The Best of British Quirks (peculiarities)

Read the paragraphs through one by one to get the gist. Then go to the questions on the next page.

,fter all, hen a day turns from rain to sunshine every fe hours, there is al ays something to tal# about. &hile the theme of eather might be considered boring in other countries, in Britain it is practically a national pastime.

(!) "elebrating #ailure

!t is a peculiar nation that chooses to celebrate its losers as ell as its inners. /et, the affection for the 0underdog1 character has become part of Britain-s cultural 23,, ith the value of failing and going do n ith a smile on your face almost as important as inning.

(1) Queuing
The Great British Tradition: a finely tuned system of etiquette representing all that is good, fair and civilized about the United Kingdom. British people form queues ith an elegant effortlessness unseen in any other culture. !f you ant to e"perience a quintessentially British sensation, al# into any post office and barge right into the middle of the queue $ the mood of suppressed rage and anger is beyond compare%

;y grandpa said that if you do your best, no matter hat the score, /4U &!3%%

($) "ockney Rhy%ing &lang

4ne British dialect has even developed its o n title: 5oc#ney 6hyming slang. ,lthough typically associated ith the .ast .nd of 7ondon, this rhyming style has spread all over the British !sles. !t is a collection of phrases hich rhyme ith the actual ord you ant to say and used instead of it in a sentence: e.g. apples and pears are said instead of stairs; pork pies for lies; dog and bone for phone and butchers hook for look. 8o, you might hear: 0&here-s ,nne91 08he-s up the apples and pears1, Tom said. 0,re you telling me a por# pie91 8ue replied, 0she-s on the dog and bone. ! can hear her%1

(2) Tea Drinking

!t is rare to pass the threshold of any British house for long before you are offered a cup of tea. &ith the average Briton drin#ing three cups a day, it is clear that the popularity of this drin# is still going strong. How to make the perfect cup of tea 'i( !deally, before you put the tea in the pot, the pot should be armed ith boiling ater, hich is then poured a ay. 'ii( Boiling ater should be added to the tea 'not the other ay round( and then left to bre for appro"imately )*+ minutes. 'iii( , little mil# should be poured into each cup before pouring in the strained tea. 'iv( The tea must not be stirred 'e.g. after adding sugar(, but should be gently folded a ay 'in the opposing direction to yourself( from you. 'v( The little finger should be gently raised hile lifting the tea cup 'to ensure balance of cup(.

(') (anners
British manners are considered to be the most formal in the orld. :or instance, should your meal in a restaurant not be up to scratch, your complaint ould naturally begin ith an apology: Im terribly sorry, but my steak seems to have been burnt to a crisp! Try saying The host: 4h, !-m afraid you 0please1, have a bad egg, ;r <ones than# you1 ;r <ones: ! assure you, 8ir, or 0sorry1 that parts of it are e"cellent

(3)

eather

!t-s very nearly right to say that hen t o .nglishmen meet, the first topic of conversation is the eather.

after every sentence and you-ll be tal#ing li#e a native in no time% Tasks

,dapted from 0Best of British1 by Georgina .ade

(1)Queuing
=ere are some e"planations of the > underlined ords?phrases. 'i( , radio can be finely tuned to receive the station e"actly, so that you can hear?understand it the best i.e. to get it e"actly right. 'ii( quintessence: the perfect e"ample of something, e.g. =e has a sense of humour that is quintessentially British. 'iii( to barge: to move in an a # ard ay pushing people out of the ay. 'iv( suppressed : held bac#@ covered up@ restrained. a( 3o read the passage once more. &ith a partner try to say hat effortless elegance means in the conte"t of the second sentence. b( 2o people queue in your country9 !f so, is it a very civilised and fair9 c( !magine the scene in the last sentence. 2iscuss ith your partner hat might be said? done by the others in the queue.

2) Tea drinking
7oo# at the e"planations of these ords: threshold: entrance or doorstep@ strained 'tea(: tea that has been poured through a sieve to hold bac# the tea leaves, to )old 'a coo#ing term: to gently mi" in a ay so that as much air is #ept in the mi"ture as possible(. 3o read the te"t once more. 'i( ,re you a tea drin#er or do you prefer coffee9 'ii( &hat do you thin# the name of the device is hich strains the tea9 , tea sAAAAAAAA . 'iii( &rite a short set of directions 'as in a recipe( for ma#ing a good cup of tea using information from the te"t. 8tart ith: B( &arm pot ith boiling ater. Cour a ay. D(E

3)

eather 'i(,fter reading the te"t once more, hich ords ould fit best into these sentences9

The eather in Britain is e"tremely AAAAAAAAAAA a( et b( changeable c( pleasant !t-s AAAAAAAAA to begin a conversation about the eather. a( boring b( impolite c( usual Tal#ing about British eather could be called a national AAAAAAA a( hobby b( disaster c( asset 'ii( 2iscuss the cartoon at the bottom of the page. &hat do you thin# this has to say about the British attitude to eather9

!) "elebrating )ailure.
6ead the passage once more. !n pairs, discuss hat you thin# i( an underdog is@ ii( ritains cultural !"#$ :ind ords in the te"t hich mean the same as: strange* kindness* signi)icance* nearly* =o is the underdog treated in your culture9

$) "ockney rhy%ing slang

'i( 6ead the te"t once more and discuss ith your partner hat the cartoonist ants to say in the picture. 'ii( had you heard of this type of rhyming before9 2oes it seem strange to you9 'iii( Try and decipher the follo ing ords: a( !-ve been married to my trouble and strife for )> years% AAAAAAAA b( =ey mate% 5an you do me a cheesy quaver9 fAAAAAAAAAAAAA c( &ait a minute% ! can-t go out ithout doing my Barnet :air. hAAAAAAAA

') 6ead the sixth te"t once more and try to fill in the gaps to reconstruct it ithout loo#ing. British manners are considered to be the most fAAAAAAAAAA in the orld. :or instance,

should your meal in a restaurant not be up to sAAAAAAAAA, your complaint ould naturally begin ith an aAAAAAAAAAAAA: Im terribly s%%%%%%%, but my steak seems to have been b%%%%%% to a crisp! Try saying 0please1, 0tAAAAA you1 or 0sorry1 after every sentence and you-ll be tal#ing li#e a AAAAAAAAA in no time% +) (ix and (atch. ;atch ords and phrases from group , and B. They are all used in the te"ts. Try to match them first and then go bac# to the te"ts to chec#, e.g. ,- the best of@ all that is@ beyond@ three cups@ going@ boiling@ the other@ topic of@ national@ going do n@ the .ast@ not be up@ burnt@ tal#ing@ .: to a crisp@ pastime@ strong@ li#e a native@ to scratch@ ith a smile on your face@ conversation@ British@ ater@ ay round@ compare@ .nd@ a day@ good@ ,ns/er 0ey 2ii a tea strainer iii B( &arm pot ith boiling ater. Cour a ay. D( Cut tea into pot then add boiling ater. Bre for )*+minutes. )( Cour a little mil# into each cup. >( Cour in strained tea. +( '8tir gently to dissolve added sugar.( ) changeable@ usual@ hobby >. peculiar@ affection@ value@ almost + iii a( ife b( favour c( hair F ;i" and ;atch the best of British all that is good beyond compare three cups a day going strong boiling ater the other ay round topic of conversation national pastime going do n ith a smile on your face the .ast .nd not be up to scratch burnt to a crisp tal#ing li#e a native