The history of the union jack goes back to the year of 1606 when James VI King of Scotland ruled the throne. A few years earlier he had inherited the throne of England and had been crowned King James I of England. It was decided that a flag to represent the union between these 2 nations would be created. The first version of the flag was made up of the flag of St. Andrew's cross (white diagonal cross on blue background) and the flag of St. George (red cross on white background) which was initially used as a maritime flag. The current version of the flag dates from 1801 when the Kingdom of Ireland merged with the Kingdom of Great Britain to create the Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. This new version added the flag of St. Patrick which is the red diagonal cross on a white background. The union flag remains one of the easiest to recognise flags throughout the world today and has been used as part of many other nations flags throughout history, although it is now seen in only 4 national flags, nameley Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tuvalu.

Fish and chips are one of the most British things you can find, and they originate from the mid 1800's. The very first Fish and Chip shops cooked the fish and chips in a large cauldron filled with cooking fat heated by burning coal. This was a method of cooking which produced an offensive smell since there was no extraction methods like used in modern times. As a result the frying of fish and chips was seen as a repugnant activity which earned it a less than favourable reputation. Fish and chip shops were able to lose this stigma during the second world war when it became one of a handful of foods in Britain which was not liable to rationing.

The modern Fish and chip shop or "chippy" as it is known in the UK will usually use cod or haddock as the fried fish. Sometimes other white fish are used depending on market price and availability in any particular area. Batter for the fish is made from flour and most places use vegetable oil to fry, although in the past beef dripping or lard was more popular. Fish and chip shops provide salt and malt vinegar to accompany the dish which is usually served in a plastic carton or paper wrap with a lining of greaseproof paper. Fish and chip shops are still as popular as ever in the UK and every year there is a national competition which attracts thousands of entries to find the best "chippy" in the land.

The world famous Wimbledon Tennis Championship is the oldest tennis competition in the world. It dates back to the year of 1877 and started out as a small tennis tournament only for men. The very first tournament was watched by about only 200 spectators. Several years later they allowed women to play in the competition as well as introducing gentleman's doubles.

The Championship is played annually, starts at the end of June and runs for a duration of two weeks. It is a contest which is steeped in tradition and is different to the other Grand Slam events because it is still played on grass courts. The type of grass seed used for the courts is rye grass. Nineteen courts in total make up the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club and the two main courts, namely centre court and Number 1 court are only ever played on when the championship is held.

The Champioship attracts visitors from all over the world and one of the traditions of queuing for the tickets is almost as famous as the championship itself. People without tickets can camp out on the sidewalk the night before to try and secure a ticket for the following days play on Centre Court, Court 1 and Court 2. Many people see this as part of the whole Wimbledon experience.
Another of the traditions of Wimbledon is strawberries and cream which is the traditional food sold to the spectators during the Championship. The British weather also has a large influence on the Championships and some years play halted by the rain has extended the duration of the tournament quite considerably.

British comedy may seem bizarre to foreigners who may not fully understand the sarcasm or the 'point' to many a comedian's or tv show's plot. The quirky and eccentric characters are a strange mystery to some yet hysterically funny to others. A lot of the British humour is based on the archaic British class system, politics, our (sometimes miserable) weather but most of all we laugh at ourselves and some of our weird habits.

Some of the most popular British comedy shows which have reached a worldwide audience include Monty Python's Flying Circus, Fawlty Towers and The Benny Hill Show.

If you decide to make it to this great island there are loads of great places to visit. Here are a selection of some awesome places to visit (from a Brit's point of view)
Most overseas visitors who come to Britain fly into London so I will start off with a few places there and then work my way round the rest of the UK!

Madame Tussauds waxworks museum is a great place to start your trip and see all your favorite celeb's immortalised in wax. It can get extremely busy especially during peak times so it is better to book your tickets online. It is a great experience and is suitable for the whole family. You should allow at least 2 hours in total to see all of the exhibits. Another great attraction in London is the London eye, a rotating observation wheel which sits on the banks of the river Thames. It gives you great views over London, the top of the wheel is 135 metres high which makes it the worlds largest observation wheel. There are way too many tourist attractions in London to mention but one more which is a historical attraction which is definately worth a mention is Hampton Court Palace. The incredible history of this place will leave you awe struck, make sure you visit the world famous maze and get thoroughly lost.

Oxford is world famous for it's University and boat race. It is also a great place to visit and is easily accesible from London. Moving up to the northern part of England the Lake District is an area of outstanding natural beauty and is the birthplace of William Wordsworth, the British poet. The scenery is outstanding and there are many small,charming villages and towns in the Lake District National Park to visit. Make sure you take a raincoat as the weather can be very unpredictable in this region.

Scotland is a beautiful country and has many attractions to see. For the golf enthusiast a visit to St. Andrews,home of golf, is a must. A visit to Edinburgh and Loch Ness should also be places to visit whilst in Scotland. Another great place to visit is Wales, there are some beautiful beaches there particularly on the Southern coastline. A lot of the people who live in Wales speak Welsh although English is wideley spoken too.

One of the good things about visiting Britain is that it's a small island so it is easy to see a lot of things whilst you are there without having long periods of travelling times between destinations.