UK Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt predicts that around 2 billion people will be watching the April 29th nuptials of Prince William and Kate Middleton.  That’s an astounding figure, considering that the entire population of the planet is 6.9 billion people.  It’s also a number that greatly eclipses the 750 million people who tuned in [...]

She’s beautiful, and therefore to be wooed;   She is a woman, therefore to be won.       - William Shakespeare,         King Henry the Sixth, Part I          (Suffolk at V, iii)  What better way to woo your valentine and win her heart than with a sumptuous, indulgent afternoon tea?  It’s sure to warm your love’s spirit during a chilly February [...]

The inevitable outpouring of advice typically starts as soon as I mention that I’m planning another visit to the UK.  Well-meaning friends and colleagues begin to make suggestions, offer unsolicited advice, and share their opinions.  Some have simply travelled vicariously through British publications or television, others quickly breezed through the island-nation decades ago and assumed [...]