In this year of celebrations, British luxury brand Mulberry goes beyond the bunting to champion the unsung heroes, craftsmanship traditions, and unique characteristics that make Britain great, and to celebrate in its own way the charms and eccentricities of its motherland.

YOUR
BRILLIANT
BRITAIN

Now over to you:
what makes Britain
brilliant to you?
Send us your nomination and it might be featured
in our gallery, plus you’ll
be entered to win a limited edition Union Jack Bayswater filled with
dozens of British treats.

The Vinyl Factory

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The V&A Museum of Childhood

From a wooden paddle doll dating from 1,300BC, to Mary Quant’s Daisy Doll from 1973, the Museum of Childhood in London’s Bethnal Green boasts the largest collection of dolls in the UK. Over 4,000 dolls, representing men, women, and boys and girls from all around the world and constructed from traditional materials such as wood, cloth, ceramic, wax as well as
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Shauna Richardson

Damien Hirst might pickle sharks and sheep but Shauna Richardson crochets and sculpts her life-size animals - uncanny taxidermy-like creatures. Referring to her work as 'crochetdermy' she combines themes such as objects, collecting, craft and realism, experimenting with accessibility and audiences. For the past two years Shauna has been working on creating one of the largest crochet
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Another Country

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Another Country, set up in 2010 by the founding publisher of Wallpaper magazine Paul de Zwart, designs and makes
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@Mulberry_Editor

The team @contagious have chosen the next winner of #BrilliantBritain: http://t.co/LQvhjyK9 More: http://t.co/LQvhjyK9

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Horton Lodge

It's hard to believe that over two centuries ago, peaceful, pretty as a picture Rudyard Lake was formed purely as an industrial water supply for the ever-expanding West Midlands canal system. Today, sitting here as it does on the edge of the Peak District, it's a place of total tranquillity and this stunning Victorian boathouse, with its own private beach, has prize position. Horton Lodge provides a great contrast with
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Emma Hill

Creative Director, Mulberry

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My brilliant Britain nomination is a concoction of curiosities and traditions. Afternoon tea at Claridge’s hotel, the work of David Hockney, our
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Get Stuffed

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Located on the corner of an unassuming street in the quaint, family-friendly London borough of Islington lays Get Stuffed. Although fiercely shielded from the prying eyes of outsiders by an intricate metal mesh in the window and several warning signs,
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Slow roast lamb recipe by Tom Aikens

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“This is a recipe served at Tom’s Kitchen – a seven hour shoulder of lamb cooked with balsamic vinegar and onions. It’s delicious and easy plus
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@Mulberry_Editor

@xnonnynoox We hope you enjoy it! Well done for such a lovely #BrilliantBritain nomination!

Welsh Language Schools

Sir Hugh Owen, the chief founder of the University College of Wales at Aberystwyth, was a major pioneer of higher education
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Miranda Watkins

Pewter could easily be identified as one of the most iconic British materials. The alloy was introduced to Britain by the Romans around the second century AD and from the 15th century has had its very own comptroller in the form of the Worshipful Company of Pewterers based in the City of London. Originally forged from tin mined in Cornwall, England, pewter was the king of the tabletop both in crockery and cutlery (the
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The Open University

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The Open University was founded in 1965 by the then serving Labour Party government under Prime Minister Harold Wilson. The Open University allows students to study and research from home, while still achieving the
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Central Saint Martins

Famed for nurturing free-thinkers and mavericks,Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design recently abandoned the scattering of old and cramped buildings it once occupied around Tottenham Court Road and Soho, London, and has set up shop in a sleek converted granary building in the once derelict area behind Kings Cross Station. The alumni of this institution have had a
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@Mulberry_Editor

Find out more about the Penguin English Library and celebrate Language and Literature with #BrilliantBritain http://t.co/u3GrbZAh

Snowdon Mountain Railway

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Since 1896, visitors to England and Wales’ tallest mountain, Snowdon, have been taking the 4.7 mile journey in the narrow
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Venison Scotch eggs Recipe by Brett Graham

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Britannicus Stone

Britain, for all its beautiful landscapes, is not often associated with marble. In fact some of the most stunning stone is
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Claridges

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@Mulberry_Editor

Watch a short video by #BrilliantBritain's @PenguinUKBooks to celebrate Penguin English Library http://t.co/KJdE0mCK http://t.co/KJdE0mCK

Lady Mary Charteris

Model

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I think that our trademark buses and taxis are part of what makes Britain great. I can just imagine myself as a tourist, visiting London for the
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Tom Aikens

Chef

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In Britain we have huge a diversity of cuisines and London is a melting pot of talented chefs. Being great in Britain starts with the suppliers
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Kilts

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How long is “a moment”? According to an old English system of time units, it’s one and a half minutes.
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@Mulberry_Editor

Henrietta Thompson meets Lucy Macnab, co-founder of #BrilliantBritain nominee @Mini_Stories and @MonsterSupplies. More: http://t.co/B2KCnnnS

Maggies Caring Centres

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The co-founder of Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres, Charles Jencks, is a firm believer that uplifting buildings really
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English National Opera

Far from being second to Covent Garden (as ROH is often known) ENO is simply very different. If it’s a little less
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Weylux Scales

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Still a family owned company, H Fereday & Sons is the weighing specialist behind the Weylux Queen scales – a design
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A Proper Picnic

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The British summer is a capricious beast. Its arrival is unpredictable (and that’s if we’re diplomatic – incidentally, another national institution), its performance erratic, its duration quite unreliable. Perhaps this is why, when the
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@Mulberry_Editor

The next #BrilliantBritain will be chosen today. Will you win a handbag of British treats? http://t.co/tohuvZHq

Newspaper Club

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The Newspaper Club is a London-based initiative that makes use of printing presses during off-peak hours to allow anyone to print their own newspaper. The brainchild of Russell Davies (a former advertising executive, now blogger) and Ben Terrett (who is
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Emma Elwick Bates

Market Editor, Vogue

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Cricket jumpers (worn them since school), being ‘proper’ (and being not so ‘proper’), fields in Somerset, a cashmere
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Delia Smith

In 1969 Delia was taken on as cookery writer for the Daily Mirror’s new magazine. This led to Delia baking the cake on The Rolling Stones album cover, ‘Let
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Alexandra Shulman

British Vogue Editor-in-chief

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My Brilliant Britain nomination is...Radio Four!
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@Mulberry_Editor

Join us in our new Edinburgh store this evening and celebrate #BrilliantBritain with a glass of Nyetimber wi http://t.co/q200kOjE

Record Labels

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Just like when robots were taking over everyone's jobs in the last century, today there are many industries out there that are being threatened with redundancy thanks to the Internet. Record companies - by a popular vote - may be the first to go. In an
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Canal Life

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Hellovon

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Smithfield

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The name is thought to have derived from a corruption of the Saxon word 'smeth field' - smooth field - accurately alluding to Smithfield as a flat, grassy area just outside the walls of London. But for over 800 years now it has been given over to butchery
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@Mulberry_Editor

#BrilliantBritain needs you! Have you sent us your nomination? We'll be choosing another winner of our Mulbe http://t.co/ayaejG95

Jools Holland

Pianist

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I hope you enjoy this interactive game you can play with your friends and family. All that’s need is a biro or crayons and a very good knowledge
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Forced Rhubarb

It may sound like a euphemism for awkward small talk (another Great British tradition), but forced rhubarb is one of
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In the year of...

1477
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London Underground & the Johnston Typeface

Not just famous for being the first, or the most expansive, and one of the busiest metropolitan mass transit systems in the world, the London Underground is equally as revered for its influence on the world of graphic design and typography. The famous UNDERGROUND roundel is one of the most recognisable pop-culture symbols in the
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@Mulberry_Editor

More #BrilliantBritain Hospitality in our online guide: http://t.co/xqDEXzwp including @ClaridgesHotel

Highgate Cemetery

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Highgate is to London is what Per Lachaise is to Paris. This burial ground of the good and the great is now home to, among
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Sir John Soane's Museum

Reviews of this most idiosyncratic and atmospheric house-museum are invariably raving, though somehow it remains little known to the wider public. According to the Oxford Dictionary of Architecture, Sir John Soane's Museum is "one of the most complex, intricate, and ingenious series of interiors ever conceived". Built between 1792 and 1824 by the architect John
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Lancashire Hotpot by Martyn Nail

Ingredients: 350g neck of lamb 75g black
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Pixie Geldof

Model

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Britain is great because of the people. The sense of humour is completely our own. There is very much a British attitude and I love that.
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@Mulberry_Editor

We're looking forward to the second episode of Inside Claridge's tonight on BBC2, more from inside the #BrilliantBritain @ClaridgesHotel!