A Great British Knees Up

This year is a pretty special year for Britain, with the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in June just a month before the opening of the London Olympics in July. The tube will be rammed, the streets will be busy and taxi’s will be extortionately priced but regardless of all this, what a fantastic summer it will be. Everywhere will buzz with the confusion of lost tourists, the excitement of sports fans and/or royalists. On top of all of this there will be an immense feeling of unity, not only within our own community but throughout the entire world.

It’s a time to really show off what talent Britain has to offer, I think Adele managed to kick start this on Sunday evening at the Grammy Awards by winning 6 awards and irrefutably giving one of the most moving yet infallible performances of the night, just weeks after throat surgery.

It’s not only music that the British can be proud of; we should also take note of the great designers that to this day are still recognised as pioneers in their industry. Namely the great Thomas Crapper, whose designs are still kept alive and known as the world’s most authentic period style sanitaryware. Another is H&E Smith known for their traditional techniques, coupled with an inherently skilled work force, these expertise is what lead to their presence within a vast re-furbishment programme by the London Underground.

And a little on the business side… Just two days ago the CBI (Confederation of British Industry) issued a positive * forecast with growth in UK manufacturing and professional services having been encouraging in recent months. Their report forecasts that as well as increased business investments, net trade will continue to provide the most positive contributions to growth with UK exports expected to increase by 4.3 per cent in 2012 and 6.4 per cent in 2013. 

The British love a good knees-up and I imagine this summer will just be one big party rolling into the next.

For a further read on this subject the Editor of Elle Decoration, Michelle Ogundehin, explores some fascinating views on her blog.

*Source CBI PressRelease 13th Feb 2012 entitled 'Growth will restart in 2012'