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Ever said sorry to an inanimate object? Formed a queue... on your own? Or spent the whole night standing naked in a stranger's cupboard because you're too polite to ask for help? (Don't ask.) Being British isn't easy. Especially if you live abroad, where your countrymen aren't exactly famous for, well, blending in. As his beloved homeland goes Brexit bananas, bestselling humourist Paul Hawkins takes on Britishness - how it looks from the outside, how to be British abroad and what you only learn about home once you leave it. In this self-deprecating (and only mildly treacherous) handbook, he reveals the awkward secrets, cultural blind-spots and private oddness of the people he once shared an island with. (Revenge is a dish best served politely, after all...) Part memoir, part cheat-sheet for decoding a nation of well-meaning misfits, The Bloody British is full of hilarious insights about Britishness gleaned (often begrudgingly) from the author's own time as another country's foreigner. What does Europe think of us? Featuring invaluable advice for all Brits, expats, brexpats and visitors to the UK alike, including: · The Brit Abroad Language-Speaking Plan · How to be Rude, Politely (the secret code of passive-aggression) · How to be Mean, Nicely (the unwritten rules of successful banter) · ... plus an illustrated Integration Guide for British Refugees in Europe (just in case) For all fans of Very British Problems, Douglas Adams and Bill Bryson, it's the perfect gift for the socially awkward oddball in your life (especially if that socially awkward oddball is you.) Are you ready to meet The Bloody British?

Manchester has one of the darkest histories in Britain. From the Screaming Skull of Wardley Hall to an epidemic of deadly factory fires in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, you will find all manner of horrible events inside this book. With coffins washed from their graves and swept away into the city after the River Medlock burst its banks, and the streets of Salford, Gorton and Openshaw overrun by gangs in the latter quarter of the nineteenth century, as well as murders, riots, battles and plagues, the grimmest events in Manchester's history are all here for you to explore. Read this gory and glorious book ... if you dare!

Razed by Vikings! Deadly Danish assaults and demolitions. Neolithic murders! The tragic tale of Britain's earliest recorded homicide! A deadly game of thrones! The last remains of two royal victims in the Abbey. Murdered by the Ripper! Was one of Jack the Ripper's victims from Peterborough? Find out inside! 'I Can't Stop While There Are Lives to be Saved': The incredible story of British spy nurse Edith Cavell. There is the darker side to Peterborough's history. All manner of incredible events have occurred in the city: Roman occupations; Saxon murders and miracles; riots and revolts; battles, diseases, disasters and plagues. Including more than 60 illustrations, and with the history of institutions such as the prisoner-of-war camps of the Napoleonic era and the slums and workhouses of the Victorian age, you'll never see the city in the same way again.

Pustules and plague corpses in Smithfield. Women disguised in men's clothing. A shark in the Thames. London's East End has a history soaked in blood. The Great Plague of London can be traced to its streets; Jack the Ripper prowled here, as did the Ratcliffe Highway murderer and the gunmen of the famous Sidney Street siege. Communists, fascists, suffragettes and the Skeleton Army have all fought through the streets of the East End, before it weathered the worst that the Nazi bombers could throw at it during the dark days of the Blitz. Historically viewed as a 'den of iniquity', and once teeming with opium dens, bodysnatchers and paupers, this is a story of dreadful odds and of determination, filled with horror, grim British humour and hundreds of incredible years of history.

This engaging and concise text offers the student and the general reader a compact, readable treatment of British membership of the European Union from 1973 to the present day. It provides a highly distilled and accessible analysis and overview of some of the parameters and recurring features of Britain’s membership of the European Union, touching on all of the major facets of membership. Key features: examines the constant and changing character of British membership of the European Union (EU) discusses the problematical and often paradoxical features of membership familiarizes the reader with both academic and public debates about the subject offers thematic treatment of all aspects of policy and attitudes towards the EU provides an overview of the main landmarks in the history of the EU since 1973 presents the most comprehensive and up-to-date text on the course and result of the EU referendum campaign. This book will be of key interest to scholars, students and the generally interested reader in the areas of European Studies, British Politics, EU Studies, Area Studies and International Relations.

Britain has an incredible history, steeped in all manner of blood, death, disease and horror. From cannibals to concentration camps, Geoff Holder covers events both great and gory from Britain's terrible past, with kings, queens and pretenders to the throne; sea battles, massacres and attacks from the air. This collection explores it all, with hundreds of amazing true stories, including seven ill-judged attempts to assassinate Queen Victoria and the Gestapo's secret plans to bring a conquered Britain to its knees. There will be blood ...

CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title 2017 A History of the British Isles is a balanced and integrated political, social, cultural and religious history of the British Isles in all its complexity, exploring the constantly evolving dialogue and relationship between the past and the present. A wide range of topics and questions are addressed for each period and territory discussed, including England's Wars of the Roses of the 15th century and their influence on court politics during the 16th century; Ireland's Rebellion of 1798, the Potato Famine of the 1840s and the Easter Rising of 1916; the two World Wars and the Great Depression; British cultural and social change during the 1960s; and the history and future of the British Isles in the present day. Kenneth Campbell integrates the histories of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales by exploring common themes and drawing on comparative examples, while also demonstrating how those histories are different, making this a genuinely integrated text. Campbell's approach allows readers to appreciate the history of the British Isles not just for its own sake, but for the purposes of understanding our current political divisions, our world and ourselves.

This study patterns national identity over a number of important historical milestones and brings the debates over Europe up-to-date with an analysis of recent happenings including the referendum on Scottish independence, the global economic crisis and the current crisis in Syria.

A number of important changes have occurred since the first edition, and these are covered fully in the book. They include the introduction of the Euro, the reform of the Commission, the Amsterdam Treaty, the elections of 1999 and Agenda 2000.