Having watched the recent SkyFall movie in the cinema, I have realised just how proud I am to be British.

I couldn't have been happier that I was watching the famous stage actors who I had supported and loved for the longest periods of time finally recognised on the big screen (Rory Kinnear and Ben Whishaw), alongside English gems such as Daniel Craig, Judi Dench and Ralph Fiennes. Furthermore, I couldn't stop myself grinning when there was an endless amount of London background shots streamed together, and I also was delighted by the fact that I was finding it pleasantly reassuring that in almost every English scene there was rain; they captured it beautifully.

I thought the film was brilliant. James Bond, like Doctor Who, Sherlock Holmes or Harry Potter, is clearly an English icon (despite the fact one of my Americans friends said to me "But why does it come out first in England, James Bond is American?"), and I found myself loving it even more for this fact. It made me very smug.

Another reason why I found myself feeling very proud to be British this week was because I found myself defending the Royal family when one American friend asked what exactly was the point of them. I rose to the task of outlining their importance and cocking my head to the side and tactfully asking what was the point of the President (yeah that didn't go down too well especially as election week has very much JUST been and gone and also, I know there is quite a lot of difference between the royal family and the President).

Another reason why I am proud to be British? Because we celebrate Veterans day properly. We buy poppies at the stores and wear them with pride. We give that money to the Veterans so that we can thank them and if you are anything like me, you loose your poppy so many times that you end up giving almost a months allowance so as to be able to wear your poppy proudly until November 11th. However, here, there is no such thing. Veterans day is a day off. A day to lie in bed and do nothing. It is a bank holiday. I find this quite shocking because England was thoroughly involved in the World War before America and lost many men having fought from the beginning. However, America is country with the day off. Don't get me wrong, I think we should celebrate our soldiers, but I also think that we shouldn't forget the meaning of the holiday (which many Americans seem to do have done) and  spend time remembering those who had served us so loyally.

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