London Traditions: Pubs, Afternoon Tea, and Theatre

Chapter 1

TRADITIONAL LONDON

I love visiting London. It’s one of the most exciting cities in the world. There’s something for everyone – a rich history, wonderful museums, great theatre, innovative music, and an incredible variety of ethnic food.

Recently, I visited London for the New Year with Pablo, a Spanish friend of mine. He had never been there before.

At the end of our first day, we went to a pub. Like many pubs in Britain, it had a very relaxed atmosphere. There were comfortable chairs, a carpet on the floor, and the lighting wasn’t very bright. Like most British pubs, it also had an enormous selection of beers, which are usually served in pint glasses. A pint is approximately half a litre.

We got a couple of pints of beer and sat down to talk. Our conversation was soon interrupted by the barman.

“Sorry, gentlemen,” he said. “We’re closing in twenty minutes. Can I get you anything else?”

I ordered two more pints and promised the barman that we would finish them before closing time.

“He’s joking, isn’t he? It’s only 10:40!” exclaimed Pablo, as the barman went to the bar to get our pints.

“No, he isn’t,” I laughed. “That’s what happens here.”

“Then let’s finish our beer quickly and find another pub that doesn’t close so early,” said Pablo.

“You don’t understand,” I explained. “Most of the pubs in Britain close at the same time – 11:00 pm.”

“Well, maybe that’s the reason why British people drink so quickly!” I said.

As we walked out of the pub, I asked Pablo what his first impressions of London were.

His answer surprised me.

“I think it’s a very traditional city,” he said. “The buildings, the way of life – even the time that the pubs close!”

I had never thought of that before. He was right! London’s a very modern and cosmopolitan city, but it is also very traditional.

“Well, Pablo,” I said. “Tomorrow I’ll take you for what I think is Britain’s most distinctive tradition – afternoon tea.”

“But the British drink tea all the time. Why is drinking tea in the afternoon so distinctive?” asked Pablo.

“You’ll see why tomorrow,” I said. “Trust me.”

The next afternoon, I took Pablo to a good hotel in the centre of London. We sat at a table in a beautiful room enjoying the tea and the atmosphere. Everyone in the hotel’s tearoom was nicely dressed.

“Everything is so civilised!” Pablo suddenly exclaimed.

“Yes it is, isn’t it?” I replied, smiling.

The tea room was full of people sitting at tables, drinking tea and talking quietly. Many of the people were eating small cucumber sandwiches, cake, and scones. Scones are a type of sweet bread that you eat with jam and cream.

I don’t like cream, so I ate my scone just with jam.

“It’s difficult to believe that I’m in the largest capital city in Europe at the end of the twentieth century,” said Pablo.

“It feels like I’m in one of those old British films!” said Pablo.

On New Year’s Eve, Pablo and I went to Trafalgar Square, which is the traditional place to celebrate New Year’s Eve in London. It is an enormous area quite near Big Ben, the world’s most famous clock, and there were more than 20,000 people in the square. Almost everyone was wearing funny hats, and there was a very festive atmosphere.

Midnight finally came, and we waited to hear Big Ben’s bells announce the New Year. The countdown began.

“Ten! Nine! Eight! … Three! Two! …”

Suddenly, people began shouting, “Happy New Year!”

We couldn’t hear the bells because there was so much noise. A man turned round to wish us a Happy New Year and saw that we looked disappointed.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“It’s New Year’s Eve! It’s time to have fun!”

“I didn’t hear the bells,” I replied. “I thought that people came here to listen to Big Ben’s bells at midnight.”

The man smiled and said, “Well, I’ve been here many times on New Year’s Eve, and I’ve never heard them. There are too many people here. You need to be nearer to Big Ben to hear the bells.”

Pablo and I were completely confused.

“Then why do you come here?” asked Pablo.

The man didn’t hesitate.

“Because it’s tradition, mate,” he said.

One of London’s greatest traditions is producing some of the best theatre in the world. I don’t think a visit to London is complete without going to the theatre. There are 52 theatres in the West End, London’s theatre district. I try to go to the theatre at least once when I visit London.

My most memorable theatrical experience in London was two years ago, and it wasn’t in the West End. It was in an area called Southwark (pronounced Suth-ark) on the south bank of the River Thames, at the Globe Theatre.

The original Globe Theatre was where most of Shakespeare’s plays were performed for the first time. It was built in 1599 but, unfortunately, burned down in the middle of the 17th century and was destroyed again 30 years later. The new Globe Theatre was finished a few years ago, only 300 years later!

I had a fantastic time at the Globe. I had studied Shakespeare at university and was excited about seeing one of his plays in the theatre where they were originally performed. The Globe has the shape of an “O”, and plays are only performed during the warm months from May until mid-September because there isn’t a roof over the centre of the building. If it rains, you get wet – and it rains a lot in London!

I went in August, and it rained both before and after the performance, but fortunately not during! The theatre has seats for 1000 people, and another 500 people can stand in the “O”. The people who stand are called “groundlings”.

I bought a “groundling” ticket for the afternoon performance. Nearly everyone had an umbrella with them, and the ground was wet and muddy from the rain. I was quite cold at the start of the play, but soon forgot about it because I was having a great time. The actors made some of their entrances and exits by pushing through the audience. I almost fell into the mud when one of the actors pushed me as he was exiting. Luckily, a young man behind me caught me. I took advantage of a five-minute break between acts to thank him. His name was Mike, and he was a lighting designer from a theatre in the West End.

“This is incredible,” I said. “Except for the fact that everyone is wearing modern clothes, I feel like I’m back in the early 1600s.”

“Said, there are a few other differences,” said Mike.

“Really? What are they?” I asked.

“Well, one difference is that today women play the female roles,” Mike explained. “Women weren’t allowed to be actresses in Shakespeare’s time. The female roles were played by teenage boys.”

“Yes, I know. I must admit that I prefer seeing real women on stage!” I said.

“So do I, mate,” agreed Mike.

“What are some of the other differences?”

“Probably the biggest difference between Shakespeare’s time and now is that the ‘groundlings’ then ate, drank, and talked during the performance.”

“But then they’d be too distracted to watch the play, wouldn’t they?”

“Believe me, they paid attention,” Mike assured me. “As a matter of fact, if they didn’t like an actor’s performance, they shouted at him and even threw food at him!”

“It’s a pity that modern audiences are much more polite. It would be fun to feel like a real “groundling” from Shakespeare’s time,” I said with a laugh.

“Listen, I’ve come to the Globe many times,” said Mike. “The audiences are more polite, but I’ve seen some strange things happen here.”

Before I could ask him to give me some examples, the next act began, and we both started to watch the performance.

“Of course,” I answered.

“Then look to your right.”

I casually looked to my right and was completely surprised by what I saw. There was a girl standing a few metres away from me feeding a small dog she had under her arm! It was definitely the first and only time I’ve seen a dog in the audience at the theatre!

Mike and I went for a coffee together after the performance. He told me that he could get me free tickets to the theatre whenever I visited London. He’s a good person to know!