THE BRITISH YEAR January February March April May June July August September October November December

JANUARY JANUARY New Year's Eve New Year's Day

New Year's Eve New Year's Eve All over Britain on 31 December there are New Year celebrations. At midnight on New Year's Eve, everybody joins hands and sings Auld Lang Syne. In Scotland and the North of England, people go first footing. They call at friends' houses, trying to be the first person through the door after midnight. To symbolize good luck, the visitor carries a piece of coal and a glass of water. The luckiest type of first footer is a tall, dark man.

New Year's Day New Year's Day On New Year's Day (1 January) people make New Year's resolutions. They decide to do something to improve their lives. For example, people decide to give up smoking or go to the gym once a week.

FEBRUARY FEBRUARY Crufts Dog Show Saint Valentine's Day

Crufts Dog Show Crufts Dog Show Dog breeders from all of the world bring their valuable dogs to take part in Crufts Dog Show in London. There prizes for most breeds and one for the best dog, who is given the title Crufts Supreme Champion.

Saint Valentine's Day Saint Valentine's Day Saint Valentine's Day is 14 February. People send a Valentine's to someone they love, fancy, admire or secretly like. Usually you don't sign your name. The person who receives the card has to guess who sent it. Will you be my Valentine?

MARCH Boat Race Pancake Day

Boat Race This rowing race between the universities of Oxford and Cambridge has been held on the River Thames in London almost every year since The length of course is 4 miles (7.2 kilometers).

Pancake Day Pancake Day is the day before Lent starts. Lent is a Christian fast which lasts for 40 days before Easter. Pancake Day is traditionally a day of celebration, the last day that you can eat what you want until Easter. Nowadays people don't fast, but some people give up sweets or smoking. This is a pancake race.

APRIL April Fool's Day Easter The London Marathon

April Fool's Day April Fool's Day is 1 April. You can play jokes on people, even on teachers. When they discover the joke, you say, "April Fool!". You have to play the joke before 12 o'clock midday, otherwise the joke's on you.

Easter On Good Friday, people eat hot cross buns, which are small sweet rolls. They eat them toasted with butter. People give each other chocolate Easter eggs on Easter Sunday. The eggs are usually hollow and contain sweets. Easter eggs are made of chocolate and usually wrapped in silver paper and bows.

The London Marathon This is one of the biggest marathons in the world. Each year about 30,000 people start the race and about 25,000 finish. Some people take part to raise money for charity, often wearing costumes.

MAY FA (Football Association) Cup Final FA (Football Association) Cup Final Chelsea Flower Show

FA (Football Association) Cup Final This is the biggest day in the football calendar. Two English football clubs play to win the FA Cup. The match takes place at Wembley Stadium in London. Scotland has its own FA Cup Final, played at Hampden Park in Glasgow.

Chelsea Flower Show This is Britain's most important flower and garden show. Thousands of people come to see the prize flowers and specially built gardens.

JUNE Royal Ascot Trooping the Colour

Royal Ascot This is one of the biggest horse-race meetings in Britain. It is held at Ascot, in the south of England. The Queen drives there from Windsor Castle. It is traditional for men and women to wear their best hats.

Trooping the Colour This is the second Saturday in June and celebrates the Queen's official birthday (her real birthday is 21 April). She watches a parade of hundreds of soldiers. There is lots of marching, military music and the soldiers are dressed in colourful uniforms.

Henley Regatta This is the largest rowing competition in Britain. It is held at Henley-on- Thames, where the Thames runs in a straight line for over two kilometres and makes it an ideal place for rowing. The regatta or boat race competition has been held there almost every year since 1839.

JULY Wimbledon Henley Regatta

Wimbledon This is one of the four great world tennis championships and the only one which is played on grass. It is held in the last week of June and the first week of July at Wimbledon in south- west London.

AUGUST Notting Hill Carnival

Notting Hill Carnival The last weekend in August there is a big carnival at Notting Hill in west London. People who take part dress up in fabulous costumes. Steel bands play African and Caribbean dance music and people dance and blow whistles. It's the biggest carnival outside Brazil.

SEPTEMBER Blackpool Illuminations

Every year 16 million visitors go to the holiday resort of Blackpool. When summer ends there are still things to see. From 1 September to 1 November, the promenade has a special illuminated display at night. The theme of the display changes every year.

OCTOBER Hallowe'en

31 October is Hallowe'en. People dress up as witches, ghosts, devils, cats, bats or anything scary. Houses are decorated with pumpkins with candles put inside. Some children follow the American custom called Trick or Treat. They knock at your house and ask, "Trick or treat?".

NOVEMBER London to Brighton Veteran Car Rally Guy FawkesNight (Bonfire Night)

London to Brighton Veteran Car Rally This is the first Sunday in November. Hundreds of veteran cars are driven from London to Brighton, on the south coast of England.

Guy FawkesNight (Bonfire Night) Guy Fawkes is Britain's famous terrorist. On 5 November 1605, Guy Fawkes planned to blow up the Houses of Parliament and the King of England, James I. Every year people celebrate by setting off fireworks and making models of Guy Fawkes, burning them on bonfires.

DECEMBER Christmas Day Boxing Day

Christmas Day The most important day of the holiday is 25 December, or Christmas Day. Children wake up early to find a stocking full of small presents on their bed. Other presents are arranged around the Christmas tree, which is usually decorated with multicoloured lights. A traditional Christmas dinner includes roast turkey, roast potatoes and brussel sprouts, followed by Christmas pudding.

Boxing Day This is 26 December. It is usually spent in front of the TV recovering from Christmas Day.

Thank you very much. Thank you very much.