British Holidays Pancake Day and Shrove Tuesday
Hi everyone, I’m Gina.
Pancake Day, or Shrove Tuesday to give it
its proper name, is the Tuesday seven weeks
before Easter.
It is the last day before a period of abstinence,
Lent, starts.
In this lesson, you’re going to learn about
why it is commonly known as Pancake Day and
why it is a special day in Britain.
Do you know where the name Shrove Tuesday
comes from and what it means?
We’ll show you the answer at the end of
this video.
The traditional meaning of Shrove Tuesday
comes from it being the day before Lent begins.
It was the last chance for people to eat whatever
they chose before they began to fast and was
an opportunity for them to eat whatever was
left in their pantry or kitchen.
We eat pancakes on Shrove Tuesday because
they are easy to make and can be filled with
any topping.
British pancakes are thin batters, only a
few millimetres thick, that are cooked in
a frying pan.
Brave chefs will flip their pancakes to ensure
they’re cooked both sides but others will
use a spatula.
Popular toppings include plain lemon and sugar,
and sweeter things such as chocolate and fruit.
As well as cooking pancakes, there are many
games and activities that are held in Britain.
The most popular are pancake races.
In these races, competitors run a short track,
maybe only 100 metres or so, while flipping
a pancake in their frying pan.
If you drop the pancake you have to stop and
pick it up!
The winner is whoever completes the race first
with their pancake still intact.
There is a famous race held in Olney.
Participants must be housewives and wear an
apron.
The winner is the first to complete a 375
metre course, give their pancake to the church
bell ringer and receive a kiss.
And now I’ll give you the answer to the earlier
quiz.
Do you know where the name Shrove Tuesday
comes from and what it means?
Shrove comes from the word “shrive” and
this means to confess.
In the olden days, Shrove Tuesday would be
a day of confession for Christians before
Lent began.
How was this lesson?
Did you learn something interesting?
Do you eat pancakes in your country?
If so, are they the same as British pancakes?
Leave us a comment at EnglishClass101.com.
And we’ll see you in the next lesson!