Great Britain is an island lying off the north-western coastline of Europe. The English Channel separates it from the mainland in the south The Strait of Dover, 18 miles wide, divides it from France. Great Britain is separated from Belgium and Holland by the North Sea and from Ireland by the Irish Sea The official name of Great Britain is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Great Britain is the name of the major island of the United Kingdom including England, Scotland and Wales. The United Kingdom or the UK comprises Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The UK is often referred as Great Britain or the British Isles. It is an island state consisting of more than 5000 large and small islands, the most important being the Isle of Man and the Isle of Wight. England is a part of Great Britain: the Cheviot Hills and the river Tweed divide it from Scotland No part of Great Britain lies more than one hundred miles from the coast. The coastline is broken and has a few bays and excellent natural harbours. Internationally famous ports include London, Bristol, Southampton, Portsmouth, Dover and others Geographically the island is subdivided into two main regions: Lowland Britain and Highland Britain. The highest mountain Ben Nevis (1343) is in Scotland; the highest peak in Wales is Snowdon (1085). The greater part of the land is flat. There are a lot of short rivers in Great Britain; the Severn is the longest one, while the Thames is the deepest and the most important one. Due to the influence of the Gulf Stream, a warm ocean current washing Britain's western shore, the UK enjoys warmer winters and cooler summers than other countries at the same latitude. There is much rain and fog in England. October is usually the wettest month, July is the hottest and January is the coldest one. All over the world Britain is known for its fogs. For many centuries, during the cold time of the year the English people have been using coal in their fireplaces in private houses, though smoke from factories contributed a great deal to the trouble too. That kind of smoke and fog English people used to call smogUnusually thick smog in 1962 caused the death of some 4000 people During the 1960s and 1970s, laws were passed under which using open coal fires in homes in the city area was forbidden. The laws stopped much of the pollution from factories too. The flora of the British Isles is varied and the fauna is similar to that of the north-west of Europe. The country is not rich in mineral resources. Over three-quarters of Britain's land are used for farming; farms produce nearly half of the food that Britain needs. The UK is a highly developed industrial country too, known as a producer and exporter of machinery, electronics, ships, aircraft and navigation equipment. The capital of the UK is London, in England. The capital of Wales is Cardiff, the capital of Scotland is Edinburgh and the capital of Northern Ireland is Belfast. 1. Where does Great Britain lie? 2. What separates Great Britain from the mainland? 3. What parts do Great Britain and the United Kingdom include? 4. What are the most important ports? 5 Where is England situated? 6. How can you define the climate of the UK? 7. What was the origin of smog in the UK? 8. What goods are produced in the UK? 9. What is the capital of England (Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the UK)? 10. What mountains in Great Britain do you know?