18 Things You Never Knew About Britain

If you think Chicken Tikka Masala was first created in India, then you'll be wrong. Can the Queen step foot in the City of London without permission? And what surname did all 22 players share at a cricket match in Yorkshire?

18 things you never knew about Britain

We're a lovely bunch, but us Brits can be a little strange at times. What other countryman would fly over a portion of fish and chips over 4000 miles away to satisfy his craving? Who passed a bill in Parliament to ban Christmas? And what's the unluckiest house number in Britain? Thirteen, you say? Think again...

Here are some of the answers to these questions, along with some weird, wonderful and truly British facts about this green and pleasant land.

The phrase 'sleep tight' may have derived from the 16th and 17th centuries, when bed matresses, stuffed with down or straw, were supported in their frames by tight ropes underneath to make a lattice weave. Tightening on the ropes every few days would the bed sag less, ensuring a better night's sleep. Alternatively, the phrase 'sleep tight' may have meant 'sleep securely', taking its origin from vessels that were made water-tight to stop water flooding in.

There are over 30,000 men in Britain with the name John Smith, making it the most common name in use. It can also be used as a generic name to refer to an everyday person, in the same vein as 'Joe Bloggs'. Because the name John Smith is so common, there is no way of finding out how many exist, however, the name makes it to the top of the most commonly used on Facebook, with 75,980 (and counting).

The word 'Blighty', that refers to British soil, was first used by soldiers that were stationed in India during the latter days of the British Raj. Blighty is a corruption of the Hindustani word vilayati, pronounced 'bilati' in many Indian dialects, which translates as 'foreign province'. The word blighty is now commonly used by British ex-pats to refer to home.

Although HM the Queen is the sovereign of the United Kingdom, she is not allowed into the City of London without first getting the permission from the Lord Mayor of London. The City of London, also known as 'the Square Mile' is not actually part of England or the UK, but a privately-owned corporatation not under the power of either Government or the Queen. Indeed, the Queen must meet the Mayor at the perimeter 'Temple Bar' to request permission to enter.

British ex-pat Aiden Mooney, who moved to Texas in the USA, ordered a portion of fish and chips to be delivered to his mansion by plane from his home town in Durham, a total of 4,500 miles. The former detective contacted his old fish and chip shop Bimbis in Durham by email, specifically requesting the finest plate of cod and chips be flown to his Texan home.

At a cricket match in Bradford, Yorkshire, all 22 players shared the same surname - Patel! You've all heard about Lillee who caught Willey, bowled Dilley in the gulley, but imagine umpiring this match! The game took place between Yorkshire LPS and Amarmilan in Bradford. The Patels went on to win!

The most unlucky house number in Britain is 243, research from Confused.com has shown. People with the house number 243 are more likely to make a claim on their house insurance than any other number, with 45% having made a claim since January 2007. House number 201 came in at second place, followed by 240. Curiously, house number 13, expected to be at the top of the list, came in way down the list at 182nd.

The shortest ever war was in 1896 between Zanzibar and The United Kingdom. The Anglo-Zanzibar conflict lasted approximately 40 minutes - three cruisers, two gunships, 150 marines and sailors gathered in preparation, but following a small bombardment Zanzibar announced an almost immediate ceasefire.

Britain's favourite dish, Chicken Tikka Masala does not originate from India, but in Glasgow, Lanarkshire. Legend has it that an Indian chef created it in his Glasgow restaurant, after combining yoghurt, cream and spices into a sauce. A motion in the House of Commons was also proposed to give Glasgow the European Union Protected Designation of Origin for the popular dish!

Back in 1920 the number of working coal-miners living in Wales reached 271,000. With their families, this total number of coalminers represented almost a third of the entire Welsh population. By 1936 over a half of this number were laid off, with South Wales losing 241 mines.

Renowned for his wit as well as his incredible political and diplomatic skills, Winston Churchill was as sharp as a razor. In a heated debate in the House of Commons, MP Nancy Astor told him 'If I were married to you, I'd put poison in your coffee'. Churchill retorted, 'Nancy, if you were my wife, I'd drink it!'.

The Great Fire of London was responsible for the devastation of 13,200 houses, 87 parish churches, St. Paul's cathedral, and the homes of 70,000 of the 80,000 inhabitants. Yet the verified death toll was only only six.

Back in the 1950's chicken was in such a short supply that Brits ate less than 1kg in a whole year. Fast forward to the current day, and we're eating 25 times that much, at 2kg a month.

Europe's longest escalator can be found at Angel Tube Station in London. With 318 steps, a length of 60 meters, and a vertical rise of 27 meters, it has been used as a ski-slope by one of London's maddest inhabitants:

Scotland has a total of around 790 islands, of which just 130 are inhabited. Most of the 790 islands are found in the three main groups of islands: Shetland, Orkney, and the Hebrides. Just 62 of these islands are larger than three square miles in size.

Sailors commonly wore earrings in order to pay for a proper burial in the event that they should drown whilst at sea. If their bodies were washed ashore, they hoped that the earrings would serve as a payment for a full and proper burial.

The sometimes brutal Anglo-Saxons thought that Friday was such an unlucky day that they would ritually slaughter babies that were born on Friday.

In the 1640s Parliament banned christmas, remaining in force until the Restoration in 1660, when Oliver Cromwell, the Puritan leader, lost power.