Study, work or travel in the UK. British
culture and life.
Things to do in the UK in February 2008
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Study, work or travel in the UK. British
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Things to do in the UK in February 2008
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FEBRUARY
2008
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 Snowdrops |
| Sat 2 Feb - Sun 3 Feb |
Six Nations Championship, UK International rugby competition (England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France, Italy). Saturday: 14:00 Ireland vs Italy ; 16:30 England vs Wales Sunday: 15:00 Scotland vs France * Rugby in the UK: Life/Sport/Rugby * Photos from a visit to a Six Nations game: Ideas/Album/SixNations |
 Six Nations rugby |
 Twickenham rugby stadium |
| Sun 3 Feb | Clown Service, London Each year, on the first Sunday in February, clowns gather for a church service in East London in memory of the British clown Joseph Grimaldi (1778-1837). The church service, starting at 3pm, is at Holy Trinity Church in Dalston (Tube: Liverpool Street, then bus 149 or 242; nearest train station: Dalston Kingsland; map). Afterwards there is a performance by the clowns in a nearby school, and a chance to visit the Clowns Gallery - Museum. * Photos from this event: Ideas/Album/ClownService |
| Tue 5 Feb | Shrove Tuesday (Pancake Day), UK Historically, on Shrove Tuesday Christians confessed their sins and asked to be forgiven for them (this was known as "shriving"). It is the day before the period known as Lent, when Christians traditionally did not eat fatty foods (for example: meat, fish, eggs and milk) for 40 days until Palm Sunday, which is a week before Easter Sunday. Families had a feast on this day to eat those foods which could not be kept for 40 days: eggs and milk were used by adding flour and frying them to make pancakes. This tradition is still kept by many families. The popular name for Shrove Tuesday is Pancake Day. In France the day is called Mardi Gras, which means "Fat Tuesday". For more information, see here. |
| Tue 5 Feb | Pancake Races, UK About 500 years ago, a woman in the town on Olney in Buckinghamshire (map) was cooking her pancakes at home when she heard the bell calling her to church to make her confessions. She ran out of her house and rushed to church, still holding her frying pan and wearing her apron, tossing the pancakes into the air to stop them from burning. This became famous, starting a tradition known as pancake racing - people dress up with aprons, hold frying pans and race against each other. Pancake races are usually small events organised by local communities, and are often used to raise money for charity. A race still takes place each year in Olney - since 1950 there has been a friendly competition with the town of Liberal in Kansas, USA to see which of the towns can produce the fastest racer (see: http://www.pancakeday.net) Some of the pancake races in London are as follows: - Great Spitalfields Pancake Race: this event is organised by Alternative Arts. It will take place along Dray Walk at the Old Truman Brewery, 91-95 Brick Lane, London E1 6QL starting at 12:30pm (Tube: Aldgate East or Shoreditch; map). For details, see: http://www.alternativearts.co.uk/events/pancake - Great Pancake Race: the races are on Tower Hill Terrace, Byward Street, London EC3 (opposite the Tower of London). The races will start at 1:00pm (Tube: Tower Hill; map). For details, see: http://www.allhallowsbythetower.org.uk/pancake_race.htm - Poulters’ Company Pancake Race: races from about 12 noon - 1pm in Guildhall Yard (in front of London's Guildhall in the City of London; nearest Tube: St Paul's, Bank or Mansion House; map). The contest is between teams representing each of the traditional livery companies (trade associations) and raises money for the Lord Mayor's chosen charity. See: http://www.poulters.org.uk/Poulters_events.html - The Parliamentary Pancake Race: races at about 10am-10:30am between teams from the House of Commons, the House of Lords and the Press. The location is in Victoria Tower Gardens, on the south side of the Houses of Parliament (nearest Tube: Westminster; map - note that in previous years it has been held on the opposite side of the road in College Green). This event is organised by the charity Rehab UK (for people with brain injuries, see: http://www.rehabuk.org). See: http://golondon.about.com/od/februaryannualevents/ss/pancake_day_5.htm * Photos from pancake races: Ideas/Album/PancakeRace |
 Pancake Races |
 Tossing a pancake |
| Wed 6 Feb - Fri 8 Feb |
King's College Greek Play, London Each year since 1953 King's College (part of the University of London) stage an ancient Greek play in the original language (an English translation is shown at the same time). The 2008 production will be "Oedipus Tyrannus" by Sophocles. For details and to book tickets, click here. |
| Wed 6 Feb | Waitangi Day New Zealand's national day, commemorating the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi on 6 Feb 1840. New Zealanders may celebrate with a meal, drink or party. In London the most popular form of celebration is a pub crawl on the nearest Saturday to 6th February (see below). |
| Wed 6 Feb | Ash Wednesday, UK Ash Wednesday is the beginning of the 40-day period known as Lent (the 40 days - excluding Sundays - before Easter Sunday). In Christian churches there are services in which ashes are used to mark a cross on people's foreheads. Some Christians stop eating some type of food during Lent, and use the period for religious thought. For more information, see here. |
| Wed 6 Feb | Queen's Accession: gun salutes, London/Windsor Queen Elizabeth came to the throne (aged 25) on 6 February 1952, the date when her father King George the Sixth died. To mark this event, cannons will be fired in the following locations: - A 41-gun salute at 12 noon fired by the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery in Hyde Park, London (opposite the Dorchester Hotel: map ; nearest Tube: Hyde Park Corner or Marble Arch) - A 62-gun salute at 1pm fired by the Honourable Artillery Company at the Tower of London (from the gunpark at the western end of London Wharf: map ; nearest Tube: Tower Hill). Guns have been fired from this location since the time of Henry the Eighth - A 21-gun salute at 12 noon at The Long Walk in the grounds of Windsor Castle, Windsor (near the Brook Street entrance: map) For background information about the gun salutes, see: http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/page4951.asp or http://www.royalparks.gov.uk/tourists/gun_salutes.cfm. * Royal traditions: Britain/Countries/Royalty. |
| Thu 7 Feb | Chinese New Year The start of the Chinese New Year. 2008 is the Year of the Rat. The main public event in London is on the following Sunday (see below). |
| Sat 9 Feb - Sun 10 Feb |
Six Nations Championship, UK International rugby competition (England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France, Italy). Saturday: 14:00 Wales vs Scotland ; 16:00 France vs Ireland Sunday: 14:30 Italy vs England * Rugby in the UK: Life/Sport/Rugby * Photos from a visit to a Six Nations game: Ideas/Album/SixNations |
| Sat 9 Feb | Waitangi Day Pub Crawl, London Many of London's New Zealanders join a pub crawl, following a section of the Circle Line anti-clockwise. The usual start point is at Paddington at about 10am. Participants get off at various Tube stops along the route and enjoy a drink in a specified local pub or bar (each of which is named after a town or city in New Zealand). Before 4pm people assemble in Parliament Square (opposite the Houses of Parliament) and, following the chimes of Big Ben, perform a traditional Maori dance (a "haka") and sing songs. The usual final stop for the pub crawl is at the Walkabout next to Temple Tube station. For details about this event see: http://www.waitangidaylondon.com. If you are not taking part but are travelling in London, you may wish to avoid using the Circle line today! * New Zealand links: Links/NewZealand |
| Sun 10 Feb | Chinese New Year: Chinatown event, London Celebration of the Chinese New Year (2008 is the "year of the rat") in the Chinatown area of London. The main events are in Gerrard Street (map), Leicester Square (map) and Trafalgar Square (map); the nearest Tube stations are Charing Cross and Leicester Square. The entertainment includes lion and dragon dances, martial art demonstrations, Chinese food and music, and firecrackers. The usual timetable is as follows: - from 11:00: Grand Parade along the Strand, Charing Cross Road and Shaftesbury Avenue - 12:00 to 18:00: Entertainment on the main stage in Trafalgar Square - 14:00 and 17:00: Fire crackers / fireworks are set off in Leicester Square - Arts, crafts and food stalls will be set up in the streets around Chinatown - During the afternoon and early evening, dragons will visit each of the restaurants in Chinatown Note that the narrow streets of Soho can get very crowded: be careful to look after your belongings. For more information, see: http://www.london.gov.uk/mayor/chinese_ny/index.jsp or http://www.chinatownchinese.co.uk For details of other Chinese events in London between now and the Olympic torch relay in April, see: http://www.visitlondon.com/london/china * Photos: Ideas/Album/ChineseNewYear |
 Chinese New Year |
 Chinese dragon dancing |
| Wed 13 Feb - Sun 17 Feb |
Jorvik Viking Festival, York A Viking festival in York. Among the many events and activities are a battle re-enactment and a Viking market. For full details, see: http://www.vikingjorvik.com * Guide to York: Travel/Tours/England/York |
 Battle re-enactment during the Jorvik Viking Festival |
| Thu 14 Feb | Valentine's Day, UK A time to tell someone that you love him/her. Both men and women can send cards or give presents. Traditionally, you do not write your name on the card or present (but you may add a clue so that he or she can guess it is from you). They are often sent by post, delivered by someone else or are hidden: they are not normally given directly to the person. Among the most common presents are chocolates, teddy bears and flowers. Couples sometimes go out for a meal: reserve a table early if you want to go to a restaurant on this day. This is the most expensive time of year to buy red roses. The Scottish poet Robert Burns wrote, "My love is like a red, red rose": this may have helped to create the association between red roses and love. * Ideas for Valentine's Day presents: Ideas/Gifts/Valentine |
 Valentine's Day |
| Wed 20 Feb | Brits Awards, UK Awards ceremony for British and international pop, shown on ITV1. For details, see: http://www.brits.co.uk. * British pop music: Britain/Music/Pop |
| Sat 23 Feb | Six Nations Championship, UK International rugby competition (England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France, Italy). 15:00 Wales vs Italy ; 17:00 Ireland vs Scotland ; 20:00 France vs England * Rugby in the UK: Life/Sport/Rugby * Photos from a visit to a Six Nations game: Ideas/Album/SixNations |
| Fri 29 Feb | Leap Day Once every four years there is an extra day in February. This is because the Earth goes around the Sun approximately once every 365 days and 6 hours - if three years have 365 days then the next year needs to have 366 days so that the timings of the seasons don't change. An old tradition is that on this day a woman can ask a man to marry her. People who are born on 29 February must choose whether to celebrate their birthdays on 28 February or 1 March |
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