects all forms of life and menaces
the lives of millions. It spills over the borders and very often becomes a very
serious transnational problem. One of the most serious problems is the problem
of depletion of the ozone layer and the existence of a gigantic hole in it
above the Antarctic which forms every spring. It causes an increase in
ultra-violet radiation. Exposure to ultra-violet radiation reduces the
effectiveness of the body's immune system, and so increases disease rates, and
produces eye cataracts and skin cancer. Humans face one more serious problem —
global warming that would affect climate and agriculture, change rainfall
patterns and upset ocean currents. To achieve all these goals Man must increase
environmental protection, stop spoiling the environment. He must reshape his
activities: fight and control pollution, stop polluting by recycling, create
new environmentally-sound technologies; install equipment to suck pollutants,
reduce emissions, stop insatiable consumption of resources and intense
production of wastes, build treatment plants for industrial waste. I think
using hazardous and polluting technologies should be banned and sanitation
improved. The most urgent task, to my mind is to educate people about the
environment, to elevate concern about it and its problems.
We have a moral
duty to look after our planet and hand it on in good order to future
generation. That does not mean trying to halt economic growth. We need growth
to give us the means to live better and healthier lives. We must not sacrifice
our future well-being for short-term gains, nor pile up environmental debts
which will burden our children. Where there are real threats to our planet we
have to take great care. Prevention can often be better and cheaper than cure.
But action in Britain
is not enough. The Government will play a fall part in working out
international solutions through bodies like the United Nations, the World Bank,
the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and the European
Community.
The British
Government will aim:
to preserve and
enhance Britain's
natural and cultural inheritance;
to encourage the
more prudent and efficient use of energy and other resources;
to make sure that Britain's air
and water are clean and safe, and that controls over wastes and pollution are
maintained and strengthened where necessary.
The world's population doubled
between 1950 and 1987. More people means more mouths to feed, and that demands
more agricultural land. That in turn can lead to deforestation and soil erosion.
By burning forests, draining wet lands,
polluting water courses and overfishing mankind is rapidly driving many species
to extinction. The Government is supporting international efforts for a global
agreement to protect species of plant and animal life. The Government is also
supporting projects to conserve endangered species of wild life such as the
black rhino and the African elephants.
Looking after nature is looking to the future.
Vocabulary
astonishing – удивительный
rub –затруднение
mutual – взаимный
trustee – опекун
to advertise – рекламировать
fees – гонорар
royalty – авторский гонорар
hype – истина
toowe –быть
обязанным
eminent –выдающийся
cosy –уютный
mansions – особняк
extended –растянутый
torture –пытка
plagued –обеспокоенный
promenades –пешеходная улица
toenforce –заставить
силой
accelerated –ускоренный
villagegreen –деревенская
лужайка
pregnancy –беременность
toavert –избегать
tocurb –сдерживать
tocause –вызывать
spell –короткие промежутки времени
to pursue –преследовать
cereal –овсянка
to disguise –скрыть
priest –священник
wax –воск
ferry-boat –паром
steamer –пароход
fare –плата
desolate –заброшенный
to claime –утверждать
descendant –потомок
chiefly –главным образом
constituency – избирательный округ
toresign –уйти в
отставку
backbencher –рядовой член парламента
descent –происхождение
dissolving –роспуск
succession –право на наследство
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