5 March 2025

This England: Lost in translation

This column – which, though named after a line in Shakespeare’s “Richard II”, refers to the whole of Britain – has run in the New Statesman since 1934.

By New Statesman

Illustration by Marta Signori

A road sign mistakenly identifying a primary school as somewhere with an “angry or annoyed look” is to be replaced. The is the latest in a series of spelling mistakes or translation errors in Wales. A no-entry sign at an Aldi’s car park in Llandudno, was translated in the context of book-keeping, not traffic, while a sign at a Tesco in Swansea told drivers to exit left in Welsh (allanfa) and right in English. A road sign in Swansea once issued correct instructions to lorry drivers in English, but read in Welsh: “I am not in the office at the moment. Send any work to be translated.”
BBC Wales (Steve Morley)

National pub crawl

A pub-loving couple are attempting to raise a glass in every boozer in the UK. Dale and Holly Harvey started the mammoth task almost three years ago – and two thirds of the way through February had visited 5,101 pubs. There are around 45,800 pubs in the UK and the couple intend to enjoy a half-pint or spirit and mixer in each. The most pubs they’ve visited in one day is 42 – spending just five minutes in each on a spree last Christmas.
Metro (Richard Fearn)

Long shot

A man who tried to rob a pub using a pink bubble gun has been jailed. Timothy Cooper, 42, hid the toy in a tote bag then pointed it at a member of staff and demanded cash. But the employee fought back and Cooper fled the Castle Hotel in Devizes, leaving behind the weapon-shaped toy.
Daily Mirror (Amanda Welles)