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Throughout the summer of 1951 the whole of Britain became a living exhibition. The official programme of events presented an overarching view of the country and its achievements. Local events organised by local people actively demonstrated what it was to be British.

a mirror up to nature

My favourite Pavilion was the Lion and the Unicorn... which set out to be an unashamed celebration of 'Englishness' as it was then perceived to be. There was a touch of humour here, of a gentle Punch like variety and more than a few hints of Popular Folk Art, coupled with an inclination toward Victoriana (contibutor Ian Mackenzie-Kerr) Why not contribute your memories?

The downstream section of the South Bank Exhibition was devoted to an examination of the British people. The pavilions divided into two distinct types: the People of Britain Pavilion and the Lion and Unicorn Pavilion looked at who the British were; ten other Pavilions, including Seaside, Sport and Health, explored what the British do. As with the upstream section of the exhibition, the visitor was encouraged to follow a specific route: to really understand what the British did, you had to understand who they were.

The People of Britain Pavilion rooted British character in Britain's history, or more specifically its pre-Norman history. The Lion and the Unicorn Pavilion defined a British identity through its 'realism and strength... independence and imagination'. In combination the Pavilions implied that through a history of invasion and settlement the British learnt to be inventive, resourceful, freedom-loving, Christian, and accommodating.

But though the ancient dead are buried, it is the very blood they brought here that runs in us - yet, whether they came as conquerors or men of peace, all of them suffered a sea change on the way. They were absorbed into the life that was here before them, and themselves became islanders of a land that moulded the thoughts, the feelings, the behaviour of them all into a whole which is our British way of life and our tradition. ('South Bank Exhibition' guide book)

seeds of uncertainty

If the Festival attempted to define a British identity through looking at the past, it was a selective and often romanticised past that was mined. Up and down the country villages, towns and cities searched their local histories for heroic events to be represented in lavish pageants. At Hampton Court the 'Three Towns Pageant' told the history of the court and surrounding towns. In Cardiff a whole history of Wales was re-enacted in the 'Pageant Play of Wales'. Similarly many souvenirs reflected this romanticised version of the past. A commemorative handkerchief could be bought decorated with motifs of events in British history, each quietly asserting who the British were - Boudica was the fighter for 'national' liberty, the signing of the Magna Carta reinforced the British respect for personal liberty, and so on.

One occasion I remember clearly was the 'Dickens Dinner'. An out of London restaurateur had opened a restaurant on the exhibition site... He gave an invitation only dinner serving food in the style of the Dickens era. He invited people connected with the Festival and members of the press. Such a meal was a real treat and the tickets were really sought after. Wives were not included. How Duncan got a ticket for me I do not know! It was an eight course meal. I think I got as far as the fourth course. Few people got further. But in those days of rationing it was a real treat. (contributor Prunella Guthrie) Why not contribute your memories?

The spectacular displays of Britain's past could not satisfactorily give an answer to who the British were in the present - the confidence they expressed not necessarily reflecting the country's contemporary position. For Prunella Guthrie part of the thrill of a Victorian banquet was its excess - something peculiar and exceptional in a Britain still recovering from the impact of the war.

If, on leaving this Pavilion, the visitor from overseas concludes that he is still not much wiser about the British national character, it might console him to know that the British people are themselves still very much in the dark ('South Bank Exhibition' guide book)