Between November 9, 1683, and February 6, 1685, (465 days), the nation now known as the United Kingdom had seven current and future monarchs alive at the same time. Charles II Born: […]
Seven Monarchs For 465 Days
Sharpen Up Your Knowledge of the Pencil
As summer ends and students return to school, it is appropriate to take a moment and reflect on one of the things that is as indispensable to studies as notebooks and backpacks: […]
Take a Journey on the Road that Disappears Twice a Day
If you want to drive from Beauvoir-sur-Mer to Barbâtre on the western coast of France, you have a couple of options. You can go southwest on Route D22 to La Barre-de-Monts and […]
The Unbelievable Marketing Campaign that Sank a Company
When it comes to brand identification, few companies have been more successful than The Hoover Company and its sales of vacuum cleaners. In the United Kingdom, Hoover so dominated the vacuum cleaner […]
The Thatcher Warning for Moderates
While many decry partisan politics and point to moderates as the ideal political philosophy, Margaret Thatcher (1925-2013) thought otherwise. The former prime minister of the United Kingdom was famously known as “The […]
What’s the Difference Between Great Britain and the United Kingdom?
Have you ever wondered how you are supposed to refer to that nation that is home to Queen Elizabeth II? Are you supposed to call it England? Great Britain? The United Kingdom? […]
How the BBC Show “Today” Ensures There Will Be a Tomorrow
If you are a fan of the BBC, the thought of your favorite program going off the air might seem like a sign of the end of the world. If that favorite […]
The True Story of Chicken-Powered Nuclear Landmines
The history of the Cold War is replete with technological marvels that were the fruit of the arms race. There are also some stunning examples of inventions that really make you stop […]
British Brake for Dogs, But Not Cats
Drivers in the United Kingdom whose cars collide with a dog are required to file a report with the police. If they hit a cat, no one seems to care. The law […]
Hail Britannia — Ruling the Waves with Windows XP
While the British military may lead the world in terms of equipping its tanks with tea brewing capabilities, its computer technology is lagging a couple of decades behind the rest of the […]
Whoops! What Happens When a Country Misplaces its Declaration of Independence?
Fiji achieved independence from the United Kingdom in 1970, but don’t ask the government to prove it. The actual legal document proclaiming their independence seems to have been misplaced.
Milton’s Writing Can Really Get Under Your Skin
A good writer knows how to grip the imagination of the reader in such a way that the words leap from the page and burn themselves in the reader’s mind. Reading the […]
An Uncommonly Unwelcome Place
Elizabeth II may be the undoubted sovereign of the United Kingdom, but there is one place where even she is not in charge. In fact, she may not even set foot in […]
Watching Paint Dry — It’s as Exciting as … well .. Watching Paint Dry
Watching paint dry. It’s the quintessential description of the most boring thing imaginable. That concept is being challenged, however, and some of the top scientists in the United Kingdom are spearheading this […]
What Starts with ‘T’ and Makes Tea?
For Great Britain, the importance of tea time ranks nearly as high as the monarchy. It is so ingrained in their culture that not even a fierce armored battle should get in […]
Commonplace Fun Facts 