Holidays in Great Britain

There are eight public holidays, or bank holidays a year in Great Britain, that is days on which people need not go in to work. They are: Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, May Day, Spring Bank Holiday and Late Summer Bank Holiday. The term «bank holiday» dates back to the 19^th century when in 1871 and 1875 most of these days were constituted bank holidays, that is, days on which banks were to be closed. The observance of these days is no longer limited to banks.

All the public holidays, except Christmas Day and Boxing Day observed on the 25^th and 26^th of December respectively, do not fall on the same date each year. Good Friday and Easter Monday depend on Easter Sunday which falls on the first Monday in May. The Spring Bank Holiday is on the last Monday of May, while Late Summer Bank Holiday comes on the last Monday in August.

Most of these holidays are of religious origin, though for the greater part of the population they have long lost their religious significance and are simply days on which people relax, eat, drink and make merry.

Christmas Day is the most popular of bank holidays. It is celebrated on December, 25. On this day many people go to churches, open their Christmas presents, eat a Christmas dinner of roast turkey and Christmas pudding. Many people watch the Queen's Christmas broadcast on TV. This day is a traditional family reunion day and a special day for children.

Boxing Day is on December, 26. People usually gave «Christmas boxes», or gifts of money, to servants on this day. Today many people still give a Christmas gift to paperboys and girls.

New Year's Day is on January, 1. It is not marked with any custom in Great Britain. Traditional New Year parties and dances are held on New Year's Eve. People see the old year out and the New Year in.

Good Friday is the Friday before Easter when the church marks the death of Christ. On this day people eat hot-cross buns — buns marked on top with a cross.

On Easter Day people always eat boiled eggs for breakfast which have been painted all different colours and which sometimes have faces drawn on them. Also there is a famous tradition that at Easter hares appear and hide eggs made of chocolate in the garden for children to find. These eggs sometimes are large and hollow and have little presents inside or else other chocolates. Easter Monday is the day after Easter Day. It is a traditional day for the start of the summer tourist season.

Besides public holidays, there are other festivals, anniversaries and simply days, on which certain traditions are observed, but unless they fall on a Sunday, they are ordinary working days. Here are some examples.

February 14 is St. Valentine's Day; it is a day for choosing sweethearts and exchanging love-tokens. Generations of young people have considered St. Valentine to be the friend and patron of lovers and have sent gifts and hand-made valentines to their sweethearts: husbands, wives, boyfriends and girlfriends. Valentine is a colourful card with a short love verse composed by the sender.

Pancake Day is a popular name for Shrove Tuesday — the last day of enjoyment before the fasting of Lent. On Shrove Tuesday Christians confessed their sins to a priest. Many people still traditionally eat pancakes on that day. One of the main events of Shrove Tuesday is the pancake race at Olney in Buckinghamshire. The competitors in the race are housewives from Olney; they have to make their pancakes and run from the village square to the church.

The fourth Sunday in Lent is Mothering Sunday — a day of small family reunions. On this day absent sons and daughters return to their homes and gifts are made to mothers by their children of all ages.

April, 1 is known in Britain as April Fool's Day — the day when practical jokes are played. Any person, young or old, important or not, may be made an April Fool between the hours of midnight and noon. Children are, of course, very keen supporters of the traditions. Most of their tricks have now become traditional.

Another popular British tradition is Hallowee'n, celebrated on October 31, the eve of All Saints' Day. Hallowee'n customs date back to a time when people believed in devils, witches and ghosts. They thought that they could do all kinds of damage to property. Some people tried to ward off witches by painting magic signs or nailing a horseshoe. Now most people do not believe in evil spirits. Today the day is usually marked by costume balls or fancy-dress parties and is a popular tradition with young people and children. On the night of Hallowee'n children or grown-ups visit houses and ask the residents if they want «trick» or «treat». Another Hallowee'n custom is to scrape out a pumpkin, cutting eyes, nose and mouth in its side and lighting a candle inside, this is made to scare their friends.

November, 5 is Guy Fawkes's Day. All over the country people build wood fires, or «bonfires», in their gardens. On top of each bonfire is a guy, this is a figure of Guy Fawkes. On November, 5, 1665, Guy Fawkes tried to kill King James I. He and a group of his friends put a bomb under the Houses of Parliament in London. But the king's men found the bomb and Guy Fawkes. They took him to the Tower of London, where his head was cut off. Before November 5, children use guys to make money. They stand in the street and shout: «Penny for the guy».

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