How much do you know?

What image of Britain do you have?

Which places of Britain would you like to visit? What are your reasons?

How do you think you can explore these areas and broaden your

knowledge of Britain?

What is the difference between British English and American English?

What styles of speech in English do you know?

Our home is a place which we feel comfortable and at ease. Do you

agree? What do you know about the attitude of English people to their

homes?

What are the peculiarities of British food? Can you name any typically

British dishes?

GREAT BRITAIN

Great Britain is an island lying off the

north-western coastline of Europe. The English

Channel separates it from the mainland in the

south. The Strait of Dover, 18 miles wide,

divides it from France. Great Britain is

separated from Belgium and Holland by the

North Sea, and from Ireland by the Irish Sea.

The official name of Great Britain is the

United Kingdom of Great Britain and-Northern

Ireland. Great Britain is the name of the major

island of the United Kingdom including England, Scotland and Wales; the United

Kingdom, or the UK comprises Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The UK is often referred to as Great Britain or the British Isles. It is an island

state consisting of more than 5000 large and small

islands, the most important being the Isle of Man and

the Isle of Wight. England is a part of the island of

Great Britain.

Geographically the island of Great Britain is

subdivided into two main regions: Lowland Britain and

Highland Britain. The highest mountain Ben Nevis

(1343) is in Scotland; the highest peak in Wales is

Snowdon (1085).

The greater part of the land is flat. There are plenty of short rivers in Great

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Britain; the Severn is the longest one, while the Thames is the deepest and the most

important one.

There is much rain and fog in England. October is usually the wettest month,

July is the hottest and January is the coldest one. All over the world Britain is

notorious for its fog. English people used to call it smog. An unusually thick smog in

London in 1962 caused the death of some 4,000 people. The flora of the British Isles

is varied and the fauna is similar to that of the north-west of Europe.

The country is not very rich in mineral resources. Over three-quarters of

Britain's land is used for farming; farms produce nearly half of the food that Britain

needs. The UK is a highly developed industrial country too, known as a producer and

exporter of machinery, electronics, ships, aircraft and navigation equipment.

The capital of the UK is London, in England. The capital of Wales is Cardiff,

and the Scottish capital is at Edinburgh; the capital of Northern Ireland is Belfast.

Great Britain is a monarchy, but the powers of the

Queen are limited by the Parliament, which consists of two

Chambers, the House of Lords and the House of Commons.

In theory, the constitution has three branches:

1. Parliament, which makes laws.

2. Government, which puts the laws into effect.

3. Law courts, which interpret the laws. Although the

Queen is officially head of all three branches, she has little

direct power.

Parliament has two parts: the House of Lords and the House of Commons.

Members of the House of Commons are elected by the voters of 650 constituencies.

They are known as MPs or Members of Parliament. The Prime Minister, or leader of

the Government, is also a MP, usually the leader of the political party with the

majority in the House of Commons.

The Prime Minister is advised by a Cabinet of about twenty other ministers.

The Cabinet includes the ministers in charge of major government departments or

ministries. Departments and ministries are run by civil servants, who are permanent

officials. Even if the Government changes after an election, the same civil servants

are employed.

Members of the House of Lords (peers) are not elected. About 70 per cent of

them are «hereditary peers» because their fathers were peers before them. The other

30 per cent are «life peers», whose titles are not passed on to their children. They are

officially appointed by the Queen, on the advice of the government, for various

services to the nation.

Britain has been many centuries in the making.

The Romans conquered most part of Britain, but were

unable to subdue the independent tribes in the West

and in the North.

Hadrian's wall, the greatest monument of the Roman

occupation of Britain, was built to act as a defence against the

Celts from Scotland

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Further waves of invaders followed: Angles, Saxons, Jutes, Vikings and

Normans. All these contributed to the mixture we call the English. For many

centuries this country was known simply as England.

It had a strong army and Navy. It waged numerous colonial wars. England,

once «the workshop of the world», was the first to become a highly developed

industrial country.

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LONDON

London is the capital city of England and of the United Kingdom situated on

the Thames river, the largest city in Britain

and one of the largest cities in the world.

London manages in a unique way to

reflect the past and, at the same time, to live

a life of a modern city. There is always

something new to be discovered, some

fresh approach to a familiar scene, some

curious piece of life in the city where the

old and the new exist side by side in mutual

tolerance and respect.

One of the best ways to acquaint yourself with the city when you first arrive is

to take a sightseeing tour on a double-decker bus. Join London Transport's Original

Sightseeing Tour in Victoria Street, near Victoria Station, for your introduction to the

capital.

The first famous sight to look out for is the Greek-Corinthian Constitution

Arch at Hyde Park Corner. The bus runs along the eastern side of the park to Marble

Arch, designed by John Nash in the style of a Roman triumphal arch.

Down through elegant Mayfair

with its prestigious squares, you come to

Regent Street and the statue of Eros at

Piccadilly Circus.

Bustling Trafalgar Square is

dominated by the imposing Nelson's

Column, built in honour of Britain's naval

hero Admiral Lord Nelson.

Whitehall, location for Horse

Guards Parade and Downing Street,

Piccadilly Circus is known for the statue of official home of Prime ministers since

Eros and brightly lit advertisements at night 1731, leads to Parliament Square. The

stately Houses of Parliament, originally a royal palace, house the Big Ben clock - still

wound by hand and an authoritative time-kеерег. Historic Westminster Abbey is

where English sovereigns have been crowned and buried for over 900 years.

The bus takes you across Lambeth Bridge, past Lambeth Palace -the

Archbishop of Canterbury's residence - and along the South Bank to the Royal

Festival Hall. Crossing Waterloo Bridge, you head via Fleet Street to St. Paul's

Cathedral, masterpiece of 17th-century architect, Sir Christopher Wren, and chosen by

Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer for their wedding in 1981.

In the heart of the City of London, founded by the Romans in 43 AD you will

see Mansion House, the Lord Mayor's home; the Bank of England, centre of the

nation's finances; and towering above everything else, the striking Lloyds of London

building. The tour now crosses two of London's most famous bridges, the modern

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London Bridge and the majestic Tower Bridge, the 19th-century drawbridge. The

mighty Tower of London, dating back to the 11lh century, has served as palace,

prison, Royal Treasury and Mint, and has a colourful history.

There are two main districts of London - the West End and the East End.

These are not merely geographical names. The West End consists of the fashionable

houses of the rich, art galleries, famous museums, theatres, palaces and parks. The

East End is still a poorer district full of factories and plants, it is a district were poorer

people live too, though it can no longer be called a district of the poor as housing

conditions have improved.

Piccadilly is a fashionable shopping center. Its famous fountain with a statue

of Eros, the Greek god of love, attracts crowds of tourists.

There are many public parks in London: Hyde Park, Regent Park,

Kengsington Gardens, to name only a few.

Hyde Park is Londoners' favourite resting

place, where crowds of people may be seen in

the «Speaker's Corner» listening to Hyde Park

speakers. During the day a lot of people sit on

green grass lawns eating sandwiches, drinking

beer or soft drinks and talking and having rest,

some in the shade, some in the sunshine. Not

only in Hyde Park, all along the Thames side

gardens peoples are resting, taking their midday «breath of air». Everything is still

and peaceful around. You could hardly imagine that an enormous city with its traffic

and noise is but a few paces away.

References

Hyde Park Corner – перехрестя, яке примикає до Гайд парку з південно-

східної частини, відоме напруженим рухом.

Marble Arch – тріумфальна арка (яку построїли в 1828 році, як вхід до

Букінгемського палацу; виявилася дуже вузькою для королівської процесії та

була перенесена в 1851 році на своє сучасне місце, у північно-східній частині

Гайд парку)

Mayfair – Мейфер (модний та дорогий район Вест Енду у Лондоні між

Оксфорд Стріт, Ріджент Стріт, Піккаділлі та Парк Лєйн; відомий дорогими

готелями, ресторанами та магазинами)

Piccadilly Circus – Піккаділлі (площа у центральному Лондоні, перехрестя

Піккаділлі Стріт, Ріджент Стріт та Шафтсбери Авеню; відома яскравою

рекламою)

Horse Guards Parade – місцевість для проведення параду кінної гвардії під

час святкування дня народження Королеви; знаходиться на Уайтхоллі

The Archbishop of Canterburry – архієпископ Кентерберрійський (церковний

титул глави Церкви Англії, котрий являється одночасно єпископом

Кентерберри)

The City of London - лондонський Сіті (адміністративний район у центрі

Лондону, історичний центр міста; займає площу приблизно в одну квадратну

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милю та являється центром фінансів та комерції, звідси його назва «London's

square mile of money»; у ньому знаходяться банк Англії, фондова біржа та офіси

багатьох фінансових компаній; перен. фінанси)

Kensington – фешенебельний район у центральному Лондоні, там знаходяться

дорогі магазини, посольства та дома багатих лондонців.

Lloyds of London – лондонський офіс найбільшої страхової компанії у

Великобританії.

Lord Mayor – лорд-мер, титул голови муніципалітету, великих міст Англії.

Royal Mint – Королівський монетний двір.

Standard english and regional accents

Received Pronunciation (RP): the form of British

English pronunciation which is used by many educated

people in every part of Britain and is typical of many people

in the south of England. It is thought of as a standard form

and is often used by the ВВС. It is also used in teaching

English in many parts of the world.

Received Pronunciation (RP) or ВВС English (so

called because it is used by ВВС announcers) is the accent of the South-east of

England. It has been associated with power and high social class since the 14th

century.

Accent is the sound of a person's pronunciation of the English language. It is

very important in Britain. It shows where a person comes from and, to an extent,

what class he or she belongs to. Britain has many different accents. Each of the four

countries in the Kingdom, England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland, has its own accent.

Within England most of the counties have a different accent. The sound of someone’s

voice will often show the position people hold in society. Today society has changed

and regional accents are more acceptable. But an RP accent is still important and will

help people to get jobs and a position in society, which might be denied, to them if

they spoke in a different way.

Cockney is a way of speaking English that is typical of people who live in the

eastern area of London. It is known as the London dialect. Cockney means East End

working class.

What does Cockney sound like?

"That ain 't got nothing to do with it "(Cockney) = "That has nothing to do

with it. "(Standard English)

Th are pronounced like f as in barf for "bath", or v, as in bruvver for

"brother". They neglect the t in words like "butter", "bottle", "rotten", which in

Cockney can best be represented by bu! er bo! le, ro! en. Similarly, didn't becomes

didn and haven't turns into arn.

The characteristic for which Cockney is famous, of course, is the silent h.

"That's an edgeog" means "That's a hedgehog". The g is often missing from -ing

endings like: eatin 'and drinkin'. Cockney will drop letters and slur words in many

different ways. Old becomes ol. An becomes ern, as in ern afternoon. You is yer, and

so on.

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Rhyming Slang is a way of speaking, originally popular among cockneys,

in which a rhyming phrase, or part of it, is substituted for a standard word.

This form of slang replaces a word with a phrase which rhymes with it:

'loaf of bread' ('loaf) means 'head';

'apples and pears' ('apples') means 'stairs';

'bees and honey' means 'money.

HOME, SWEET HOME

East or West home is best.

It is common knowledge that there is no place like home. To the British their

homes are important. They are dedicated to them; they give them a lot of time and

effort, looking after their homes with much love, care and enthusiasm. More than half

of British families own their homes (houses or flats). Others live in council

accommodation and some people rent from private owners.

Types of Houses. There are three types of houses that people live in:

a) detached;

b) semi-detached;

c) terraced.

A semi-detached house is

joined to the house next door by

a shared wall. A house of this

kind is less expensive than a

detached house, but still offers a

good standard of privacy and

comfort. It usually has a small

garden at the front and a larger

garden at the back

A detached house is the

most expensive type of home. It stands on its own land and is not attached to another

building. Such houses have privacy

from neighbours, and they are ideal

for keen gardeners who can devote

plenty of time to work in their

garden.

A terraced house is usually twoor

three-storeys high. It is one of a

continuous row of similar houses,

joined together by their side walls.

Many rows of terraced houses were

originally built for workers in

nearby factories or coalmines. A

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terraced house usually costs less than a semi-detached or detached house of similar

size. There are miles of terraced houses in most towns. Over a quarter of British

families live in them. There are also other types of buildings in which people live:

d) apartment blocks;

e) bungalows;

f) country cottages.

Bungalows are one-storey houses which are particularly popular with older people.

Apartment blocks are high-rise blocks of flats which provide accommodation for a

lot of city dwellers. But these buildings are not very popular. About 20% of the

population live in flats. There are more flats in cities than in rural areas. Most people