Do you know any famous British movies or series? We have some recommendations for you to watch before you come to the UK!
We thought we would share some of our top recommendations for movies/series to watch before you come to the UK! It will give you some insight into what UK culture is like and the type of activities that you could do that are considered ‘British’.
This is one of the most famous movies that is set in London, UK. It is a romantic comedy, and it features one of the most iconic locations in London – Notting Hill!
If you ever visit London, you can go to the places that are shown in the movie including the colourful houses of Portobello Road and also the famous market where you can see the Notting Hill Bookshop – a very tight space with books in one of the scenes in the movie.
2. This is England (2007)
This movie features the history of what we call ‘skinheads’, a subculture back in the 1960s which consists groups of working-class youths in the UK. It makes some classic references to former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, the very famous Royal wedding of Prince Charles and Princess Diana and the ten-week long Falklands war.
3. Nanny McPhee (2005)
Nanny McPhee is one of those childhood movies that could not be missed. It focuses on naughty children and a Nanny with magic powers to put them in place.
One scene from the movie shows Mrs. Selma Quickly having afternoon tea (though the real afternoon tea will not have worms!) This is a very traditional British activity, afternoon tea was introduced in 1840 in England by Anna, the seventh Duchess of Bedford.
The Duchess’ dinner was served late at eight o’clock, therefore she got very hungry before dinner. Thus, the Duchess requested for a tray of tea, bread, butter and cake during the late afternoon to feed her appetite. This became a habit of hers and she began inviting friends to join her.
This habit of hers became a trendy event, so during the 1880’s, upper-class women would dress up in fashionable gowns, hats and gloves for their afternoon tea.
In modern-day, afternoon tea will usually consist of small portions of sandwiches, macarons, scones with clotted cream and jam, sweet pastries and cakes and of course tea! Give this a try when you come to the UK, a very relaxing activity to do with some friends.
4. Wallace and Gromit
This is a British stop-motion comedy franchise created by Nick Park from Aardman Animations. The main characters in this franchise are often regarded as British cultural icons with international fame and are among some of the best-loved characters of the UK.
You can spot some similarities of UK locations in the franchise such as the 1950s Wigan in Northern England.
A lot of people outside of the UK are unaware that the UK has many different accents and dialects. In particular, Wallace’s accent comes from the Holme Valley of West Yorkshire. Wallace is fond of Wensleydale cheese (from Wensleydale, North Yorkshire), another popular snack in the UK. You can also visit other places famous for their cheese such as Cheddar Gorge.
5. James Bond
There is no doubt that James Bond is famous worldwide. The cars in these movies are often famous British make or the British have popularised the particular car brand. In the movies, you can spot Mr. Bond driving an Aston Martin DBS, a car that is famous to the British audience.
If you want to have a closer experience of James Bond’s life, have a visit to London’s Imperial War Museum. Here you will see the exhibition of Secret War, showcasing the secret work of Britain’s Special Forces. The exhibition also takes you through time to explore real-life operatives and their work, and showcases old classified gadgets, such as encoding devices.
6. Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. There are many famous British locations to spot from this BBC series, you can challenge yourself and see if you could find all of them and be a real detective!
Locations to spot in the series:
Start watching these recommendations and enjoy the little British surprises in them that we have provided you in this list!
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