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TRIVIA: Practices that are peculiar to the UK

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Calthrop

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I had a lovable but greatly-opinionated and pontificating-prone relative, born circa 1920; who had a strong "Britain and old-fashioned British things are best, and damn all idiot foreign innovations" mindset. To the end of his life, he railed against the currency's having been decimalised -- citing the larger number of divisible elements in the old "twelves and twenties" set-up. I had to quietly laugh: because in point of fact he was highly innumerate, to the point that he was totally at sea with all and any things numerical -- regardless of what their numbers-type base might be.
 
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Pakenhamtrain

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I don't know if there are. I am asking. Do people abroad write down train numbers like we do in this country? Do they have bus spotters or plane spotters?
There used to be someone who would stand at the end of platform 2 at Filinders Street and did just that.

Apparently he came in handy one day when they couldn't find a train and they asked him if he'd seen it.
Ireland decimalised at the same time as the UK - but was effectively in a de facto currency union with the UK at the time.

South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Jamaica decimalised shortly before the UK, in 1961, 1966, 1967, 1969 and 1969 respectively. All converted at the rate of 10 shillings = 1 dollar/rand.
We had a fancy jingle for our changeover.
 

route101

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Not a UK abroad one but a Scotland and England one.

Windows , in England the window is not set back from the external face, ie may be flush.
In Scotland the window is set back . Different Building Regs.
 

Meerkat

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Not a UK abroad one but a Scotland and England one.

Windows , in England the window is not set back from the external face, ie may be flush.
In Scotland the window is set back . Different Building Regs.

why is that?
 

SteveP29

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I had a lovable but greatly-opinionated and pontificating-prone relative, born circa 1920; who had a strong "Britain and old-fashioned British things are best, and damn all idiot foreign innovations" mindset.

The way I look at it is, yes, we gave the world a whole load of inventions and innovations, other countries took them, went away and improved them, while we sat back and basked in that glory, until we realised and started to complain that foreign stuff was better than ours and we were being left behind.
Look at football, rugby and cricket, all given to the world by the UK, improved on by Germans, Brazilians, South Africans, Australians and New Zealanders, but it's not just sport, its computers, trains, cars, electronics etc

Not a UK abroad one but a Scotland and England one.

Windows , in England the window is not set back from the external face, ie may be flush.
In Scotland the window is set back . Different Building Regs.

Thereby decreasing the viewing range from said windows.
Windows in my bedroom are about 3 ft wide, but I can't see anything on the roadside more than about 100 yards to each side of it, due to the window itself being set back.
 

transmanche

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We had a fancy jingle for our changeover.
At least you didn't have to put up with Max Bygraves and 'Decimalisation', which included the classic lyric:
They’ve made it easy for every citizen,
‘Cos all we have to do is count from one to ten!’


Or even worse, Wilfred Bramble (aka Albert Steptoe) and his 'Decimal Song'.

 

TrafficEng

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Must be due to wind and rainfall. Its noticeable on newer builds.

There are several differences between Scotland and England in building standards due to weather conditions. Recessed windows certainly make sense where excessive wind and rain is an issue, just as they do in sunnier places where additional shading is useful to keep heat out.
 

TrafficEng

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Did any other countries hang onto such an absurd system of currency as long as the UK did in Pounds/Shillings/Pence pre-decimalisation?

A bit like when other countries changed to a decimal system of measuring time the UK stuck with the absurd practice of dividing days into 24 hours, hours into 60 minutes and minutes into 60 seconds.

Oh, hang on a sec.....
 

Bletchleyite

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There are several differences between Scotland and England in building standards due to weather conditions. Recessed windows certainly make sense where excessive wind and rain is an issue, just as they do in sunnier places where additional shading is useful to keep heat out.

European style "lean and turn" windows typically have the window inset and the sill on the outside. You often get these in Scotland. Is the general thing though because of there being external insulation with render over the top? Most Scottish houses (that aren't old stone-built ones) seem to have render rather than bare brick.
 

AndrewE

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I understood that the English windows-on-the-inner-face-of-a-wall rule dated from the Great Fire of London. Wooden frames on the front face can be set alight by a burning building next door, whereas recessed windows are "shaded " by being in the wall recess.
 

route101

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European style "lean and turn" windows typically have the window inset and the sill on the outside. You often get these in Scotland. Is the general thing though because of there being external insulation with render over the top? Most Scottish houses (that aren't old stone-built ones) seem to have render rather than bare brick.

Only really new builds are brick.

In certain parts like Ayrshire and Lanarkshire you get the two up two downs council or ex council pebbledash in yellow or grey.
 

AY1975

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I had a lovable but greatly-opinionated and pontificating-prone relative, born circa 1920; who had a strong "Britain and old-fashioned British things are best, and damn all idiot foreign innovations" mindset. To the end of his life, he railed against the currency's having been decimalised -- citing the larger number of divisible elements in the old "twelves and twenties" set-up. I had to quietly laugh: because in point of fact he was highly innumerate, to the point that he was totally at sea with all and any things numerical -- regardless of what their numbers-type base might be.

That reminds me of Alf Garnett, who moaned that we'd had 140 pennies stolen from us when we went decimal.
 

TrafficEng

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Is the general thing though because of there being external insulation with render over the top? Most Scottish houses (that aren't old stone-built ones) seem to have render rather than bare brick.

I don't know the details of the regulations in Scotland, but I have a recollection from masonry wall design lectures than one of the critical factors is exposure. House walls with overhanging eaves/soffits get some protection from rain so they don't get especially wet and dry out fairly quickly. If you frequently get horizontal rain the brick/stonework gets wetter and may never dry out between rainstorms.

The result is damp penetrating through the wall and even with a cavity the thermal and damp performance of the wall can be compromised. Also, damp masonry is more vulnerable to frost damage (spalling) than dry masonry.

The easy solution is to render (and paint) the wall so the rain is kept out of the underlying wall.
 

Bletchleyite

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Ah, so that is the reason rainier and windier parts of the UK (Wales, Lakes, Scotland) tend to have most houses rendered, whereas warmer parts (South East) don't? Thanks. Learn something new every day. It has also long been tradition to paint the brickwork of traditional Liverpool red-brick terraces, though I don't know if that's the same reason - Liverpool certainly does get its fair share of rain, but the practice isn't as common in Manchester.
 

TrafficEng

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Ah, so that is the reason rainier and windier parts of the UK (Wales, Lakes, Scotland) tend to have most houses rendered, whereas warmer parts (South East) don't? Thanks. Learn something new every day. It has also long been tradition to paint the brickwork of traditional Liverpool red-brick terraces, though I don't know if that's the same reason - Liverpool certainly does get its fair share of rain, but the practice isn't as common in Manchester.

I can't say for sure that is always the cause of regional variations, but the general principles of masonry design would explain it.

There are other factors like the durability and cost of materials, which vary by location and time. In areas where clay is available you tend to get more brick buildings - which start off using quite soft bricks but as time progressed brickmaking techniques improved and harder more impermeable bricks became common.

Painting and/or rendering is a way of making old or poor-quality brickwork look better and more weather resistant - which might explain the situation in Liverpool if the housing was built to a budget. Certainly on the East Anglian coast it is normal for older brick built houses to be painted due to the additional exposure, whilst similar period buildings further inland still have one or more walls of exposed brickwork.
 

JonasB

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On the subject of music written for big changes, I hearby present Håll dig till höger Svensson (Stay to the right Svensson). Written for big changeover from driving on the left to driving on the right:

 

SHD

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Leaving the European Union is about to become a practice specifically peculiar to the UK.
 

najaB

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Leaving the European Union is about to become a practice specifically peculiar to the UK.
With good fortune, in a few years so will rejoining. (Assuming there is still a UK to join that is).
 

TheSeeker

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Having to stand at the bar to buy drinks instead of a person coming to the table to take your order. Disinterested bar staff who are just doing a part time job while studying instead of full time professionals who take a bit of pride in their job.

Beer in pints now seems a bit mad, warm and sticky by the time you get to the bottom. A fluted 25cl glass of Jupiler keeps the beer cold and you just have to raise your eyes towards the bar and they will bring another one.

Licensing hours, measures for spirits, bouncers outside pubs. Maybe I've been in Belgium for too long :) Although I do miss a pint of cider!
 

Ianno87

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A bit like when other countries changed to a decimal system of measuring time the UK stuck with the absurd practice of dividing days into 24 hours, hours into 60 minutes and minutes into 60 seconds.

Oh, hang on a sec.....

How often do you have to do sums like "What's 4 days, 3 hours and 24 minutes subtract 2 days, 9 hours and 53 minutes"?

Leaving the European Union is about to become a practice specifically peculiar to the UK.

Greenland withdrew from the EEC in 1985.
 

transmanche

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Greenland withdrew from the EEC in 1985.
But was never a member of the EU. That was all before the formation of the Single Market, the establishment of the four freedoms (free movement of goods, capital, people, and the freedom to establish and provide services).
 

route101

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Not UK but anyone noticed external doors like shops in more Eastern Europe , open outwards
 
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