"Tea, Please!"

Since Romano-Britons figure prominently in some works by Poul Anderson, it may be relevant to make a few more remarks about British cultural references to tea. The British are sometimes commended for their humor. In a comedy film covering the Roman conquest of Britain (see image), a Roman military man says (quoting from memory), "I don't understand these Britons. One second, they're fighting like demons; the next, someone shouts, 'Tea up!' and they all disappear."

My paternal grandmother once said, 'Have you ever been in somebody's house in the afternoon and you've wanted them to offer you a cup of tea and they haven't? Ooh, it's awful!" - but would have been horrified at the suggestion that she was a drug addict. I had to get that out of my system. I do not share this national fascination with that beverage and have moved closer to Bond on this if on nothing else. But I really must get back on track with the Nantucketers crossing the Atlantic -