Author Archives: britrish
An Olympic stitch in time
In honor of the London Olympic Games, a secret knitter has struck, leaving a beautiful spectacle of knitted Olympic athletes on the pier in Saltburn-by-the-Sea near Teeside! I love the details – and the mystery of their origins. It’s so magical!
Photo credit: Richard Rayner/North News & Pictures
My Country Tis of Thee
Andy Murray is the first British man to win the Olympic gold in singles tennis since 1908.
Did you watch the Olympics this weekend? Andy Murray’s win? Jessica Ennis’s gold? Amazing, right?
I loved the medal ceremonies, the descent of the flags of the three winning countries, and then the dignified strains of “God Save the Queen.”
Or was it “My Country Tis of Thee”?
Yes, I did get a kick out of the comments on Twitter from Americans who commented on how surprised they were that “God Save the Queen” and “My Country Tis of Thee” share the same tune or those who think that the Brits stole our song. Check out some of the comments.
Blame it on Samuel F. Smith, who wrote new lyrics to “God Save the Queen” in 1832 and made it a hit. Why couldn’t he have come up with an original tune? There were lots of songs that hadn’t been written yet in 1832 – “Call Me Maybe” … “Party in the USA” … “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Couldn’t he have put his lyrics to one of those? More on the origins.
My MIL got tickets to the Olympics!
My mother-in-law and a friend of hers spent last weekend camping and attending a couple Olympic games last weekend and took photos!
They saw the sailing in Weymouth and sat next to three-time Olympic sailing champion Ben Ainslie‘s mum and dad.
They also watched the canoe slalom in Waltham Cross, just days before the Brits Tim Baillie and Etienne Stott took home the first ever British gold medal for the men’s canoe slalom double!
Thanks to Sue for sharing her photos!
What’s your Olympic body type?
I’m a sucker for a good online quiz and the BBC Olympic athlete body match app is right up my alley.
All you have to do is input your height and weight (and they’ve kindly provided the option to do this in metres/inches and kilograms/pounds/stone) and then let the self-loathing begin! The app quickly spits out the Olympic athlete who’s body type you share, along with a photo.
In my case, I’m most like a female Belgium badminton player. I would’ve preferred to have been a female synchronized swimmer, but better this than a men’s discus thrower. I think I can deal.
Take the test! What athlete are you?
Connery plays Queen in Bond sketch
Did you see the madcap skydiving scene with Daniel Craig (as James Bond) and the Queen (as herself!) in last Friday’s opening Olympic ceremony?
Well, I loved the concept – and the fact that the Queen was happy to play along! Of course, it occurred to me that the Queen didn’t throw herself out of the plane and parachute into Olympic Park and that they did employ a stunt double. But for some reason, I wasn’t even thinking that it would be a guy in the fascinator and pearls, nor would I have imagined that he would have the last name of Connery (yes, as in Sean Connery!). Read more about him!
Thanks to my friend and fellow blogger Layla of TheSmudge.com, who gave me this story tip. Here’s her take on it!
Happy birthday, Britrish.com!
Can you believe it? Britrish.com is officially 1 today!
And what an amazing year it has been! I’ve written 270 posts (there’s been a new blog post every weekday, give or take the odd duvet day here and there!) and have had so much fun in the process. A big thank you to YOU for following the blog, for reading and commenting and making this a conversation! Also a big thank you to my family for their endless support, blog post ideas and frequent fodder for the blog.
Check out the blog’s very first post!
And a moment for a shameless plug: Join the conversation on Twitter and follow me at @britrishcom.
Cheers for the past year and here’s to many happy returns!
What you didn’t see on NBC …
What did you think of the Olympic opening ceremony on Friday?
I loved it. I thought it was such an inspiring love letter both to the country of Great Britain and to the Olympic games themselves. Irreverent, cheekyl, thoughtful and moving, it was a joy to watch. I’m not a big sports watcher but I do love the spirit of the Olympics and am so happy that London is hosting!
I only wish that we could see the BBC’s full and commercial-free coverage. I wasn’t thrilled with NBC’s commercial breaks – or the fact that there were pieces that weren’t aired on American TV.
Thankfully YouTube has come to the rescue for some of what was missing!
Check out this smashing introduction featuring Benedict Cumberbatch (of “Sherlock” fame) that American audiences didn’t get to see, which kicked off the Olympic opening ceremony.
Olympic love
The royals greeting the Olympic torch. How cute are they?! Photo credit: Ian West/PA Wire
The day is finally here! I’m so looking forward to the opening ceremony of the Olympics today. I’ve heard one insider describe it as “very British” and I can’t wait to see what they do. What we do know: there will be sheep and a host of other farm animals, plows and maypoles, a dance featuring nurses, a song by Paul McCartney and something involving Daniel Craig as James Bond. Is this not going to be the greatest thing the world has ever seen?
And with all the buzz about the Olympics, I thought I’d roundup some of my favorite links and share – enjoy and have a wonderful weekend!
A watercolor map of London.
A soundtrack to rock the games.
A London double-decker bus does push-ups.
Ab Fab’s Eddie and Patsy carry the Olympic torch.
Don’t take the Olympic name in vein.
Will London visitors learn that British food is good? (Because it really is…)
Beer from the 1908 London Olympic games, anyone?
The 2012 Olympics drinking game, but please drink responsibly.
British food for an Olympics party.
A great airport welcome
With the start of the London Olympics this week, you can bet the city and its airports are swelling with tourists and new visitors coming from all over the globe.
This week, I watched this T-Mobile ad, shot back in 2010 at London Heathrow Airport, and it felt appropriate to share. It’s a fantastic stunt with a huge feel-good factor – it reminded me of the end of “Love Actually” …
And I love the public reaction …
Wouldn’t you love to be greeted at an airport with a song? I know I would!
Banksy’s Olympics
The London Olympics are two days away now and British street artist Banksy is already working his magic. See his latest Olympics-themed art:
Thanks to TheFoxisBlack.com for posting about it.
BRITRISH.COM 