Choosing the right venue is pretty much the first and most important decision you’ll make when planning a party, according to the event experts at #tagvenue. Here are their tips and tricks for hosting a fab British-themed celebration.
The Royal Family, the British seaside, Britpop, Doctor Who – you’re spoilt for choice when it comes to hosting a British-inspired bash. We’ve rounded up the top 7 themes for your Best of British get-together, so keep calm and start planning!
1.English pub party
A raucous English pub party is a guaranteed good time for all.
Tips and tricks:
- Hire out a traditional English pub, like The Gun or Magpie & Stump
- Decorate with football or cricket memorabilia, or hang British flags and Keep Calm and Carry On posters on the walls
- Serve local brews and grown-up versions of comfort food classics, like Scotch eggs, mini pork pies with piccalilli, scampi with tartare sauce, and individual summer puddings
- For a bit of fun, ask guests to come as their favourite British celebrity or have them wear British Royal Family masks
- Downton Abbey dinner party
From polished silverware to crystal glasses, there’s nothing like the refinement and extravagance of an Edwardian dinner party.
Tips and tricks:
- First impressions count, so host your dinner party in an elegant manor house, stately home or private dining room, and ask your guests to dress for the occasion
- Before the meal, serve sherry or cocktails, and include a wine pairing with each course, including a dessert wine or port for the end of the evening
- Dinners were particularly elaborate during the Edwardian period (with menus of up to 22 courses), so make fantastic feasting a priority
- Choose British classics like watercress soup, beef wellington and berry trifle for your very own Crawley-worthy menu
- ‘London Calling’ party
A party inspired by all things English is the perfect way to surprise your favourite anglophile.
Tips and tricks:
- Book a traditional English pub, British-themed space or restaurant with a classic British menu
- Go with a red, white and blue colour theme
- Decorate with miniature versions of London’s most iconic symbols (think double-decker buses, red telephone booths and the Queen’s Guards)
- Serve shortbreads, cupcakes with British flag toppers, and a Union Jack pavlova decorated with strawberries and blueberries
- Send guests home with goody bags filled with red, white and blue lollies or traditional English chocolate bars like Galaxy Ripples, Whispas, Yorkies and Toffee Crisps
- Jane Austen bridal shower
For the ultimate girlie day, host a Regency-style tea party or picnic, complete with vintage china, Pride and Prejudice trivia and bookmarks with classic Jane Austen quotes for favours.
Tips and tricks:
- Host your bridal shower in a traditional Victorian tearoom, private library or pretty garden
- Choose a romantic colour scheme and decorate with Jane Austen books and quotes
- Add a small bunch of flowers to napkin rings or the backs of chairs for a touch of high society
- Serve tea sandwiches, smoked salmon, mini quiches, scones and petit fours, as well as a selection of tea with heart-shaped sugar cubes
- For something a little different, have ladies wear their best hats or play card games such as Speculation, which was popular during Jane Austen’s era
- Peter Rabbit birthday party
Follow Prince George’s lead and celebrate a first birthday in style with a Peter Rabbit-themed party.
Tips and tricks:
- Host your party in a sweet garden setting
- Bring the theme to life with light blue and white tableware, as well as Peter Rabbit books and toys, fresh vegetables, upturned flower pots, watering cans and mini wheelbarrows
- For your bunny-themed bash, serve a vol-au-vents in the shape of rabbits, bunny tails (white marshmallows), cake pops shaped like lettuce heads, carrots and radishes, as well as a Mr McGregor’s garden-themed cake
- Organise fun activities like Pin the Tail on the Bunny, make-your-own rabbit ears and a Peter Rabbit story reading
- Send little guests home with mini Beatrix Potter books or treat-filled watering cans
- Mad Hatter’s afternoon tea
An Alice in Wonderland-inspired tea party will inject some literary fun into your very important date.
Tips and tricks:
- Hire a wonderfully whimsical tearoom or terrace and choose a menu with a touch of magic
- Decorate with mismatched vintage teacups and teapots, playing cards, oversized keys, white rabbits, toadstools, crazy arrow signs and lawn flamingoes
- Serve dainty cakes, Cheshire Cat cookies, Queen of Hearts jam tarts, as well as classic 19th-century treats like Bakewell tarts or a Victoria sponge
- Offer a selection of tea, or do cocktails out of a teapot
- If you’re planning a garden tea party, make sure there’s space for a game of croquet or giant chess
- Royal baby shower
A royal-themed baby shower is the perfect way to celebrate the arrival of your little prince or princess.
Tips and tricks:
- Host your baby shower in an elegant tearoom or sitting room
- Tie everything together with a great colour scheme (think red, white and blue, or royal purple and gold)
- Serve crown-shaped sugar cookies, chocolate coins and a monogrammed cake, as well as a selection of tea and champagne (make sure there’s an alcohol-free option for the mummy-to-be)
- For a game that’ll also act as an ice breaker, tape the name of a famous mother to the back of each guest when they arrive (think the Queen Mother, Goldie Hawn, Kris Jenner, etc.), and have guests ask one another questions to figure out ‘who’ they are