What makes Britain Great.
Feb 28th, 2008, 12:51 PM
#25
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He choked on fairy cakes. I think I read he had 5 in his mouth & they couldn't clear his airway. It was a buffet & they all decided not to let the food go to waste so there was a contest. He lost. 
Mar 2nd, 2008, 09:48 AM
#29
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Google is your friend - have a look at this:http://www.businessballs.com/moneyslanghistory.htm.
It's a good summary of what all the slang names mean, and more besides. Those of us with a memory pre-1971 will be quite at home with tanners, crowns, farthings and the joys of having 240 pence to a pound. I still get puzzled looks from my offspring if I refer to something as 'tuppenny-ha'penny', ie cheap and worthless.
What makes Britain Great? What we've given to the world. Democratic Government, our Press, what is becoming the world's universal language and being able to say what you damned well like without being marched off to prison, even if you might be watched fairly carefully afterwards. And not being French.
It's a good summary of what all the slang names mean, and more besides. Those of us with a memory pre-1971 will be quite at home with tanners, crowns, farthings and the joys of having 240 pence to a pound. I still get puzzled looks from my offspring if I refer to something as 'tuppenny-ha'penny', ie cheap and worthless.
What makes Britain Great? What we've given to the world. Democratic Government, our Press, what is becoming the world's universal language and being able to say what you damned well like without being marched off to prison, even if you might be watched fairly carefully afterwards. And not being French.
Mar 2nd, 2008, 09:53 AM
#30
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And another thing - fairy cakes. They are sickly sweet sponge things that elderly aunts seem to think children like, and that school children make early on in cookery lessons. What I understand to be cup cakes are in a paper or foil case and have thick icing (frosting? - what a versatile language) on top. Equally vile.
Mar 3rd, 2008, 12:52 PM
#32
a fairy cake-
make a standard sponge mixture.
half fill small cake cases x n
bake at 160C for approx. 15 mins til well-risen and golden brown.
leave to cool.
decorate top with icing, hundreds and thousands ["sprinkles" to you], choc vermicelli, etc.etc.
consume singly unless you want end up like the dead bloke.
to make the above into a "butterfly cake" - after cooling, cut off the top of the cake level with the case, cover the cut surface of the cake with icing, cut the top in two and replace on the icing so that they form wings.
consume singly as above.
regards, ann
make a standard sponge mixture.
half fill small cake cases x n
bake at 160C for approx. 15 mins til well-risen and golden brown.
leave to cool.
decorate top with icing, hundreds and thousands ["sprinkles" to you], choc vermicelli, etc.etc.
consume singly unless you want end up like the dead bloke.
to make the above into a "butterfly cake" - after cooling, cut off the top of the cake level with the case, cover the cut surface of the cake with icing, cut the top in two and replace on the icing so that they form wings.
consume singly as above.
regards, ann
Mar 4th, 2008, 01:12 AM
#35
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And there's a "trendy retro" market for them too - these people sell in the chic-er bit of Brick Lane:
http://www.crumbsanddoilies.co.uk/scrapbook.html
http://www.crumbsanddoilies.co.uk/scrapbook.html
Mar 4th, 2008, 02:15 AM
#36
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On the pizza faster than an ambulance thing. When I worked on the White City we did an experiment.
We called a police response call car, a pizza delivery service and a crack dealer. The arrival times:
Crack: Three minutes (and he had quite a suprise)
Pizza: ten minutes.
Plod: Twenty minutes.
Other things that make Britain great:
We have a Royal society to protect animals and just a national society to protect children.
we refer to that place on the other side of he channel as "Europe" and we don't think we're part of it.
We think that london to birmingham is a very long way indeed.
We can't make pizza - I think we boil it.
We called a police response call car, a pizza delivery service and a crack dealer. The arrival times:
Crack: Three minutes (and he had quite a suprise)
Pizza: ten minutes.
Plod: Twenty minutes.
Other things that make Britain great:
We have a Royal society to protect animals and just a national society to protect children.
we refer to that place on the other side of he channel as "Europe" and we don't think we're part of it.
We think that london to birmingham is a very long way indeed.
We can't make pizza - I think we boil it.
Mar 4th, 2008, 04:13 AM
#39
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J R Hartley -
I would love to know where these things originate. I was e-mailed on the 12 May 2006 the same 'Being British'. The reason the date is so accurate is that I kept the e-mail just to give me a chuckle every now and then so thanks for the laugh.
It just reminds me how stupid us 'humans' can be not just the 'British'
I would love to know where these things originate. I was e-mailed on the 12 May 2006 the same 'Being British'. The reason the date is so accurate is that I kept the e-mail just to give me a chuckle every now and then so thanks for the laugh.
It just reminds me how stupid us 'humans' can be not just the 'British'
