A British Thanksgiving?

A reason to be thankful?

Thanksgiving stems from the celebration of a successful harvest. American friends and families spend time together, parades are held, corny “thank you’s” are made. Yet to us Brits, Thanksgiving’s only significance is the cheesy episodes of FRIENDS we endure once a year. According to the seasonal American sitcoms, everyone forms an orderly queue and professes to be grateful for something or other. Usually, everyone seems to be thankful for each other’s presence at their unfeasibly large feast of turkey and trimmings.

Which is a nice idea, if you think about it. I’d quite like to be given a day off once a year to be told by everyone I know that they are glad that I exist, and to tell them that the feeling is indeed mutual, and be fed a mammoth amount of food in return. Yes, I could get used to that. I’d even be a bit happier about the whole cheesy sitcom issue.

The problem is, I’m not sure how we’d treat this holiday on this side of the Atlantic. As the American writer O. Henry once said- “Thanksgiving Day is the one day that is purely American”. And he’s right. Can you imagine your reserved granddad getting teary because uncle Barry turned up? Or telling your third-cousin twice-removed’s new wife that you’re THRILLED she made it? Could you really lie like that?

It’s just not very British. We’re steeped in our own tradition of arguing over Scrabble and falling asleep in front of Eastenders on Christmas; and for plenty of households, this annual contact with the extended family happens often enough, thank you very much. A British equivalent just wouldn’t work. As much as we all love each other (what was that aunt in law called again?), we’re simply not a nation of loud exclamations of love. It’s not a negative thing. In fact I’m sure it’s part of our charm, being subtle and stuttering when we get all touchy-feely. It’s basically secured Hugh Grant’s career, anyway. So yes. This Thanksgiving I’m grateful for the fact that we don’t have a Thanksgiving in Britain. Nothing against it, but I really bloody love Hugh Grant.

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