80 Interesting Facts About The UK

If you want to take your knowledge about the UK to the next level, here we have put together a list of 80 interesting facts about the UK that you can learn if you plan on living there or maybe just to impress your friends.

Here are some of the most interesting facts about UK:

1. Tea is by far the most popular drink among Brits. It is estimated that they drink on average 165 million cups of tea every day. The fun thing here is that in US the tea’s consume is 20 times lower.
2. As one of the biggest urban and over-populated area in the world, the British capital is a “melting pot” of nations, cultures and therefore interesting facts. The city is the home to more than 8 million citizens who do communicate using different languages. It is estimated that there are more than 300 different languages spoken in London.
3. Did you know that the first postage stamp was created in UK. It was designed in May 1840 and it featured the figure of Queen Victoria.
4. Probably because of their popularity as old monuments, people think of the Pyramids in Egypt as the oldest objects in the world. However, in UK there’s the monument of Stonehenge, claimed to be one of the oldest monuments in the world and one of the seven world’s miracles by the way. Scientists believe that the object was built over 3,000 B.C.
5. Topping at 1,107 feet or 350 meters, the London’s Shard building was completed in 2012 making it the tallest object in the continent of Europe.
6. The famous game of Golf was invented in Scotland and today is considered as a national sport. Reliable sources claim that the game was first invented in 1457. The game got so popular among Scottish that James II banned it because it interrupted the army’s practice.
7. As for the cuisine, the typical food of UK is the roast beef and Yorkshire beef, but the Brits have voted the Chicken Takka as their national dish. The Chicken Takka is actually an Indian recipe.
8. The UK is linked with the European continental land through the Channel Tunnel.  At a distance of 21 miles, this road is the second longest underground tunnel. It connects the city of Dover (England) and Calais (France).
9. Queen Elizabeth ascended the throne in 1953 and in 2015 her excellence became the longest reigning Queen in the world.
10. The Windsor Castle is where the British royal family still resides. The object is the oldest royal residence.
11. On August 1896 the United Kingdom and the Zanzibar Sultanate fought for around 40 minutes being this way the shortest war ever happened in history.  Only one British sailor was injured while casualties in the other party reached 500 people.
12. Although English is the official language in the UK, there are a variety of accents throughout the country. The accent changes that often that within a short distance of few kilometres you may encounter different accents.
13. The author of the Harry Potter series of books, J.K. Rowling was the writer to ever become a billionaire from her writing. In 2014, her total net worth reached $1 billion.
14. If you ever paid attention to the BBC’s TV channels you could easily notice that their programs don’t display advertisements. This is because they are the public broadcasting operator and are paid by the British citizens.
15. The British passport is issued in the name of the Queen. As such, her excellence doesn’t need to possess one. The Queen has visited over 100 different countries and not a single time has made it with a passport.
16. The University of Oxford is the oldest higher education institution in the whole UK. Until 1877, lecturers at this university were not allowed to get married.
17. Llanfairpwllgwyngyll-gogerychwyrndrobwlllllandysiliogogogoch. You only see a meaningless string of letters, right? But this is the name of a town in Wales. It is the longest name of a town in the world. However, people have changed it to a shorter version. Luckily, in Wales, the road signs are given both in Welsh and English.
18. An ancient decree in UK stated that at the moment when there are at least than six ravens at the ground of London Tower, the monarchy must fall. The rule was set by King Charles II.
19. In ancient times it was not allowed for a random citizen to die in a run-state facility. Some believe that such rule is applied at England’s Parliament, but that’s not true.
20. Myths and legends involving monsters and mysterious creatures are popular stories in UK. There are many people who have claimed they have witnessed such creatures in the past. Such stories have also surrounded the London Bridge with some people saying they heard the voice of a woman roaming in the night. These monsters are that common as particular areas have their typical monster. For example, in Scotland, there are stories of a monster named the Loch Ness or shortly Nessie, based on the lake when allegedly it inhabits.
21. Indian restaurants in UK are a random thing. It is estimated that there more Indian restaurants in London than in Indian biggest urban centers like Mumbai or New Delhi.
22. The Union Flag or Union Jack is the UK’s flag. Its design represents a blending of English, Scottish flag and the flag of St Patrick which represents Ireland. Sorry, Wales!
23. There is no official religion in UK, but the majority of Brits claim a form of Christianity.
24. 27% of the population are declared atheists
25. There no active volcanoes in UK
26. UK has only 15 National Parks but they cover 8% of the British land.
27. There are no mountains in England higher than 1000 meters.
28. Ben Nevis is the highest point of the UK’s mountains (1,345 meters above the sea level)
29. Corante was the first British newspaper. Its first ever copy was printed in 1621.
30. Life expectancy in UK is around 80 years.
31. Royal weddings are national holidays. The day after ceremony people get a day off work.
32. Taxi drivers in London undergo a test before they get hired for the job to estimate how well they know the streets of London.
33. Wherever the Queen is residing a royal flag must wave at the top of the building.
34. London counts over 170 museums.
35. There was another wheel before the London Eye was built.  The Great Wheel (as it was known) was constructed in 1895 for the Empire of India Exhibition. Unfortunately, the building was shattered in 1907.
36. The smallest statue in London depicts two mice fighting for a piece of cheese. The story in the background of this tiny sculpture is in fact tragic. During the time when The Monument was getting built, two builders got involved in a fight after accusing each other for eating a sandwich. Both of them died in the fight while later on turned that a mouse had eaten the sandwich.
37. Fordwich is the smallest town in UK. It has around 400 residents.
38. The UK has not a written constitute
39. The UK has not a national day, though sometimes it uses the birthday of the Queen.
40. 27% of people in UK are obese, the highest percentage in the world
41. Railway system in UK is ranked as 17th largest railway network in the world
42. UK is the 5th biggest exporter in the world.
43. It has 394,000 kilometers of paved roads, enough to go around the world up to ten times.
44. London is the biggest city in UK and the most expensive to live in UK.
45. Although UK it’s known for its rainy weather, in 2003 a temperature of 38.5 degrees of Celsius was recorded in Kent.
46. It is against the law to sell alcohol to anyone under 18, but children under this age are allowed to drink alcohol at home.
47. The busiest airport in UK is the Heathrow Airport in London. In 2017, this airport recorded over 78 million passengers.
48. There are more English speakers in US, India, Pakistan, Nigeria and Philippines than in the United Kingdom
49. There are only few trash cans in the whole city of London. They were removed because London had experienced a lot of terrorist attacks in the past and trash cans have been a common dropping point.
50. There are over 500 pubs in UK named The Red Lion.
51. All sorts of horses in UK must have a passport.
52. According to a legend, the Scottish flag with a white cross over a blue background represents the shape of clouds formed when Scotland was fighting with Angles, a tribe of Germanic invaders.
53. The dragon on the Welsh flag is a symbol of the King of Gwynedd. The Gwynedd Kingdom was one of the successive rulers of Britain’s Island after the fall of Romanian Empire.
54. Margaret Thatcher was the first woman ever elected as the Prime Minister of UK. At the same time, she’s known as the longest servant as a PM of UK.
55. Scientists have discovered a unique type of mosquito in the underground of London. This species has evolved independently from other sorts of mosquitos.
56. The East Enders is the most watched ever TV show in UK. It had 30 million viewers.
57. Soccer is one of the most popular games in UK. There are over 100 soccer (or Football if you will) across the country.
58. Every year 488 Brits are injured from zips
59. Sausages are a popular food in the UK. It is believed that sausages were introduced first by the Romans around 400 AD. Nowadays it’s estimated there are 470 recipes for this food.
60. For almost 300 years French was the official language in UK, from 1066 to 1362.
61. Shakespeare added around 3,000 words to the English language
62. British Library is the second largest library in the world. It has over 150 million items.
63. In 1977, East Sussex a small village at the border of Wales and England declared its independence from UK and required from foreigner to get a visa in order to enter the village.
64. Brits love news. Every year a person gets through 38 kilograms of newspaper on average.
65. The first speeding ticket was issued in UK. In 1896 a person was caught driving 8 miles per hour in a zone where the maximum limit was 2mph.
66. There’s a law that allows a random citizen to kill a Scott entering the city of York if that person is holding an arrow above his head.
67. Killing a swan is illegal in UK. If you kill one you get a fine of £5,000 or a 6-month sentence.
68. The Adder is the only venomous snake in UK.
69. In the past London had different names like Londinium or Ludenburg.
70. Suicide was once treated as a crime. During the late 19th century, if a person got caught trying to kill himself, he was jailed and punished by hanging.
71. The National Health Service in UK offers free health care coverage for its citizens, but people are allowed to get private health insurance if they will.
72. Birmingham is the second largest city in the UK.
73. There are over 30 places around the world named Birmingham. Furthermore, there are places on the Moon that hold this name.
74. Uk is a large country, but no matter where you’re staying at the moment you’ll never be further than 115 km from the sea.
75. The United Kingdom has 31 heritage sites protected by the Unesco.
76. During the 16th century, the king raised a tax for everyone that had a beard.
77. Knap of Howar is the oldest building in UK. The object was constructed around 3,700 AC
78. Art was once considered an Olympic sport in UK. People of Art, Architecture, Music, literature, painting and sculpting were awarded a medal for their work.
79. During the World War II, British soldiers were told that eating carrots improves vision in the dark. They were fooled so they wouldn’t know that enemies had improved the radar system.
80. Smith Jones and Williams are the most common names in UK