Learn about New Year's Day in the United Kingdom
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| Hi everyone, I'm Gina. |
| I'm sure that everyone watching this video knows about New Year's Day and celebrates it, but do you know how we celebrate in Great Britain? |
| In this lesson, you're going to learn about the British New Year which we celebrate on the 1st of January. |
| Do you know how many people gather in London to watch the New Year's fireworks? |
| We’ll show you the answer at the end of this video. |
| New Year's Eve is a big party night in Britain. People all over the country celebrate with parties and fireworks to ring in the new year. In Scotland especially it is a big event known as Hogmany. When Big Ben chimes midnight to signal the start of the new year, we join hands and sing the traditional song Auld Lang Syne, a song about friends and forgiveness. |
| A new year is seen as a new beginning, where we can say goodbye to the year that has passed and welcome the year that is coming. It is tradtional to choose a New Year's Resolution and this is a goal or a change that we want to make to ourselves or our lives. Popular New Year's Resolutions are to loose the extra pounds put on over Christmas, or to quit smoking. |
| In Britain, and especially Scotland, there is an old superstition and custom that the first person to enter a house in the New Year will bring luck with them. If the First Footer, as they are called, has dark hair it is considered extremely lucky. |
| As New Year's Eve is a party night it means that New Year's Day is a very slow paced day. Public transport and store hours are limited and most people choose to stay home, relax and nurse their headaches! |
| And now I'll give you the answer to the earlier quiz. |
| Do you know how many people gather in London to watch the New Year fireworks? |
| About 250,000 people gather every year along the River Thames to watch the fireworks. The fireworks are set off from boats along the river and also around the London Eye. |
| How was this lesson? Did you learn something interesting? |
| Do you remember the name of the song we sing to welcome the New Year? |
| Leave us a comment at EnglishClass101.com. And we'll see you in the next lesson! |
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