Around and About Britain

6 Things About the UK Today

• Avon May 9, 2024
  Not the enjoyably snarky character from the sticky back plastic BBC TV science-fiction series (remember that one?), or the make-up company, but the county. It is no longer with us.
• The cheery beauty of the wild Speedwell May 9, 2024
  The common field speedwell is a rather prolific British wildflower, generally treated as a weed, but bringing a cheery beauty to gardens nonetheless. Its tiny blue flowers can be spotted in many a lawn, appearing for most of the year.
• John Lennon - the mercurial Beatle May 9, 2024
  John Lennon was the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist with The Beatles. Alongside his accomplished music career, he was a peace activist, promoter of alternative lifestyle and challenger of the establishment. His song-writing partnership with Paul McCartney remains the most successful in history.
• The Peak District National Park - Britain's first and now 70 years old May 9, 2024
  This year sees the 70th anniversary of the designation of the Peak District as the UK's first National Park. Officially established on 17 April 1951, it was the first of what are now Britain’s 15 national parks.
• The Puffin - popular and appealing seabirds May 9, 2024
  The Atlantic puffin is one of the most recognisable and popular of Britain's seabirds, with its bright orange beak and webbed feet. It breeds in the North Atlantic and the adjacent Arctic Ocean, with a significant population to be found around Britain and Ireland, where it is the second most abundant breeding seabird.
• Ludlow - "The Perfect Historic Town" May 9, 2024
  Described (quite reasonably) as "the perfect historic town" by its own PR, Ludlow in south Shropshire offers fine examples of architecture from the Medieval, Tudor and Georgian periods, a castle, outdoor markets, heaps of history, and a great location beneath the Shropshire Hills AONB.