England (part of United Kingdom)

{"ops":[{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Fish and chips"},{"insert":" is a popular hot dish consisting of "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"fried fish"},{"insert":" in"},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":" crispy batter"},{"insert":", served with "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"chips"},{"insert":". The dish originated in "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"England"},{"insert":", where these two components had been introduced from separate immigrant cultures; it is not known who created the culinary fusion that became the "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"emblematic British meal"},{"insert":". Often considered "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Britain's national dish"},{"insert":", fish and chips is a common take-away food in the United Kingdom and numerous other countries, particularly in English-speaking and Commonwealth nations. Fish and chip shops first appeared in the UK in the "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"1860s"},{"insert":", and by 1910, there were over 25,000 fish and chip shops across the UK. By the 1930s there were over "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"35,000 shops"},{"insert":", but the trend reversed, and by 2009 there were only approximately 10,000. The British government safeguarded the supply of fish and chips during the First World War, and again in the Second World War; it was one of the few foods in the UK not subject to rationing during the wars. Photo credit: Matthias Meckel.\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"A "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"pork pie"},{"insert":" is a "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"traditional English meat pie"},{"insert":", usually served either at room temperature or cold (although often served hot in Yorkshire). It consists of a filling of "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"roughly chopped pork"},{"insert":" and "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"pork fat"},{"insert":", surrounded by a layer of "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"jellied pork stock"},{"insert":" in a "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"hot water crust pastry"},{"insert":". It is normally eaten as a snack or with a salad.\nModern pork pies are a "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"direct descendant of the raised meat pies of medieval cuisin"},{"insert":"e, which used a dense hot water crust pastry as a simple means of preserving the filling. In France the same recipes gave rise to the modern "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Pâté en croute"},{"insert":".\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"A "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"cream tea"},{"insert":" (also known as a "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Devon cream tea"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Devonshire tea"},{"insert":", or "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Cornish cream tea"},{"insert":") is a form of "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"afternoon tea"},{"insert":", consisting of tea served with a combination of "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"scones"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"clotted cream"},{"insert":" (or, less authentically, "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"whipped cream"},{"insert":"), "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"jam"},{"insert":", and sometimes "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"butter"},{"insert":". Cream teas are sold in tea rooms throughout England, especially Devon and Cornwall, and in some other parts of the Commonwealth. The origin of the cream tea is disputed, although there is evidence to suggest that the tradition of eating bread with cream and jam existed at Tavistock Abbey in Devon in the 11th century. The earliest use of \"cream tea\" in the sense of the afternoon tea, as opposed to a cup of tea with cream in it, that the "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Oxford English Dictionary"},{"insert":" reports, is in the 1964 novel "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Picture of Millie"},{"insert":" by Philip Maitland Hubbard, \"We just bathe and moon about and eat cream teas.\" However, the \"Foods of England\" website has discovered an earlier newspaper cutting, "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"The Cornishman"},{"insert":" of Thursday, 3 September 1931 (p. 8), which uses the phrase in what appears to be its modern sense.\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Bitter "},{"insert":"is a "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"classic British beer style"},{"insert":" used to describe cask-conditioned ales mainly sold in "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"English "},{"insert":"and pubs throughout the United Kingdom. The style is quite versatile and includes brews of different color, strength, and flavor, but most examples have a malt-driven character, moderate hop bitterness, light to medium body, and low alcohol content. The group is usually classified into three sub-styles, which mainly differ in strength. Those include "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"ordinary bitter"},{"insert":" (3.2 to 3.8% ABV), "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"best bitter"},{"insert":" (3.8 to 4.6 ABV), and "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"strong bitter"},{"insert":" or "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"extra special bitter"},{"insert":" (4.8% ABV and over). \n"}]}

{"ops":[{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Penny Black"},{"insert":" was the "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"world's first adhesive postage stamp"},{"insert":" used in a public postal system. It was first issued in the United Kingdom on "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"1 May 1840"},{"insert":" but was not valid for use until 6 May. The stamp features a profile of Queen Victoria. In 1837, British postal rates were high, complex and anomalous. To simplify matters,"},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":" Sir Rowland Hill"},{"insert":" proposed an adhesive stamp to indicate "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"pre-paymen"},{"insert":"t of postage. At the time it was normal for the recipient to pay postage on delivery, charged by the sheet and on distance traveled. By contrast, the Penny Black allowed letters of up to 1⁄2 "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"ounce (14 grams)"},{"insert":" to be delivered at a flat rate of one penny, regardless of distance. On 13 February 1837, Sir Rowland Hill proposed to a government enquiry both the idea of a pre-paid stamp and apre-paid envelope, a separate sheet folded to form an enclosure for carrying letters. Hill was given a two-year contract to run the new system, and together with Henry Cole he announced a competition to design the stamps. Out of some 2,600 entries, none was considered suitable, however, so a rough design endorsed by Hill was chosen instead, featuring an easily recognizable profile of Queen Victoria. Hill believed this would be difficult to forge. All British stamps still bear a portrait or silhouette of the monarch somewhere on the design. The first stamps did not need to show the issuing country, so "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"no country name"},{"insert":" was included on them. The UK remains the only country in the world to omit it.\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"2022"},{"insert":" marks the 60th anniversary of the founding of the "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Rolling Stones"},{"insert":", and Britain's Royal Mail is celebrating the iconic rock group's special milestone with a set of postage stamps. The 12 stamps depict the "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"‘World's Greatest Rock and Roll Band’"},{"insert":" over the decades. Eight stamps feature the Stones in performance—from their appearance at London's Hyde Park in 1969 to a concert at New Jersey’s East Rutherford in 2019. Formed in "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"1962"},{"insert":", the Stones recorded such memorable songs such as “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” “Ruby Tuesday,” “Under My Thumb,” “Sympathy for the Devil” and “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” under the classic lineup of "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Mick Jagger"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Keith Richards"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Charlie Watts"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Brian Jones"},{"insert":" and "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Bill Wyman"},{"insert":". Then with Mick Taylor and later Wood, the band continued to have more hits from the 1970s onwards with “Tumbling Dice,” “It’s Only Rock ‘n Roll (But I Like It),” “Miss You,” “Start Me Up” and “Mixed Emotions.” Their albums, including "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Beggars Banquet"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Let It Bleed"},{"insert":","},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":" Sticky Fingers"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Some Girls"},{"insert":" and "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Tattoo You"},{"insert":", have often appeared on best-of-all-time rankings.\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"The"},{"attributes":{"italic":true,"bold":true},"insert":" "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"2020"},{"insert":" "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Classic Video Games"},{"insert":" commemorative postage set features the above "},{"attributes":{"italic":true,"bold":true},"insert":"Sensible Soccer"},{"insert":" stamp. Often called "},{"attributes":{"italic":true,"bold":true},"insert":"Sensi"},{"insert":", it is an "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"association football video game"},{"insert":" series which was highly popular in the early "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"1990s "},{"insert":"and which still retains a cult following. It was developed by "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Sensible Software"},{"insert":" and first released for Amiga and Atari ST computers in "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"1992 "},{"insert":"as well as for the PC. The series was created by Jon Hare and Chris Yates, as a successor to their previous football game "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"MicroProse Soccer"},{"insert":" (1988), which in turn was inspired by the arcade video game"},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":" Tehkan World Cup"},{"insert":" (1985).\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"The first stamps featuring "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"King Charles III"},{"insert":" were issued in "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"2023"},{"insert":" by the "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Royal Mai"},{"insert":"l, the British postal service. his head "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"bare"},{"insert":", looking to the "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"left. "},{"insert":"The standard first-class stamp features the portrait on a plain purple background. “Delighted that the Royal Mail will be using my effigy of King Charles for their definitive stamps, "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"designer Martin Jennings"},{"insert":" tweeted, adding that the portrait was first created for the new coins featuring the monarch. The image of the King is an adapted version of the portrait created by Martin Jennings for the new UK coinage. The stamps go on general sale from April 4, 2023. “The guidance we were given was not to try to be too clever or to veer off into some different direction but very much to keep that traditional image that we’re all very much used to, David Gold, director of external affairs and policy at the Royal Mail, said, according to Reuters. Queen Victoria was the first monarch to appear on a postage stamp, appearing on the world’s first ever stamp, known as the "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Penny Black"},{"insert":", in "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"1840"},{"insert":". Five other British monarchs have featured on stamps since then, most recently "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Queen Elizabeth II"},{"insert":", whose portrait became an iconic image, reproduced by artists such as Andy Warhol. Coins featuring King Charles III entered circulation in December 2022, while new banknotes are expected to be in use by mid-2024 as the UK begins introducing the new King’s image following his mother’s death in September.\n"}]}