What general knowledge facts would you expect someone who is British should know?

[jennymanara]

What facts of general knowledge do you think all adults who are British should know?

The Holocaust and what it is
Basic facts about the first and second world war
Basic facts about each of the main religions in the world
Basic grasp of geography worldwide and in Britain

The words to the National Anthem.

Including the verse being shitty about the Scots? And be able to explain why that is the case, why a lot of people won't stand or sing, and what they would rather sing!

Who key members of the royal family are.
What accent goes with which part of the country
What company does what. Think b&q is orange and sells hardware
Most monarchs or at least a handful of the key ones and what they did

The monasteries comment is

I don't agree that it's important to know the words to the national anthem either.

I don't think I know many people who know the words of the National Anthem other than the chorus and a few more random words of it?

Some people should know a lot more general knowledge than they do.I can only conclude that some people don't much care. And these days,everything is mostly available to see and learn off google,and most people have phones and laptops etc.

How to pronounce 'pronunciation', which is, apparently, one of the most mispronounced words in Britain :-D

On a more serious note, what it takes for a foreign-born national to become a British citizen. Maybe, if it were more widely known, more understanding would arise (and more pride taken in actually acquiring that knowledge in British-born). I can but dream.

'How to pronounce 'pronunciation' ?? Pro-nun-see-ay-shun?

To know you must wave or flash lights in the way of a thanks, when I pull over on my bike to let you pass.

I bet there would be a bloody football question

Which one is Ant and which is Dec.

That the tea bag goes in the mug first and is removed after brewing, before milk is added!

That the tea bag goes in the mug first and is removed after brewing, before milk is added!

And that milk goes in the mug first with the coffee before the hot water is added!

Which motorway routes you would take between the major cities

What, even if you live in an area that doesn't have motorways?

I have driven on motorways precisely twice in my 22 years of driving. That would be a waste of what little brain power is left after storing the lyrics of most songs from the 1980's...

GiggleMcDimples the British might be the only people left in the world drinking instant coffee...

From my experiences the obsession with exact change on buses.

That Britain is more than merely England and variances can happen in life.

Eg every year here I see someone trying to call another out as a liar for kids being on their summer holiday when in Scotland it’s a good week or 2 before England

Where abouts Skegness is! A few years ago,I was going on holiday there,and one person (who was British btw) asked where it was. Another person who I mentioned it to,who was also British,remarked 'Oh that's on the south coast isn't it?'.

I tried the life in the UK test linked above.

I got the question about when did Christianity arrive in the UK wrong. Also, Willian the Conquerer didn’t build the Tower of London. He might have ordered stonemasons to do it, but he wasn’t done there digging the moat himself. That’s a stupid question.

I'm also surprised at the number of people who have zero knowledge about trees,plants and wild birds that are native to Britain. A woman I knew a few years ago didn't know the difference between a blackbird and a starling. In her opinion,they 'looked exactly the same'.

I won’t recognise ‘God save the Queen’ as my national anthem. You can’t just erase the racist part and say ‘it’s ok now!’ Naw it isnae!! Also recognising there are 4 countries and not using ‘England’ to mean the UK.

ALongHardWinter in Germany that's taught at primary school (German native flora and fauna obviously, not British) as a long unit which also includes what hedgerow plants can be used for (what can be eaten, what can be made into tea and what the alleged health benefits of said tea is, also what not to touch because it's poison or might make you itchy...)

What I'm asked as a British citizen living abroad (I've taken my German citizenship test) is often about religion (people believe there are no Catholics/ no Catholic churches in the entire United Kingdom because they are aware of Henry VIII but in isolatio, and somewhat aware that Ireland is Catholic and believe that all Catholics left NI long ago).

I get asked to clarify the difference between England/ Britain / the UK.

I get asked whether there are any mountains in England.

I am expected to know everything about the monarchy.

I get asked about the school system a lot.

I get asked wtf Brexit... My answer to that is nobody knows...

I get asked random questions about how many airports London has and which is "the best"

I get asked "who was that insane British singer, you must know, name some insane British singers, I'll know when I hear the name..." for some reason this happens fairly frequently and they often mean Janis Joplin, who was American... But I am generally expected to have Britpop knowledge and know whether bands are British even though I'm not especially into music beyond the artists I personally like...

Those are the main things non British people seem to expect me, as a British person, to know - but not necessarily the things it's useful to know as a British person living in Britain.

A lot of young people have knowledge about music and popular culture references that I don't have.

I don't know if their knowledge is necessarily of less value than e.g. knowing about the history of monasteries.

I won’t recognise ‘God save the Queen’ as my national anthem.

Neither does the law

If you know absolutely nothing about the dissolution of the monasteries, you can not understand basic things like why our official religion is the Church of England and not the Catholic Church. And people who know nothing about this - why do they think we have all these ruined monasteries in our countryside?