X-Nico

99 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.

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.

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.

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.

Allotments Act 1950

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

Balderstone, Greater Manchester

John Ellis (1874–1932) was born in Balderstone and became one of the United Kingdom's executioners.

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.

BHX

In the UK, an indication that a given service is not available on bank holidays (bank holidays excepted)

Borstal, Rochester

Fort Borstal was built as an afterthought from the 1859 Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom, by convict labour between 1875 and 1885.

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.

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.

Children Act 1948

The Children Act 1948 was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that established a comprehensive childcare service.

Clarke Award

Arthur C. Clarke Award, given yearly to a science fiction author for a novel published in the United Kingdom.

Colombian peso

In 1931, when the U.K. left the gold standard, Colombia shifted its peg to the U.S. dollar, at a rate of 1.05 pesos = 1 dollar, a slight devaluation from its previous peg.

Confetti

The British adapted the missiles to weddings (displacing the traditional rice) at the end of the 19th century, using symbolic shreds of colored paper rather than real sweets.

Crown Records

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

Danger area

On maps of the United Kingdom produced by the Ordnance Survey the words Danger Area in red indicate Firing and Test Ranges in the area.

Darwan Singh Negi

Darwan Singh Negi VC (November 1881 – 24 June 1950) was among the earliest Indian recipients 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.

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

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.

Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology

It is the first institute in the United Kingdom to award undergraduate and postgraduate degrees and diplomas in the fields of Conservation, Eco-tourism, and Biodiversity Management.

E-democracy

Youth, in particular, have seen a significant drop in turnout in most industrialized nations, including Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom.

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.

Education in Malaysia

Present-day Malaysia introduced Western style school uniforms (pakaian seragam sekolah) in the late 19th century during the British colonial era.

Employment and Training Act 1948

The Employment and Training Act 1948 was an Act of Parliament passed in the United Kingdom by the Labour government of Clement Attlee.

English Island

English Island, Isles of Scilly, an uninhabited rocklet in the Isles of Scilly in the United Kingdom

Foreign espionage in New Zealand

Foreign intelligence agencies might therefore see New Zealand as a "back door" into the intelligence worlds of the United States or 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.

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.

German model

This is unique among Western countries, which have been marked by either substantial weakening of union powers (such as in the United States and United Kingdom) over the last twenty years, or consistent union conflict (such as in France and Italy, where unions have remained strong).

Golden Decade

The "Golden Decade in British Sport", a term reflecting the large number of major international sporting events to be hosted by the United Kingdom in the 2010s

Greenwood Personal Credit

Greenwood Personal Credit Ltd is a finance company supplying home collected credit in the United Kingdom, a subsidiary of Provident Financial.

GTS Technologies

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

Harbours, Docks and Piers Clauses Act 1847

The Harbours, Docks and Piers Clauses Act 1847 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which governs harbors, docks, and piers.

Harriet Angelina Fortescue

Harriet Angelina Fortescue (1825 – 1889) was a British writer on international affairs.

Honorary title

Honorary title (academic), primarily exists in Britain as well as some universities and colleges in the United States and Canada

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.

Hydrophone

SOSUS hydrophones, laid on the seabed and connected by underwater cables, were used, beginning in the 1950s, by the U.S. Navy to track movement of Soviet submarines during the Cold War along a line from Greenland, Iceland and the United Kingdom known as the GIUK gap.

Improvement commissioners

Boards of improvement commissioners were ad hoc boards created during the 18th and 19th centuries in the United Kingdom.

They often included street paving, cleansing, lighting, providing watchmen or dealing with various public nuisances.

Around 300 boards were created, each by a private Act of Parliament, typically termed an Improvement Act.

International Personal Finance

International Personal Finance is a leading British-based international home credit business.

InView Unmanned Aircraft System

The "InView Unmanned Aircraft System" is an Unmanned aerial vehicle that has been developed by Barnard Microsystems Limited in the United Kingdom specifically for use in scientific, commercial and state applications.

IPunx

iPunx is a mashup duo from London in the United Kingdom who has released several EPs and one internet-only mashup 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.

Jez

Jez is a nickname, most commonly shorthand for the given name Jeremy, particularly in the UK.

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.

Jose Luis Paris

He appeared many times live all over the world and on British TV in the 1970s and 1980s and many radio appearances to credit as well.

Kings Chamber Orchestra

The King's Chamber Orchestra is a professional chamber orchestra based in the United Kingdom.

Lahore to Longsight

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

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 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.

Middle-market newspaper

In the United Kingdom, since the demise of Today (1986–95), the only national middle-market papers are the Daily Mail and the Daily Express, distinguishable by their black-top masthead (both use the easy-to-carry tabloid paper size), as opposed to the red-top mastheads of down-market tabloids.

Montague Birch

Charles Montague Birch (1884–1947) was a British musical conductor.

National Savings Bank

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

Nightmare Hunters

Nightmare Hunters is an upcoming British children’s adventure film starring Aaron Swartz, Jonathan Hansler, Brenock O’Connor, Toby Murray and Julie Hoult.

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.

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.

On Kosmo

On Kosmo is an album recorded by British musician/DJ Sonique during 2004 and released, after much delay, in 2006 in the UK and Germany.

P word

Paki, a derogatory term for a person from South Asia (particularly Pakistan), mainly used in the United Kingdom

Peter Moyes

Once the war ended, he and his wife, Judy travelled to the United Kingdom, where he became a Latin and History teacher at Winchester College in Hampshire.

Planning committee

The entry on development control in the United Kingdom includes a detailed explanation about the role and workings of a planning committee, the planning officers who report to them - and including the role and significance of public comments and objections to any given planning application.

Political Parties and Elections Act 2009

The Political Parties and Elections Act 2009 (c 12) is an Act of the Parliament 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.

Ramadan-class missile boat

The Ramadan class missile boat has been in service with the Egyptian Navy since 1981, commissioned from the United Kingdom.

Research program

A research program (UK: research programme) is a professional network of scientists conducting basic research.

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.

Sarah Martin

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

Seeds for Africa

Seeds for Africa is a British charity that has set up over 800 garden projects across 25 African countries, where it encourages sustainable vegetable gardening by providing indigenous vegetable seeds, agricultural equipment and technical expertise.

Sport in Leeds

Leeds Rhinos are the best supported Rugby League club in the United Kingdom, their Headingley ground holds up to 20,500 spectators and is regularly filled, with sell out's particularly common, at games against Bradford Bulls, St. Helens and Wigan Warriors.

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.).

Tangerine Records

Tangerine Records (1992) - a United Kingdom based company, releasing mod and powerpop music since 1992.

The North Avenue Irregulars

The film was released as Hill's Angels in the United Kingdom.

The Six Wives of Henry Lefay

Its only theatrical release was in Israel, and was launched straight to DVD elsewhere, including the United States and United Kingdom.

The Western Mechanism

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

Tibor Hernádi

After working as a director on short animated films, Hernadi made his full-length directorial effort in Felix the Cat: The Movie, which was released in the United Kingdom in October 1988.

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.

UK Music Charts

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

Uni in the USA

Uni in the USA is a guide to universities around the world aimed at prospective students in the United Kingdom.

United Kingdom's emergency towing vessel fleet

The first vessels of the UK's ETV fleet were introduced in 1994 following the recommendations of Lord Donaldson's report 'Safer Ships, Cleaner Seas' published in May 1994 following the MV Braer oil spill of off the coast of Shetland, Scotland.

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.

Vox populi sound system

It was active in holding free parties in both the United Kingdom and Europe, between 1993 and 1996.

Waytemore Castle

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

West Indian Prisons Act 1838

The West Indian Prisons Act 1838 (1 & 2 Vict. c. 67) was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom, signed into law on August 4, 1838.


Annelise Hesme

As well as this, she has become particularly well known and popular in the United Kingdom and Ireland following the 2005 Renault Clio advert "France vs. Britain" directed by Ridley Scott’s daughter Jordan Scott who also directed the 2007 follow up spot "More Va Va Voom" again starring Hesme as Sophie and English actor Jeremy Sheffield as Ben.

Arthur Leslie

Arthur Leslie (Arthur Scottorn Broughton) 8 December 1901 – 30 June 1970 was a British actor who was born in Newark, Nottinghamshire but moved to Lancashire at an early age.

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.

Axel Scheffler

He has drawn his distinctive illustrations for authors of children's books from Britain, Germany and the Netherlands, including, in addition to Julia Donaldson, Jon Blake, Paul Shipton, David Henry Wilson, Uwe Timm, Paul van Loon and Toon Tellegen.

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.

Charlotte Eagar

Whilst working for a variety of British newspapers and magazines, including The Sunday Times Magazine, The Observer, the Sunday Telegraph, the Spectator, The Mail on Sunday and Tatler, she has written stories from such diverse places as Sarajevo, Moscow, Baghdad, Kabul and Rome.

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.

Deadstick landing

An example of such a landing occurred on April 29, 2007, at Manchester Airport in the United Kingdom, when a bird got sucked into the right engine of a Thomsonfly Boeing 757 just as it rotated off the runway.

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.

Elect the Lords

Elect The Lords is a campaign established in September 2004 by the New Politics Network - a successor group to the Democratic Left - and Charter88 calling for the United Kingdom House of Lords to be replaced by a predominantly elected upper house.

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.

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.

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.

Haptopoda

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

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. German/Dutch Corps

Due to its role as a NATO High Readiness Forces Headquarters, soldiers from other NATO member states, the United States, Denmark, Norway, Spain, Italy, the United Kingdom amongst others, are also stationed at Münster.

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.

Interoute

Interoute's offices: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, plus a Network Operations Centre in Sofia and a Customer Service Centre in Prague and Luleå.

Jim Parrack

For the British sports journalist and former competitive swimmer of the same name, see James Parrack

Joe Cutler

Joe Cutler (born 1968) is a British composer who studied music at the Universities of Huddersfield and Durham, before a scholarship at the Chopin Academy in Warsaw, Poland.

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.

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.

Maurice Towneley-O'Hagan, 3rd Baron O'Hagan

He remained an Honorary Major in the Royal Horse Artillery (TA) and an Honorary Colonel in the 4th (Cadet) Battalion of the Essex Regiment and in the 6th Battalion of the Essex Regiment (TA).

Noumérat – Moufdi Zakaria Airport

On 6 February 2010 at 04:48, a Ghana International Airlines Boeing 757 flying from Accra, Ghana to London Gatwick, United Kingdom with 125 passengers and 8 crew made a precautionary landing at Moufdi Zakaria Airport following indications of possible irregularities with the hydraulics system.

Protea eximia

This versatility has resulted in it being brought into bloom outside as far north as the coast of Cornwall in the United Kingdom.

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.

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.

Sir Nicholas Bayly, 2nd Baronet

Bayly married firstly Caroline Paget, daughter of Brigadier General Thomas Paget (died 1741), Governor of Minorca, and Mary Whitcombe, in 1737.

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.

Swords, Dublin

In attendance at this Presidential ceremony was Admiral Sir Jock Slater, R.N., a former British First Sea Lord then serving as Chairman of the Executive Committee of the R.N.L.I..

The Next Band

The Next Band were a British rock trio featuring vocalist/bassist Rocky Newton, guitarist John Lockton and drummer Frank Noon, who is credited with playing drums on Def Leppard's 1979 EP The Def Leppard E.P..

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.

Tim Hitchens

Timothy Mark Hitchens, CMG, LVO (born 1962) is a British diplomat and a former Assistant Private Secretary to the Queen in the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom, 1999-2002.

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.

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.

You Know You Like It

The track was released in the United Kingdom on 20 April 2012 as the lead single from the duo's first studio album, Body Music (2013).