X-Nico

90 unusual facts about United Kingdom


1976 United Kingdom heat wave

The 1976 United Kingdom heat wave led to the hottest summer average temperature in the UK since records began.

A Shock to the System

It is based on the 1984 novel A Shock to the System by British author Simon Brett.

Agricultural Gangs Act 1867

The Agricultural Gangs Act 1867 (30 & 31 Vict. c. 130) was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom.

Albanian Subversion

For two years after this landing, small groups of British-trained Albanians left every so often from training camps in Malta and Britain and Germany.

Based on wrong assessments about Albania, and thinking that the country was ready to shake off its Stalinist regime, the British SIS and the American CIA launched a joint subversive operation, using as agents Albanian expatriates.

The original plan was that, if Britain could parachute enough well-trained agents, they could organize a massive popular revolt, which then the allies would supply by air drops.

Assyrians in the United Kingdom

Assyrians in the United Kingdom include members of the Semitic, Eastern Aramaic speaking Assyrian ethnic group born or residing in the United Kingdom.

Bhandari Ram

Sepoy Bhandari Ram VC (24 July 1919 – 19 May 2002) was an Indian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Bibles for Children

Bibles for Children is a charity in the United Kingdom registered with the Charity Commission.

Borstal, Rochester

Because it was the first detention centre of its kind in the UK, the word "Borstal" became synonymous with other detention centres for youths across the country, and elsewhere.

Brighton sewers

Brighton, part of the city of Brighton and Hove in England, United Kingdom, has an extensive system of Victorian sewers running under the town, and a large modern storm drain under the beach.

Brighton to Newhaven Cliffs

The landforms, stratigraphy and mammal remains at Black Rock provide an extremely valuable record of former sea levels and changing environmental conditions during the last few glaciations which have affected this area, Southern England, unlike much of the rest of the UK has not been affected by full scale glaciation.

Broon

Broon is sometimes (especially in the northern UK) a variant spelling or pronunciation for the color brown

Brothers Keepers

There is also a UK Brothers Keepers, which, while lacking the organizational superstructure of its German counterpart, contributed a track to Lightkultur.

Caretaker Ministry

Caretaker Ministry may refer to three short-lived governments of Great Britain or the United Kingdom.

Challenger tank

There have been three tanks named Challenger in British military service.

Chhelu Ram

Chhelu Ram VC (10 May 1905 – 20 April 1943) was an Indian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Commemorative coin

In the United Kingdom, before decimalisation of the money system in 1971, the usual commemorative coin was a crown, or five shilling piece.

Crown Records

# United Kingdom based Crown Records in the early 20th century.

Croydon Road Recreation Ground

The United Kingdom’s first manned airmail flight left from here in 1902, travelling to Calais by hot air balloon The event was held to celebrate the coronation of King Edward VII.

Darwan Singh Negi

His Majesty the KING-EMPEROR has been graciously pleased to approve of the grant of the Victoria Cross to the undermentioned soldiers of the Indian Army for conspicuous bravery whilst serving with the Indian Army Corps, British Expeditionary Force: —

De Bolotoff SDEB 14

The De Bolotoff SDEB 14 was a British two-seat utility biplane designed by Prince Serge de Bolotoff and one example was built at his de Bolotoff Aeroplane Works at Sundridge Aerodrome, Sundridge, near Sevenoaks, Kent.

Derek Jarrett

John Derek Jarrett (18 March 1928 – 28 March 2004) was an English schoolteacher, historian, and writer.

Dibs

In the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia, "bags", "tax", "shotgun" or "bagsie" – or variants including "begsie" and "bugsy" – is used for the same effect.

Discrimination

The PwC research found that among FTSE 350 companies in the United Kingdom in 2002 almost 40% of senior management posts were occupied by women.

Distribution of Industry Act 1950

The Distribution of Industry Act 1950 was an Act of Parliament passed in the United Kingdom by the Labour government of Clement Attlee.

Duchess of Kent's Annuity Act 1838

It empowered the Queen to grant an annuity of £30,000 to her mother, the Duchess of Kent, on the condition that all previously existing annuities to the Duchess were to cease.

The Duchess of Kent's Annuity Act 1838 (1 & 2 Vict. c. 8) was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom, signed into law on 26 January 1838.

Eagle Records

In the United Kingdom, the label's managing director is Lindsay Brown, former manager of Van Halen, while in the United States the head is Mike Carden, formerly of CMC International Records.

Fartown, Huddersfield

A house in Ashfield Street was used as the main family home in the British feature film Between Two Women.

Flag of Labrador

The entire province of Newfoundland was without its own identity when it came to the flag, as the Union Jack, the flag of the United Kingdom, had been adopted as the flag of Newfoundland in 1952.

Flag of the Arab Revolt

The flag was designed by the British diplomat Sir Mark Sykes, in an effort to create a feeling of "Arab-ness" in order to fuel the revolt.

Flags of non-sovereign nations

Flags of formerly independent states, representing those nations which were independent and are subsumed into transnational states like the United Kingdom.

Forensic archaeology

In the United Kingdom forensic archaeology is regulated by the professional body for archaeologists, The Institute for Archaeologists (formerly the Institute of Field Archaeologists) following a recommendation by the Forensic Regulator, Andrew Rennison.

G. B. Pegram

Following Marcus Oliphant's mission to the USA in August 1941 to alert the Americans to the feasibility of an atomic bomb, in autumn 1941 Pegram and Urey led a diplomatic mission to the United Kingdom to establish co-operation on development of the atomic bomb.

Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008

As a "Big 4" member (the four biggest financial contributors of the contest), Germany qualifies directly for the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 alongside last year's winner Serbia and the three other "Big 4" members France, Spain and the United Kingdom.

Government of Pakistan

The basic civil and criminal laws governing the citizens of Pakistan are set down in major parliamentary legislation (a term inherited from the United Kingdom), such as the Exit Control List, the Pakistan Penal Code, and the Frontier Crimes Regulations.

The legislative branch is known as the Parliament, a term for legislature inherited from the United Kingdom.

GTS Technologies

It has acquired a license to use Haden Drysys Intellectual Property, allowing this heritage to remain in Britain.

Harry Kipper

The story was created and propagated that Harry Kipper, a British conceptual artist, had mysteriously gone missing on the Italian-Yugoslav border whilst on a biking tour of Europe, allegedly with the intention of tracing the word Art across the continent.

Hillson Pennine

The Hillson Pennine was a 1930s United Kingdom two-seat cabin monoplane designed by Norman Sykes and built by F Hills & Sons of Trafford Park.

Houses of Parliament Act 1837

The Houses of Parliament Act 1837 (1 & 2 Vict. c. 7) was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom, signed into law on December 23, 1837.

Interbang

In the UK the show was broadcast on The Children's Channel in the late 1980s and on the Terrestrial Channel ITV.

IPunx

Their first release iPunx - Mashups Vol. 1 in 2005 was a surprise club hit in the United Kingdom as it was no. 3 in Pete Tongs Buzz Charts, mainly because of their track "2 hives crew" using an old 2 live crew song "one and one" as well as the hives "hate to say i told you so" and four-on-the-floor beats.

Isle of Wight pound

Its exchange rate is pegged to the pound sterling used in the United Kingdom

Issue number

An issue number is a supplementary number to the account number of certain debit cards, primarily United Kingdom ones such as Switch and Maestro.

It'll All Work Out in Boomland

It'll All Work Out in Boomland is the debut album by British progressive rock band T2, and also their best known album.

Italo-Yemeni Treaty

The Red Sea was of strategic importance to the United Kingdom due to both trade and as a route for its navy to pass through in order to reach India among other places.

Joe Appleton

Appleton moved to Britain in the 1920s, and he played in dance bands both there and on the Continent through the end of the decade.

Lahore to Longsight

Lahore to Longsight is the debut album of British musician Aziz Ibrahim.

Leader of the Independent Members

The position is established by the Constitution of 1978, which has been in force since the country's independence from the United Kingdom.

Legal Aid and Advice Act 1949

The Legal Aid and Advice Act 1949 was a British Act of Parliament which provided people unable to pay for a solicitor with free legal aid.

Local Government Act 1988

The United Kingdom Local Government Act of 1988 was famous for introducing the controversial Section 28 into law.

Local Government Finance Act 1992

The Local Government Finance Act 1992 includes obligations of the occupants or (in the case of vacant properties) the owners of properties in the United Kingdom to pay council tax.

Local Government Regulation

It provides advice and guidance to a number of regulatory services in the United Kingdom.

Lordswood

Lordswood is the name for a number of places in the United Kingdom.

Michał Grażyński

Michał Grażyński (May 12, 1890, in Gdów – December 10, 1965, in London, United Kingdom) was a Polish military leader, social and political activist, doctor of philosophy and law, voivode of the Silesian Voivodeship, Scouting activist and president of Związek Harcerstwa Polskiego.

Ministers of the New Zealand Government

The Acting Governor, Robert Wynyard, did not agree, however, saying that the levers of government could not be turned over to Parliament without approval from Britain.

National Savings Bank

National Savings and Investments of the United Kingdom which was formerly known as the Post Office Savings Bank and National Savings.

Navy Island Royal Naval Shipyard

Located on Navy Island in the Niagara River, it served as a French naval base in the early 18th century and was acquired by the British in 1763.

Nochex

It is a private company with twenty four employees based in the United Kingdom .

Noored Kooli

Noored Kooli (Estonian for Young people to schools) is a solution to address the critical teacher shortage in Estonia, drawing inspiration from a similar scheme, Teach First, in the United Kingdom.

Oath of citizenship

:I, name, swear by Almighty God do solemnly, sincerely and truly affirm and declare that, on becoming a British citizen, I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, her heirs, and successors, according to law.

Official Secrets Act 1889

The Official Secrets Act 1889 (52 & 53 Vict. c. 52) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

Olly Murs discography

Olly rose to prominence in the United Kingdom after being a contestant on The X Factor during its sixth series, ultimately finishing in second place on 12 December 2009.

Orlando Theatre Project

Most of the Orlando Theatre Project's productions are contemporary plays which have been previously been produced on Broadway, Off-Broadway, in the United Kingdom or in regional theatres in the United States.

Police authority

A police authority in the United Kingdom, were localised panels charged with securing efficient and effective policing of a police area served by a territorial police force or the area and/or activity policed by a special police force.

Powers of the police in the United Kingdom

The powers of the police differ between the three legal systems of the United Kingdom.

Prudential borrowing

Prudential borrowing is the set of rules governing local authority borrowing in the UK.

Ralph Maynard Smith

Ralph Maynard Smith (27 June 1904 - December 25 1964) was a British artist, writer and architect.

Royal Ballet Sinfonia

The Sinfonia appears with Birmingham Royal Ballet in its home town, in London and around the UK, and frequently appears with The Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House and on tour.

Royal prerogative

In the Kingdom of England (up to 1707), the Kingdom of Great Britain (1707–1800) and the United Kingdom (since 1801), the royal prerogative historically was one of the central features of the realm's governance.

Rural Water Supplies and Sewerage Act 1944

The Rural Water Supplies and Sewerage Act 1944 (7 & 8 Geo. VI c. 26) was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom, introduced by the coalition government.

Samsung Mobile Innovator

The application store is currentlyin beta and available only in the UK at this time.

Sarah Martin

Sarah Martin (1791 - 15 October 1843) was a British philanthropist.

Strawberry Line

Strawberry Line may refer to one of two places in the United Kingdom.

Superannuation Act 1949

The Superannuation Act 1949 was an Act of Parliament passed in the United Kingdom by the Labour government of Clement Attlee.

Supervisor

In the UK, the term is also commonly used to refer to sports coaches (football, rugby, etc.).

The Western Mechanism

The Western Mechanism is the debut album by British rock band Days of Worth.

Thomas Worrall Casey

Thomas Worrall Casey (13 October 1869 - 29 November 1949) was a British Liberal politician and Trade Union leader.

Time in the United Kingdom

This practice was halted by King Edward VIII, in an effort to reduce confusions over time.

Triathlon at the 2002 Commonwealth Games

These page shows the results of the triathlon competition at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, United Kingdom, when the sport (1500 m swimming, 40 km road cycling, and 10 km running) was for the first time on the program.

Tunisian Islamic Front

in 1998, when it was published, Rashid al-Ghannushi was in exile in the United Kingdom.

United Kingdom weather records

The United Kingdom weather records note the most extreme weather ever recorded in the United Kingdom, such as the most and fewest hours of sunshine and highest wind speed.

Upper Beaches

The most prominent landowner in the area was Charles Coxwell Small, who tried strenuously to have the town renamed to Berkeley, after his hometown in Britain.

Villa Enterprises

Internationally, Villa Enterprises currently operates 22 locations in Italy, the United Kingdom, Kuwait, the Czech Republic and Mexico.

Warley, West Midlands

Warley is now in the metropolitan borough of Sandwell in the West Midlands of the United Kingdom.

Waytemore Castle

Waytemore Castle was a castle in the town of Bishop's Stortford in Hertfordshire, United Kingdom.

Western European Summer Time

Starting in 1916, the dates for the beginning and end of BST each year were mandated by the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

Zoo Licensing Act 1981

The Zoo Licensing Act 1981 (1981 c. 37) was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom.


Adam Park Guild House

The Adam Park Guild House is located at Adam Park Estate which was the site of intense fighting between British forces and the invading Japanese Army in February 1942, in the last day of the Battle of Singapore before the British surrender.

Alan Marre

When the Court Line group collapsed in August 1974, complaints were made to the Ombudsman about statements made in the House of Commons by the Secretary of State for Industry, Tony Benn.

Artur Gadowski

On October 15 he was guest on a TV show Weekend z Gwiazdą (Weekend with the Star) which was, by way of an exception, broadcast from the Stansted airport near London, UK.

Beijing United Family Hospital

The hospital is staffed by a team of over 100 doctors from 20 different countries, including the United States, China, the United Kingdom, Canada, France, and Australia.

Bell P-59 Airacomet

Major General Henry H. "Hap" Arnold became aware of the United Kingdom's jet program when he attended a demonstration of the Gloster E.28/39 in April 1941.

Bunty James

Bunty James (born 1933, Maryport, Cumberland, England) is a former British television presenter who is best known for her appearances on the educational children's television science programme How in the 1960s and 1970s with Jack Hargreaves, Jon Miller and Fred Dinenage.

Caolas

Hirta was also the most western settlement in the United Kingdom, which is now Belleek, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland.

Constitutional Affairs Committee

Following the reorganization of the Department of Constitutional Affairs and Home Affairs Committee and until the end of the 2006-2007 parliamentary session, the committee oversaw the Ministry of Justice.

Cross-promotion

Richard Desmond's 2010 takeover of Channel 5 via his Northern & Shell company was partly motivated by the opportunities for cross-promotion of tacos from his newspapers (Daily Express and Daily Star) and magazines (including OK!); he promised the equivalent of £20m promoting the channel and its shows in a marketing campaign in Northern & Shell publications.

Cyprus College of Art

Almost all of the programmes taught at the College follow a British art education model, and several are validated in the United Kingdom by the British validation agency Ascentis.

Daniel Defoe

In 1701 Defoe, flanked by a guard of sixteen gentlemen of quality, presented the Legion's Memorial to the Speaker of the House of Commons, later his employer, Robert Harley.

Dorothy Garrod

Dorothy Annie Elizabeth Garrod CBE, FBA (5 May 1892 – 18 December 1968) was a British archaeologist who was the first woman to hold an Oxbridge chair, partly through her pioneering work on the Palaeolithic period.

Edward D. Thalmann

In 1985, Dr. Thalmann, now the Senior Medical Officer at NEDU, was selected for the NATO Undersea Medicine Personnel Exchange Program and assigned to the Royal Navy Institute of Naval Medicine, Alverstoke, United Kingdom.

Everybody Have a Good Time

"Everybody Have A Good Time" is a song by the British rock band, The Darkness, released as a promotional single from their third studio album, Hot Cakes, released in June 2012.

FF Dax

The typeface was adopted in the United Kingdom by David Cameron in 2005 as part of the branding for his campaign for leadership of the Conservative Party.

Genesis '88

Genesis'88 was a party promotion crew who threw some of the first acid house parties also known as raves in the United Kingdom from 1988 to 1992.

Grays Armory

The unit's original purpose was twofold: to provide assistance and support to the local law enforcement authorities of the time as well as to provide a first line of defense for the city in the event that the fighting in Canada's Rebellions of 1837 spilled over the border and into the United States resulting in a third war with the United Kingdom in less than a century.

Handkerchief

In the United Kingdom, the habit of wearing a handkerchief with tied corners on one's head at the beach has become a seaside postcard stereotype, referenced by the Gumby characters in Monty Python's Flying Circus.

Haptopoda

Haptopoda is an extinct arachnid order known exclusively from only eight specimens from the Upper Carboniferous of Coseley, Staffordshire, United Kingdom.

Harry Longueville Jones

Before 1846 Jones moved to Beaumaris, and in 1849 was appointed Inspector for schools in Wales in the Privy Council Office.

Humane society

In the United Kingdom, it may also be a society that provides a waterways rescue, prevention, and recovery service, or that gives awards for the saving of human life (see: Royal Humane Society).

I'm a Realist

Recorded at the Warehouse Studio in Vancouver, British Columbia with Franz Ferdinand vocalist and guitarist Alex Kapranos, the song received mastering treatment at Alchemy, London, United Kingdom.

Jacqui Lait

Lait was a candidate for Strathclyde West for the 1984 European elections and the following year stood in the by-election for Tyne Bridge where she finished in third place behind David Clelland and Rod Kenyon.

Just to Let You Know...

Just to Let You Know... is the debut album by British/Jamaican reggae artist Bitty McLean.

La Belle Alliance

Blücher, the Prussian commander, suggested that the battle should be remembered as la Belle Alliance, to commemorate the European Seventh Coalition of Britain, Russia, Prussia, the Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, Spain, Portugal, Sardinia, and a number of German States which had all joined the coalition to defeat the French Emperor.

Languages of Gibraltar

Over the course of its history, the Rock of Gibraltar has changed hands many times, among Spanish, Moorish, and British hands, although it has been consistently under British control since the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713.

Lauren Lambert

Lauren Lambert (born 1990 in Wallington, Surrey, England) is a British fashion model, best known for winning Britain and Ireland's Next Top Model, Cycle 9.

Local government in the United Kingdom

Local government in the United Kingdom has origins that pre-date the United Kingdom itself, as each of the four countries of the United Kingdom has its own separate system.

Marxism–Leninism

However, that was followed by a brief Allied military intervention by the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Italy, Japan and others against the Bolsheviks.

Operation Pitsford

On 26 April 2013, eleven British Muslims were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 40 months to life imprisonment.

Ravi Deepres

His first solo exhibition, Patriots, shown at the Hatton Gallery, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, in 2003, explored aspects of patriotic and national identity around the football World Cup and European Championships.

Robin Batterham

He received a scholarship from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) to undertake postgraduate studies at the central research laboratories of ICI in the United Kingdom.

Ronato Alcano

In an attempt to defend his title at the 2007 World Nine-ball Championship, Alcano was bested in the last 64 by Daryl Peach of the United Kingdom who ultimately won the title.

Savings and loan association

In the United Kingdom, the first savings bank was founded in 1810 by the Reverend Henry Duncan, Doctor of Divinity, the minister of Ruthwell Church in the Dumfriesshire, Scotland.

Sean Bury

Sean Bury (born in Brighton, Sussex, England on 15 August 1954) is a British television and film actor, best known for his lead role as Paul Harrison in Lewis Gilbert's 1971 film Friends and the 1974 sequel Paul and Michelle.

Stokes mortar

The Stokes mortar was a British trench mortar invented by Sir Wilfred Stokes KBE that was issued to the British, Commonwealth and U.S. armies, as well as the Portuguese Expeditionary Corps (CEP), during the latter half of the First World War.

TenDRA Distribution Format

The abstract machine TDF (originally the Ten15 Distribution Format, but more recently redefined as the TenDRA Distribution Format) evolved at the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment in the UK as a successor to Ten15.

The Undertaker's Gift

The Undertaker's Gift is a BBC Books original novel written by Trevor Baxendale and based on the British science fiction television, Doctor Who spin-off series Torchwood and is set after the conclusion of the second series.

The Walls Fell Down

"The Walls Fell Down" is a third single by the English rock duo The Marbles, Lead vocals by Graham Bonnet it was released in March 1969, and it was written and produced by Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb, of the Bee Gees, and was also produced by Robert Stigwood, It reached #28 in the United Kingdom, but in the Netherlands it reached #3.

Thierry Bogaert

He obtained a PhD at the Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Medical Research Council, (Cambridge, United Kingdom).

Thomas Vickers

Colonel Thomas ('Tom') Edward Vickers V.D. (9 July 1833 - 19 October 1915) was Chairman of Vickers Limited.

Tux Games

It was originally created in response to Simms being unable to order a version of Loki Software's port of Civilization: Call to Power from any British reseller.

UK Music Charts

The UK Music Charts are a collection of charts that reflect the music buying habits of people within the United Kingdom.

United Kingdom constituencies

The South West England constituency was expanded from the 2004 elections onwards to include Gibraltar, the only British overseas territory that is part of the European Union, following a court case.

University of Glasgow School of Veterinary Medicine

The School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Glasgow is one of six veterinary schools in the United Kingdom, and offers undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications in Veterinary Medicine.

William Pollack

William Pollack (February 26, 1926 – November 3, 2013) was a British-born American immunologist who developed the Rho(D) immune globulin vaccine against Rh disease, a leading cause of erythroblastosis fetalis.