X-Nico

77 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.

1980 in motoring

It will be imported to the USA as a Civic, but the British version will go into production next year as part of a venture with British Leyland.

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.

Albanian Subversion

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.

BHX

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

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.

Challenger tank

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

Chemist Direct

Chemist Direct is a UK-based company providing medical products and services in addition to beauty products online.

Children Act 1948

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

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.

Constitutionality

This can occur either because the country has no codified constitution that laws must conform to (e.g., the United Kingdom and New Zealand) or because the country does have a codified constitution but no court has the authority to strike down laws on the basis of it (e.g., the Netherlands and Switzerland).

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: —

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.

Domestic rates in Northern Ireland

Domestic rates are unique to Northern Ireland, in the rest of the United Kingdom the local taxation is Council Tax.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Geneva Summit

The Geneva Summit (1955) was held on July 18, 1955 and was a meeting of "The Big Four": President Dwight D. Eisenhower of the United States, Prime Minister Anthony Eden of Britain, Premier Nikolai A. Bulganin of the Soviet Union, and Prime Minister Edgar Faure of France

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).

Greenwood Personal Credit

Their headquarters are in Bradford, West Yorkshire, and there are local Greenwood Personal Credit offices situated in towns and cities throughout the United Kingdom.

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.

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.

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

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.

Institute for Global Communications

In 1988 the IGC formed an international link when it started hosting GreenNet in the United Kingdom.

Interbang

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

International Personal Finance

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

IPunx

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

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.

John William Dennis

John William Dennis (16 May 1865 – 4 August 1949) was a British politician.

Lahore to Longsight

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

Lordswood

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

Lucy Sussex

She has lived in New Zealand, France, the United Kingdom and Australia, where she settled in 1971, and has spent the majority of her time since.

Monument station

Monument station is the name of different stations on two urban transport networks in the United Kingdom

National Savings Bank

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

Nawabzada Gazanfar Ali Gul

After completing his time at Government College, Gul moved to the United Kingdom for his further studies.

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.

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

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.

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.

Powers of the police in the United Kingdom

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

Prakash Singh Chib

Prakash Singh Chib VC (1 April 1913 – 17 February 1945) 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.

Prudential borrowing

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

Ramadan-class missile boat

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

Risley, Warrington

The institution opened as a Remand Centre in 1964, but is now a Category C prison for adult males.

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.

Royalist

In the United Kingdom today, the term is almost indistinguishable from "monarchist," because there are no significant rival claimants to the throne.

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.

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.

The North Avenue Irregulars

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

Tunisian Islamic Front

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

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.

UnKnown Aerospace Cygnet

Cygnet is a British cargo and logistics UAV system designed to provide lift and reconnaissance capability for military, humanitarian aid cargo capability, and to provide specialist payload transport.

UNROW Human Rights Impact Litigation Clinic

The clinic engages in extensive work with the Chagossian diaspora in Mauritius and the United Kingdom.

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.

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.


Agricultural Gangs Act 1867

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

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.

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.

Benjamin Guinness, 3rd Earl of Iveagh

Lord Iveagh married Miranda Daphne Jane Smiley, daughter of Major Michael Smiley, of Castle Fraser, Kemnay, Aberdeenshire, on 12 March 1963.

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.

Clare Gerada

It was presented by Ritula Shah and the others guests were; Tom Newton Dunn, the political editor of The Sun newspaper, Lord Trimble (Irish Politician) and Angela Eagle (Labour Party MP).

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.

Education in Malaysia

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

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.

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.

Garry Roberts

After The Boomtown Rats broke up in 1986, Roberts worked with Simply Red, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark and Flesh For Lulu in the role of sound engineer on tours in the UK and US.

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.

Historical lists of Privy Counsellors

These are lists of Privy Counsellors of England, Great Britain and the United Kingdom from the reorganisation in 1679 of His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council to the present day.

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.

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.

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.

James Edgar Dandy

James Edgar Dandy (Preston, Lancashire, 24 September 1903 - Tring, 10 November 1976) was a British botanist, Keeper of Botany at the British Museum (Natural History) between 1956 and 1966.

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.

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).

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.

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.

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.

Operation Pitsford

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

Palace of St. Michael and St. George

The palace is designed in the Regency style by the British architect George Whitmore, who was a Colonel and later a Major-General in the Royal Engineers.

Retail in the Republic of Ireland

Notably, many major British 'high street' names now operate in the Republic of Ireland, such as Dixons, Next, Debenhams, Topshop, Boots, Superdrug, Argos, Dorothy Perkins, Maplin, Currys, T.K. Maxx, PC World, Game Stop and others.

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.

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.

Smithfield, Rhode Island

The area comprising modern-day Smithfield was first settled in 1636 by several British colonists, including John Steere as a farming community and named after Smithfield, London.

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 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.

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.

UK Music Charts

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

Welrod

The Welrod was a British bolt action, magazine fed, suppressed pistol devised during World War II at the Inter-Services Research Bureau (later Station IX), based near Welwyn Garden City, UK, for use by irregular forces and resistance groups.

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.

Women's Rugby League World Cup

Women's Rugby League had been played in both Oceania and the United Kingdom for several years but it was not until 1985 in Britain and 1993 in Australia and New Zealand where female only organizations and governing bodies were established and while the Rugby Football League recognized the British women in 1985 it took another five years for the Australian Rugby League to officially recognize the Australian Women's rugby league.

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).