A year ago I wrote a post about Maidenhead, in which I mentioned that there was a club called ‘Hungaria River Club’ in the Bridge Gardens next to the Maidenhead bridge. I wondered then and have been wondering since why that establishment was called ‘Hungaria’ and whether it had any connections with my country, Hungary. Well, my Hungarian guests who visited us beginning of May triggered my new investigation and I am happy to say, I think I resolved the mystery.

Hungarian restaurants in London

The story begins in London where – to my greatest surprise – two Hungarian restaurants existed before the Second World War, meaning that the ‘Gay Hussar’ which opened in 1953 and sadly closed in 2018 was not the first ever Hungarian restaurant in the British capitol. These two were the ‘Hungarian Csarda’ at 77 Dean Street and the ‘Hungaria’ in Lower Regent Street. Unfortunately, I do not know anything about the Hungarian Csarda other than ‘it was still be able to serve goulash during the war in-spite of the paprika shortage, albeit the paprika was a bit pale.’ About the ‘Hungaria’ however, I managed to find out quite a lot and it has quite a fascinating story.

The key figure: Joseph Vecci

Joseph Vecchi was a key figure in the Hungaria’s history. He was born in a small village close to Bologna, Italy and he had a big dream: he wanted to become a restaurant or hotel manager. He started his career in Nice and started at the very bottom, meaning he washed glasses and peeled potatoes. After a few months, he started to climb the ladder and became a Commis de Rang. The big opportunity presented itself in 1906 when Vecchi took a position at Claridge’s in London where his hard work paid off and within six months he became a Floor Waiter. Do not forget, entertaining and serving was still highly regarded as these employees dealt with royals, aristocrats and famous artist and politicians. In 1910, it seemed as if half of the world had visited London and that was because of the funeral of King Edward VII and a year later the coronation of King George V. Count and Countess Károlyi (Hungarian politician) also stayed at Claridges. Interestingly, the best hotels and restaurants were managed by Italians those days. So was Claridges, it was run by Monsieur Branchini who became Vecchi’s mentor.

Vecchi continued his career in Berlin at the Kaiserhof Hotel which used to be favoured by Kaiser William II. If nothing else, he could learn the German precision from first hand, but Vecchi thought the German politeness was based on lineage and the tone of voice in which a princess was addressed varied from the one in which a baroness would be spoken to.

From Berlin Vecchi went to St Petersburg to work at the Hotel Astoria’s French restaurant. Do not forget, these were still tsarian years in Russia when everything was still different and Russia was as popular among aristocracy as France or Italy. I would not like to go deep into the years he spent thereand later in Kiev, although that would be worth it as well. Instead, let’s take a leap forward in time.

The Hungaria in London

He returned to London on 15th February 1920, most of his fortune lost and soon after he was approached by a wealthy cotton manufacturer, Mr Henry Chanok whether he was interested in opening a Hungarian restaurant in London. The commission came from the Hungarian Government. Now you could ask the question why on earth would the Hungarian Government want to open a restaurant in London. The answer is simpler than we think: in 1918-1921, right after the Great War the Hungarian Government was keen to reduce Russian and German influence and build stronger relationships with England and Italy. Possibly, the idea of the ‘Hungaria’ was part of this strategy.

The Hungarian Government was to pay the rent of the premises, the equipment, decoration, furniture, linen and plates on condition the restaurant paid for the carpeting, kitchen equipment and installation, but more importantly, the restaurant had to buy wine from the Hungarian State Wine Cellars. The restaurant was not allowed to sell French or German wine with the exception of French champagne and they could serve English drinks. The negotiations lasted quite long, until 1928.

The restaurant was designed by a Hungarian architect, Mihály Dengler who apparently had a bad command of English and on top of that he was stubborn and as a result it was difficult to agree on arrangements. Vecchi went to Budapest to select the wine and he went to Budafok where he also chose Tokayers from the best vintage years: 1866, 1875 and 1889 from which His Majesty King George V ordered 2 bottles of the year 1889. One thing was still to be done: engage a Hungarian musician. Vecchi knew exactly who he wanted, somebody who he had met in Russia before: Jancsi Rigó. (A traditional cube-shaped chocolate sponge cake with chocolate cream was named after the musician and the cake is equalli called Rigó Jancsi.) He managed to find him and Rigó agreed to go to London.

The opening

The invitations were sent out by the diplomat Baron Iván Rubidó-Zichy and the Hungaria was opened on 8th October 1928. Among the guests were artists, the crème de la crème of London, featuring with Lord and Lady Londonderry and the famous Hungarian singer, Sári Petráss whose performance  was followed by a tremendous applause. (Sári Petráss had a miserable death two years later when she was driven in a locked car in Ostend. The driver missed the pier and the car fell into the water and sank.)

The Hungaria was a success.

Perhaps because it was so different to the other restaurants in London and well known for its bohemian atmosphere. How much it could keep its Hungarian nature, I am not too sure and it appears to be rather a Russian restaurant due to Vecchi’s passion for Russian food and Russia. He even arranged a Russian New Year’s party (13th January) in 1933 where 80 percent of the guests were Russians. But it was not only Russian dishes served at the Hungaria: spaghetti was a favourite by many, such as the councillor of the Hungarian Embassy, László Bárdossy.

Besides Russians, the Prince of Wales was a big fan of the Hungaria and had many parties held there, the Duke and Duchess of York were also frequent visitors. On one occasion the famous tenor, Richard Tauber and the Hungarian composer, Ferenc Lehár dined at the Hungaria. When Rigó started to play Tauber’s favourite tune (You Are My Heart’s Delight), Tauber sang the song and the applause broke out like a storm when he finished.

A new, American phenomenon: the roadhouse

So the restaurant was doing well, yet the weekends were quiet. Guests spent their weekends either by the sea or by the river. At the end of the 1920s and in the 1930s America’s influence on British culture was immense and it was triggered mainly by Hollywood films. At the end of the twenties the so called roadhouse appeared in England as well, which were built by main roads just like in America. The phenomenon had its widest appeal in between 1933-1937. As motorcars were spread more and more and people became more mobile, they were happy to take drives in the countryside and get a break from the City. The roadhouse offered entertainment in luxury surroundings: it had a bar, dance floors, live music, swimming pool, restaurant and often offered some sort of gambling. The forerunner of the roadhouse in Britain was the river club. Based on the success of the Hungaria, Vecchi and his patrons decided to open the Hungaria River Club in Maidenhead.

The English version: the River Club

The Hungaria River Club was not the first club in town: the Murray’s River Club opened in 1913 and was famous for its illuminated glass dance floors and the cocaine… Oh yes, the Bright Young Things were quite self-destructive and this elite group had an extensive drug use.

The Hungaria River Club failed

As the Murray’s was located at the same spot as the Hungaria River Club and a short film from 1933 shows the latter with illuminated glass dancefloor, I presume, Vecchi took over the management of the Murray’s and he called it Hungaria River Club. (Reputedly, the owner of the Murray’s, Jack May from New York was some sort of a gangster and drug-dealer and was removed from the nightlife scene in 1930. Maybe this is when Vecchi stepped in.) The Hungaria River Club had an outdoor swimming pool and the indoor dancefloor looked like a mock-parisian street.

The Prince of Wales had several parties at the Hungaria River Club as well and it was a brilliant advert for the place. It appeared the river club would be a success as well, but it was not and in the end it failed. Perhaps it was too far out from London, or the trouble was it was opened right before the Great Depression.

The Hungaria was adjusted to the needs during the war

While the river club didn’t make it, the restaurant in London was still doing extremely well even during the Second World War. The restaurant was moved to the Grillroom which had thick concrete walls and as such it naturally became an air raid shelter. The steel doors were gas-proof as well as bomb- and splinter-proof which secured up to 800 hours stay without suffocating. Vecchi offered his guests to stay for the night if they did not want to risk a dangerous journey home. The offer went down very well and Vecchi could have filled the Hungaria five times over each night.

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The Hungaria came under new management in 1943 and I do not know anything about the years after, unfortunately. One thing is for sure: my heart was filled with warmth and pride as I was reading the story of the Hungaria. It is still unbelievable that Maidenhead has relations to Hungary one way or the other. I guess, from now onwards, I will always think of the Hungaria River Club and the Hungaria, whenever I pass by the Bridge Gardens…

I read an article the other day about what would happen if the Queen passed away. I must admit, I was a bit upset by this article not because it was about the Queen, it would have equally upset me about anyone, because everybody deserves dignity when it comes to death. I found it a bit morbid and absurd to read about the detailed schedule of the ceremony, but then again, this is part of the protocol and it only showed the unvarnished truth. I was aware of TV channels having hours of programs prepared about well-known and old actors and persons (the likes of David Attenborough or Kirk Douglas who is 101 years old) which is understandable.

Getting back to the article, I was shocked by the detailed program of the Queen’s death and that even TV presenters have their attire ready for the day, moreover they have practised the announcement several times. If I were the Queen, it would hurt me, at the same time, it is possibly nothing special to her, because she grew up with the protocol and as Bill says, she is aware this is part of the deal.

How, when and why did I invest in the Queen?

It happened this spring, somewhere in April, I think. How? I bought this waving Queen figurine for 20 pounds, which is quite a lot of money for what it is! At the same time, I knew I wanted it, because Elizabeth II is one of, if not the greatest iconic figure of the UK. One either loves her, or not, but I don’t think she is indifferent to anyone. As for me, I like her, but I am not a fan who follows every steps of hers. I appreciate she has done a lot for this country that she loves in her deepest heart and I learnt to respect her for being able to learn from the mistakes made by the Royal Family and change things around. I like the fact she sticks to traditions, but at the same time she is flexible enough to loosen some expectations. I like her, because she has never really wanted to be in the spotlight, she did not show off or have a flamboyant lifestyle and she did not share too much about herself either, which leaves her being a bit of a mystery for many of us. Undoubtedly, she is a status symbol of the UK, especially since the 2012 London Olympics when – as we all know – “she” jumped out of James Bond’s helicopter with a Union Jack parachute. Just one example that shows the Queen does have a sense of humour.

I don’t think there is anyone on this globe (OK, this might be an overstatement) who would not recognise her, her silhouette, her attire, the hats and the coats and handbags or headscarf she wears. The whole world will be shocked when she passes away and everybody will feel, they have lost a friend and one of the world’s best known characters. This has become clearer to me when we visited Her Majesty’s estate, Balmoral in Scotland this summer, where Bill and a shop assistant started to talk about the Queen. They said, they cannot even imagine how it would feel like not having the Queen around, because she “has always been there“. They grew up with the Queen being on the throne and indeed, the generation of the 1950s has always lived with their Queen.

Do the English like the Queen?

Yes and no. There are royalists who do like the Queen and the Royal Family (Bill for example) and there are the republicans who don’t – just like Mr Stokes and Mable in “You rang, M’lord?” when the ex king of Dalmatia was visiting Lord Meldrum:

STOKES Well, I don’t know why they’re making all this fuss about an old king and queen kicked out of country. If you ask me, I’ll kick them all out, ours included.
MABEL Well, you are quite right, Mr Stokes. Do away with them all!

What I definitely find to envy is the traditions around the English Royal Family. I often think, our nation (Hungary) cannot understand what it feels and means like having a monarch, because we lost our last king of the Árpád dinasty in 1301. With that, not only the last Hungarian king, but the traditions were lost, too. (Of course you can say, we had King Matthias later and Princess Sissi etc, but I think that is different.)

Why did I think I needed a waving Queen?

No idea! I just suddenly felt I needed one, but definitely not because I thought it would make me English – I will never be English. Also, there is a house in Windsor (no not the castle 🙂 ) which I find extremely pretty and has become my favourite house in town. This is where I saw a waving Queen for the first time and this also inspired me. Of course later you bump into these figurines at every corner in Windsor’s souvenir shops. At the same time, I also thought I should buy the figurine now, because the price may go up when the Queen dies. (It might be a disrespectful idea, but this is what I thought… 🙁 ) I find it interesting that Bill thought the new items with Charles on them would be more expensive and desired. Well, maybe both scenario will happen… All in all, I like having the Queen in our window waving all day. This may sound stupid but it is soothing and it feels as if we had a patron saint at home.

After all let’s hope the Queen stays with us for a long time for which she has a good chance as the Queen Mother was 101 when she passed away. I hope, we can admire her and her colourful and vibrant attires and hats that make her so unique in the years to come.

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As a final cord, when I bought the figurine, I carried it enthusiastically. I remember, I said to Bill he must have thought I was an idiot because I bought a waving Queen for our home. His answer which I will never forget was:

“No, not at all. But then again, you are a tourist.”
🙂

The first things come to people’s minds about Scotland are probably “Nessie”, whisky, kilts and castles, which of course have their own ghosts. I did a little investigation and found that there are approximately 1200 castles in Scotland, however, a few of them do not look like castles. Anyway, if you visit Scotland, visiting a castle is a must.

So did we and visited 3 castles on our Scotland trip which I am going to present in this post. I will try to be brief (it is difficult) and let the photos do the speaking.

Scottish Style

As an introduction though, let me explain the styles of Scottish castles quickly. There are some which look more like a medieval fortress and then we have some which have Renaissance, or Gothic style. However, the most popular style is the Scots Baronial, merging the styles of a medieval fortress with the French Renaissance chateaux style. The result is a Disney like castle, which can be understood better if we remind ourselves that this was the period of the Romanticism, when people turned away from the present and recalled the past and found comfort in that. The style became popular in the Victorian era from 1850 onwards. Characteristics are: pepper pot turrets, towers, crenelated battlements, porches, porticos, porte-cocheres.

Glamis Castle

Click on the photos below to see them in a slideshow.

The first castle on our trip was Glamis Castle, which I believe would take anybody’s breath away. The medieval building was extended and rebuilt in Renaissance and Gothic style. I loved this castle in spite of photographing not being allowed in the castle. There was a very interesting and well narrated 50 minutes tour. Let me share three things:

1.
Royal Family

The castle belonged to the Bowes-Lyon family, the Earls of Strathmore for centuries. In 1900, the Queen Mother was born here and grew up in the castle. Queen Elizabeth II and her sister, Princess Margaret who by the way was born here, spent much of their childhood in the castle. You can see their little wooden chairs next to the huge fireplace where the family would sit in the evenings.

2.
Ghosts

Glamis Castle is said to have 9 (!) ghosts having the title of the most haunted castle in Scotland. So there is a Grey Lady, who appears from time to time in the little chapel of the castle, therefore, locals who attend the mass today leave one chair for her. Who was the Grey Lady? Her name was Lady Janet of Douglas and her brother happened to be the step-father of King James V. The King hated his step-father and his family and when Lady Janet’s husband died and there was no one else left to protect the family, King James V allowed Lady Janet and her 16 year old son executed for witchcraft in Edinburgh. Then there is The Gambling Earl, the Earl of Crawford also known as Earl Bardie who had a passion for playing cards. One night when one of the servants reminded the Earl to stop as it was sabbath, the Earl said, he would not stop playing and would play until doomsday even with the Devil. Apparently, a stranger who was said to be the devil himself appeared at midnight and joined the Earl to play cards. Since people reported loud swearing and rattling of dice which annoyed the tenants of the castle so much that they bricked up the room. Then there is a black, African servant boy who was badly treated 200 years ago and who today is said to mischievously try to trip up passers by sitting on a stone seat next to the Queen’s bedroom. Others are a ghost of a woman with no tongue who is said to haunt the grounds, a Green Lady, the Hanged Butler, the ghost of King Malcolm II, Duncan and Macbeth and more importantly the Monster of Glamis. According to the legend, the family had a child who was severely deformed and locked up in a room in the tower. Others believe he died on the day he was born.

3.
Strathmore Blue

What I do like about the English (in this case let’s say British) is that they have a name for every colour or shade. You could read about the London Cabmen’s shelters on the blog’s Facebook page where I explained these shelters were painted Buckingham Paradise Green or in my post about the phone boxes you could find Battleship Grey and Brunswick Green, in another post a fabric and colour is called the Lavenham Blue. Well, the Strathmore family’s colour is called Strathmore Blue which was the Queen Mother’s favourite colour. Not to confuse it with the equally popular and similar shade of Duck Egg or Sea-spray Blue.

Balmoral Castle

When we hear the name Balmoral, many of us associate it with Queen Victoria or Queen Elizabeth II driving her Land Rover on the estate or walking her corgies wearing a headscarf. The estate was acquired by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1848, 5 years after their first visit to Scotland when they fell in love with the Scottish countryside. They bulit a new building on the estate (the castle today) and the old building was later demolished. Prince Albert influenced the design which was Scots Baronial.

Unlike the Glamis Castle, Balmoral did not have a wow factor for me. The castle itself is beautiful, but quite small. I think, what frustrated me was the fact that only the ballroom was open for the public, which is understandable considering the Queen still uses the castle from August until autumn. Yet I believe, the tour of the grounds could have been constructed in a more interactive way rather than just having an audio-tour where you have to hold a phone like thing to your ear all time. This made taking photographs difficult carrying round this extra equipment. I have seen the English doing a great job in visualising or making an excellent creative and interactive exhibition and it would be great if Balmoral could come up with something similar. Anyway, the estate has everything that you would find on an estate: vegetable garden, conservatory, flower garden, garden cottage, deer larder, park, riverside, pet cemetery. Without a doubt my frustration was compensated by the quirky details of the castle.

Balmoral is said to have one ghost, the ghost of Queen Victoria’s servant and friend, John Brown. He is said to walk down the corridors always wearing his kilt. Queen Elizabeth II said, she saw the ghost of John Brown at Balmoral and could feel his presence.

Dunrobin Castle

The Dunrobin Castle is beautiful and could easily fit into a fairytale with its pepper pot turrets. When I first saw it it reminded me of the Disney Castle and I bet, you do the same. The castle has belonged to the Earls of Sutherland for centuries. The Castle was re-built in Scots Baronial style after 1850. With its 189 rooms, the Dunrobin castle is the biggest castle in Northern Scotland – how they did not get lost in it, I have no idea…. The view from the rooms overlooking the North Sea is fascinating both in sunshine and I guess in a storm as well. I have visited many English castles and stately homes and what I found interesting walking through the rooms at Dunrobin is that they did not seem to be overly wealthy. I am sure the Earls of Sutherland were very wealthy, yet somehow it appeared in a very different way than you would normally find in England.

Dunrobin Castle too has its own ghost. The Earl of Sutherland locked up a young woman of a rival clan in the upper floor and he wanted to marry her. The woman wanted to escape through the window by tying sheets together but unfortunately, she fell off and died. Her crying is said to be heard coming from the seamstress room.

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Scotland has some amazing castles which during our visit we were very lucky to visit in fantastic weather. Matching the beautiful Castles with the most amazing scenery touring around Scotland has ensured that we shall return. If a countries beauty and assets inspires you, Scotland is a must.

Well, I am not married and I do live in Maidenhead, but not in the early 20th century. What does this expression mean? Let me tell you.

The Eastern tip of Berkshire is an interesting mix: you have the elegant and affluent Windsor, Eton and Ascot and the less affluent is Slough in the middle. Although Maidenhead is mentioned together with Windsor (Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead), it is not getting too much attention and is a sort of indifferent town. Unfortunately, this is partially down to the demolitions in the 60s when Maidenhead lost many of its character houses and was left with modern buildings.

Maidenhead at first glance…

I must admit, I was not impressed with Maidenhead when I first came here and found little or no beauty in it. I found the town was grey and depressing with no character, shops close at 5pm and even in the shopping mall you would not find any large shops, as these are mainly located in the nearby towns. As time went by, I realised I started to like the town. Of course you could say, with time we all start to like things and it is true, however there was something else in my case. Have you ever been in a situation where you realised that you only needed to scratch the surface a tiny little bit to find it is not too bad beneath? It is like when you buy a piece of painted furniture, you polished it and find beautiful wood beneath. Maidenhead was similar. (OK, not an antique, expensive, Chippendale chair, but a reasonable one.) The one who seeks, finds they say. Well, I too found interesting things in Maidenhead and I am not even able to sum them up in one post! Therefore, let me only show you around that part of the town where I live: the Riverside.

In the 19th century

Maidenhead was a market town and made its wealth from the tolls coaches had to pay on their way to Bath and Bristol or London. Although the railway appeared in 1838 in Maidenhead destroying the town’s income, it brought a new business in the form of the mid and high classes who happily left London behind and spent the weekend in Maidenhead. The town became a popular place for outings and boat trips along the river Thames, especially after Ascot Sunday. Such an event was painted by Edward John Gregory in 1897. The impressionist artist spent 10 years finishing his painting and he also put himself in the picture: he is the man sitting in a boat on the right hand side looking over his shoulders. Apparently, the dress of the lady sitting in the front with a dog was fashionable in the 1880s and the attire of the rest of the crowd is from the 1890s which supports the theory it took Gregory 10 years to finish the painting. The picture captures a busy Sunday afternoon (which is its title) and shows us how busy, popular, Maidenhead once was. The picture is in the Merseyside Maritime Museum in Liverpool.

“I am off to Maidenhead…”

Undoubtedly, the most beautiful and affluent part of Maidenhead is the Riverside. Perhaps because there are still some big houses with character to be found, there are huge trees along the river and Boulter’s Lock, the weir, small islands and the curvy Thames which is only 1.5m deep (told by a local fisherman) at this part, make it charming.

Apparently the most beautiful houses were built by the officers of the “royal guards”, for their mistresses, as the ladies were not allowed to stay for the night at the Guards Club, which was on the other side of the river, in Buckinghamshire. This was also the reason for the number of hotels built in the Riverside (the most famous were: the Skindles – which became notorious for adulterous assignations, Thames Hotel, Ray Mead, Riviera Hotel) and the Gaiety Girls were lodged here as well. (Gaiety Girls were singing and dancing in Edwardian music hall and comedies playhouses and often rich gentlemen and aristocrats were standing at the stage door waiting for a Gaiety Girl. Therefore, a part of the Riverside is called Gaiety Row. I do not think after this the expressions „Are you married… or do you live in Maidenhead” and „I am off to Maidenhead” which often were followed by winking of an eye need explanation. 🙂

To the North of the beautiful Georgian Maidenhead Bridge, built from Portland stone is the Bridge Park, which could seem to be an ordinary and boring park, but it is not, in fact it has treasures! The rustic fountain reminds me of street fountains in Paris, but there is something else in this park. Here once stood the Hungaria River Club. My my, it turns out that the place I live has a Hungarian relation. No idea why it was called “Hungaria” or if there are any other Hungarian relations, but I will find it out! I found a video about it, dated 1933 – have a look!

Today Maidenhead is not famous for entertaining and it might not be a bold statement to say it is not really famous for anything. However, it can not be said there is nothing interesting in Maidenhead. There is, you just have to seek for it. If somebody wants a break from the usual sightseeing tour and comes to Maidenhead for a relaxing day, I am sure walking on the Riverside would be a perfect thing to do. Maidenhead is becoming more popular on the property market as it is close to London and has direct railway link to the city. The council too realised town development is needed and the area around the Library is already beautifully renovated and the town centre will be finished by 2019.

~

Maidenhead Riverside is a very beautiful place to wander along slowly, to admire the beautiful houses, feed the ducks, geese and swans, be intrigued by the pleasure boats and their inhabitants passing through Boulter’s Lock. If you let your mind wander back to the days of Horse and Carriage the ambiance of the riverside is still there to be felt and enjoyed.

Alright, but what is it?

When I first heard the word Crufts something like 15 years ago, I had no idea what it was and I associated it with Krafts, the chocolate brand, or the word “crafts”. I asked one of my friends the other day what he associated Crufts with and the result was similar: 1) Karfts Jacobs, the chocolate brand, 2) the German word “Kraft” meaning power and 3) the German word “Kraftwerk” meaning power station or the German electric band. Because I had a dog, the meaning of Crufts turned up fairly quickly in my case: Crufts is not only the UK’s but the World’s biggest dog show, which has been broadcasted by the BBC (in recent years by Channel 4) since 1950.

The situation of pets

Although pets became popular already in the 16th century – think about the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, which appear on Van Dyck’s painting “The three eldest children of Charles I” from 1635 – animals were treated very poorly until the beginning of the 19th century, when the first animal protection acts and prosecutions regarding animal cruelty appeared in Britain, finally the Royal Society for the Protection of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) was founded in 1824. The Victorians were the first ones who really loved, cared for and protected their animals, however they were often criticised for breeding and experimenting. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were big animal lovers: they kept dogs, cats, ponies, parrots and donkeys in the court. No wonder keeping pets became fashionable quickly.

How did it all begin?

The dog show was named after Charles Cruft, who worked for a Canadian entrepreneur and produced dog biscuits in London. In order to understand the requirements better, Cruft visited dog shows, but in 1886 he was fed up with visiting other’s shows, so in the end he established his own show. The first dog shows organized by Cruft were, the First Great Terrier Shows, but soon all breeds could attend when he organized the first Cruft’s Greatest Dog Show. Interestingly, Queen Victoria signed up her two Pomeranian’s and her Collie in 1891, which soon became a fashionable habit among European royals. During the world wars there were no dog shows for obvious reasons and in 1954 it was cancelled because of a strike by electricians.

The 100th show was not held in London anymore, as the show had grown and required a bigger venue. Therefore, it moved to the NEC in Birmingham. To put it into perspective how big Crufts is: it is spread out over 25 hectares, 20-25.000 dogs attend and 160.000 visitors visit the 4 day event and apparently 350kg of dog hair is cleaned up after the show. 🙂 What I really find fair and appealing is that the organizers started Scruffts in 2000 which is the dog show for cross breeds. But Crufts, is not only about pedigree dogs shows, there are agility shows, flyball championships, dance performances or police dog presentation and in recent years health and animal welfare has become more and more important. Last but not least, you could ask whether Cruft loved dogs. Well, we do not know. Some say he had a St Bernard, others say he did not have dogs at all and in his second wife, Emma Cruft mentions a cat, as pets in her memories. 🙂

The English is a dog-loving nation

Being a Hungarian, I am very proud of having 9 Hungarian dog breeds. Nine may not sound to many, but considering there are countries with less, or none breeds, nine is a fair number. It is commonly known the English are a dog lover nation. Indeed, they are. I looked it up how many dog breeds originate in the UK and Ireland and the result is amazing:

• England: 52
• Scotland: 18
• Wales: 11
• Ireland: 10

If I consider Great-Britain, it means 81 dog breeds. To put it into perspective, both the Germans and French have 46 dog breeds. And let me be biased for a while: during the 127 years of Crufts, the Best In Show was won 4 times by Irish Setters (my beautiful dog was an Irish Setter) and in 2010 a Hungarian Vizsla won the Best In Show title.

And how is Crufts in reality?

I can tell you, as this dream came true last year when we visited the show on the day of the Gundogs. Although the show is in March, it is advisable to book tickets in advance, otherwise it might be difficult to obtain. The NEC is really big. When I say big, I do mean BIG. It took 10 minutes to get to the main entrance and there are some flat escalators like at airports you have to walk on. The show was located in 5 halls and I must admit, I struggled to find my way around. Although it has been a little while since I have been to a dog show in Hungary, Budapest, but as far as I can remember, the halls in Budapest can accommodate several dog classes whilst at Crufts there was a hall where you would only find retrievers… The booklet of Gundogs contained 434 pages. It is indeed a massive show. Later on I saw it on TV there was a judge who judged Labradors for 10 hours on that day (I would die, no matter how much I love dogs…)! By the way, Labradors have the highest registration numbers. What is important is that the show was clean, well organized and visitors kept the rules, meaning not touching the dogs if the owner/handler is not there. Because we arrived early we could walk around every hall and have a good look at the beauties, but by noon the crowd was unbearable, so we left.

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I think, it is worth while going to see Crufts once in a lifetime, because it is a great experience. Especially as it is well organized, clean, both in the exhibition area and restaurants and facilities. And if you are lucky enough to get a ticket for the Best in Show or the agility show, you will have a lifetime experience as a Dog lover, I think.

Woof!

This post is a little bit different than the others. The reason being, that I could not resist sharing this week’s observations. However, let me emphasize these observations and conclusions are not representative and I only wanted to represent this week through a Hungarian perspective.

I think, the English feel the same about snow, just like us: it is great to have it at Christmas, but other than that rather not! We know the English love talking about the weather, especially about rain. The snow is different. The snow is a sensation.

Although the climate has changed a lot since my childhood and winters are milder with less snow (not this year though), a Hungarian, Central European, German, French or Scandinavian person would certainly not panic if the weather forecast said snow is to be expected. We are all used to change to winter tyres if the temperature is constantly below 7C, we may as well buy snow chains, we put on big coats, scarves, gloves, hats and put the heating on at home. Building caretakers prepare their snow shovels, salt and sand, road maintenance companies start the engines of winter service vehicles.

The English do it in a different way!

I have been watching the English for days and sharpening my ears. If I remember well, the weather forecast mentioned snow and cold weather to be expected on Sunday for the first time this year. I said, I believe it if I see it because during my almost 2.5 years I have been in the UK snow was forecasted a few times, but it never snowed except on Sunday 10th December 2017, when my Partner woke me up at 8 in the morning and suggested me looking out of the window. I was literally jumping of pure excitement and immediately we got in to the car and went on a snow-watching tour, to make some photos of this rare, but beautiful phenomenon in this country. All in all, I was not worried about the snow and was rather skeptical, so I did not really take any notice of the prospect of having big snow in Berkshire.

Tuesday

My English colleagues were watching the weather all day in the office and I tell you, a meteorologist could not have done a better job. They were waiting for the big snow to reach us and were all excited when the first news appeared on TV saying Kent was covered in snow already.

I’ve git it! I’ve seen it!

“I’ve got it! I’ve seen it”, said one of my managers, suddenly and announced proudly the fact he has seen the first snowflake and it started to snow within a few minutes. As the past few days were really cold, there was a good chance the snow could settle and indeed it did on the top of the cars. Two colleagues of mine were standing in front of the window and were shaking their heads and thinking whether they should go home or not. It was difficult to hold back my laugh. Although the traffic can be a nightmare in this country without snow, or extreme weather conditions, I would not think about leaving the office because of few snowflakes. They stayed in the end as it was snowing for a couple of minutes then the sun was shining and this changed in every 5 minutes. My manager started to sing a Eurythmics song with a variation of the words:

Here comes the snow again…

Wednesday

By Wednesday Scotland, the North West, Yorkshire, East Anglia and Kent struggled because of the snow. Of course, my manager sent out an email to all of us the day before, saying, not to take any risks, if weather conditions do not allow to get on the roads, stay at home – here we go again with the importance of Health and Safety, the English are so keen on. At the same time, it IS the right approach, not like in Hungary when people get on the roads even if there is sleet because they are worried to lose their jobs. As for the English, I hope it is clear I am saying this with a pinch of salt, as there is no extreme weather to talk about.

Yet.

Do you remember when we hoped lessons would be cancelled and teachers allow us going to the school grounds to play snowball? My English colleagues were all hoping for some similar magic to happen and it made me smile actually, what a sensation snow here means. Alright, alright… I can understand that the Gulf-stream cools this country in the summer and warms it up in the winter. Therefore, I can understand this country is not really prepared for snow and extremely cold weather (however, I would guess in Scotland, Wales and North they are). Cars do not have winter tyres, roads are not cleared from snow, public transportation collapses and schools are closed even in areas with less snow. Therefore, my colleagues found every way and excuse to go home to avoid the big snow. At the same time, something interesting and incredible happened: the snow brought out the child in them. Suddenly they became creative and I was amazed. One of them edited a photo of a snowy motorway by adding an Imperial Walker (AT-AT) from Star Wars to it whilst driving (that’s all about Health & Safety!), another one made a video and a third one broadcast his situation by sending us photos of his car which was covered in 10cm snow making him unable to get on the road. (The snow could have been swept from the car, that is all that would have been needed…) Anyway, this case reminded me, which I have recently read about, the productivity of the UK, namely declining in the last few years… As far as we are concerned, we were sitting in the office waiting for the snow to arrive to Berkshire. But it did not. Suddenly the words of my colleague hit my ears:

Berkshire is too posh for snow. The Queen won’t allow snow in Berkshire.

I had to smile, I was amazed how creative the English became because of the snow. By Wednesday evening many areas struggled because of the snow and Berkshire had an amber warning, therefore the General Manager sent out an email before end of business allowing us to work from home.

Thursday

The big snow arrived to Berkshire as well: 2-3cm – the Queen must have allowed snow in the end… I worked from home as nobody bothered going to the office. My colleagues in the field, however, had a cracking performance and flew like rockets. (I do appreciate there were regions where snow did cause massive disturbance. Here in the South it was not too bad. The point I am trying to make is how the English I work with reacted to snow.)

Although this is my third winter in this country only and I am sure it can be really cold in winter, I often wondered why big brands are pushing people to buy fur coats (albeit false fur) and hats, thick jumpers as they are almost unnecessary (unless you live in the North), however, now it is really handy to have them. The stores probably make extra revenues during these days. I also often wonder how many sleighs/sledges are sold in the UK, considering the average British family can not afford to go skiing on the continent and having snow in Britain once in a blue moon. Now the sleighs/sledges are used, hats, scarves, fur coats are used. However, even in this cold I saw schoolgirls wearing skirts, but no tights and some women were wearing ballerinas without socks … (ouch…!)

On this note…

I looked up the coldest winters of the UK in the history:

• 1739/40 It snowed for 39 days in London. The Great Frost was tough in Ireland where 38% of the population died in the famine. Interestingly it is not known what the reason for this frost was.
  1947. from 22 January until 19th March it snowed every day in some areas. The snow reached 150cm.
• 1962/63 England was covered in snow for 3 months. In Wales farmers could not get to their livestock because of the snow and the majority of the livestock died. The average temperature was -2C, in some places the coldest measured temperature reached -19C.
• The English would not be English if they did not make note of what sporting games were cancelled or postponed but they do. 🙂

~

I think, the snow makes the English creative, it does not matter in what form they chose: whether it is making videos, singing, photo editing or sharing deep thoughts. And of course they help those who get stuck in the extreme weather (Handing out food and drink and looking after their neighbours etc). As for me I like snow and it always cheers me up.

How do you react to snow?
(No, I do not accept swearing.) 🙂

I bet everybody remembers the iconic video “Enjoy The Silence” by the British band Depeche Mode in which Dave Gahan wears costume of a king and rambles across fields and mountains carrying a blue deckchair. Anton Corbijn’s video from 1990 inspired many of us and I can recall a story from my childhood. We were in 1990, right after the borders have just been opened and the socialism failed in Hungary. On the housing estate we lived, there was a guy whose nickname was “Toblerone” and he performed the video on the playground. Toblerone wore a crown from Burger King, used a huge towel as the coronation robe and carried a blue deckchair just like Dave Gahan did in the video. Although he was very creative with what he used for his costume, I believe the outfit that suits a king is a proper golden crown with 8 strawberry leaves and a coronation robe with ermine.

But why are there strawberry leaves on crowns? And why does a coronation robe contain ermine?

I was intrigued so I started to investigate.

It was not easy to find something about the strawberry leaf symbol. Although according to some theories strawberry symbolises sexuality because of its seeds (There is a huge strawberry surrounded by naked people on Hieronymus Bosch painting The garden of earthly delights), in the Middle Ages the fruit was believed to be a cure for depression. The three parted leaves symbolizes the holy trinity, the fruit itself (because of its drop shape) the blood of Jesus, and the five petal flower symbolises the five wounds of Jesus. All in all the strawberry was a symbol of perfection and righteousness, that might be the reason why crowns and churches were decorated with strawberry leaves in the Middle Ages. (The meaning of the strawberry started to decline in the Tudor period because the second wife of Henry VIII, Anne Boylen had a strawberry shaped mole on her neck which was to believed to mean witchcraft. As it happens, strawberries were indeed used by witches, therefore women refrained from eating strawberries during pregnancy.)

Hermine

According to legends, the way to hunt ermine was to lead the animal into a muddy pit. Apparently, the animal will rather surrendered than smear its fur with filth. Some legends explain the ermine dies because of sorrow if it falls into a muddy pit. Therefore, the ermine became associated with phrases like “Death before Defilement”, and “Death rather than Dishonour”. The white fur of the ermine symbolized purity, innocence and nobility – Jesus as such. If you think about it, the colour of the ermine’s fur changes: it is brown in the summer and white in the winter. Which leads you to another symbolism: Christ’s Resurrection.

That is all OK so far, but what are those black spots on the fur?

It has always interested me. Apparently, the tip of the ermine’s tail (winter fur) is black. This is reflected on coronation robes and coat of arms in different shapes. The oldest and most common pattern consist of 3 spots and a comet shape which in fact is the ermine’s tail itself. This pattern was used from the 12th century onwards in heraldry and the most famous example is the coat of arms of Brittany. The same or similar patterns are used in Western France, in the Benelux countries and in England.

So this is the outfit that a king deserves as shown in below two pictures, however, later on the ermine was popular in fashion as well.

The Crown

Having mentioned the crown, it is worth knowing that there are two main crowns of the British sovereign. One of them is the St Edward’s Crown made in 1662. There are no strawberry leaves on this one, but four crosses pattée, and four fleur-de-lis. This crown is only used at coronation. The other one is the Imperial State Crown, worn on celebrations.