Six things that Britain should be proud of, from world-class restaurants and Championship-winning cars to the countryside

It is too easy to dismiss 2025 as a downbeat year of failure: a litany of cricketing embarrassment, the second-worst harvest in recent history, cyber attacks, bin strikes and the cloth-eared political responses to rural protest. Yet good things did happen.

In February, archaeologists working near Luxor, Egypt, became the first British-led team to discover a pharaoh’s tomb (that of Thutmose ll) since the Tutankhamun moment. At the Cheltenham National Hunt Festival in March, David overcame Goliath when Jeremy Scott, a West Country sheep farmer, saddled Golden Ace to win the Champion Hurdle; the all-conquering champion Irish trainer Willie Mullins graciously conceded that it was ‘good for racing’. Another result for the sport was its sparing from potential ruination by the Chancellor’s increased gambling levy.

In June, Norman Foster’s architectural practice was chosen to design a memorial to Elizabeth ll in St James’s Park; it will feature a translucent bridge inspired by her wedding tiara. Earlier, The King and The Princess of Wales made welcome returns to public duties, following illness. Scientific triumphs included the announcement of a revolutionary bionic eye technology at Moorfields Eye Hospital and the forensic investigation applied by senior police seconded to apprehend and sentence the fellers of the Sycamore Gap tree. A rumbustious television version of Dame Jilly Cooper’s novel Rivals made everyone laugh and feel nostalgic for the 1980s; the life-enhancing writer herself, who died this year, makes a cameo appearance.

In October, there was a fifth season of Slow Horses to binge watch, spook Jackson Lamb (Sir Gary Oldman) as acerbic and grubby as ever, with the promise of a sixth in 2026. Arts philanthropy was alive and generous: the Museum of London benefited from £20 million and a collection of Roman artefacts; two donations totalling £300 million — the largest cash gifts to any cultural institution — will enable the National Gallery to expand; the Courtauld Institute received £30 million. In July, it was announced that the Bayeux Tapestry is to go on display at the British Museum.

During a frustrating summer drought for farmers, there were, nonetheless, winners: butterfly spotters; growers of apples, plums, tomatoes and blueberries; makers of English wine; and surfboard sellers. At an overheated Wimbledon, Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool became the first all-British pair to win the men's doubles since 1936 and in Formula 1 (F1), our own Lando Norris took the title (keep reading for more on him). Women’s sport rode high: the Lionesses won the UEFA Women’s Euro, England triumphed in the Women's Rugby World Cup and, in equestrianism, Laura Collett became Britain's 21st European eventing champion.

It turns out that it’s also been a bumper year for metal detectorists; a record haul of 1,446 findings included an earwax scoop.

We must take our triumphs where we can and, through it all, remember to celebrate all of the things that Britain continues to excel at. Here are just six.

Theatre

British theatre has a global reputation for new writing and one that should be actively celebrated. Next year marks the 70^th anniversary of the Royal Court Theatre in London's dedication to living writers and a packed programme will include Guess How Much I Love You by Luke Norris (best known as an actor in Poldark) and The Afronauts by Ryan Calais Cameron who enjoyed a West End hit with Retrograde. For good measure Sir Gary Oldman will be performing in Krapp's Last Tape by Samuel Beckett and Tilda Swinton will be making a rare stage appearance in Manfred Karge's Man to Man.

But new writing has a nationwide appeal. Nottingham Playhouse are reviving James Graham's Punch before it heads to Broadway and Helen Edmundson's sparkling adaptation of Andrea Levy's Small Island. York Theatre Royal will also premiere The Psychic by Andy Nyman and Jeremy Dyson who were joint creators of the spine-chilling Ghost Stories. Meanwhile the Tron in Glasgow has a host of new plays including Dawn King's The Trial, in which a group of young people hold adults to account for the damage they have done to the climate, and D.C.Jackson's My Romantic History described as a complex love story.

This is only a small indication of the wealth of new writing in Britain today: if one wanted proof of its worldwide appeal one has only to look at the response around the globe to the recent death of one of its greatest exponents, Sir Tom Stoppard.

Michael Billington, theatre critic and Country Life columnist

Restaurants and ingredients

What I’ve come to realise after living and working all over the world is that the British countryside is as beautiful as anywhere I’ve ever visited. Many parts of the UK have become destinations in their own right, with people taking the time to explore places like Bath, the Lake District, the Cotswolds and, of course, Somerset.

Increasingly, visitors are drawn not just to restaurants, but to the wider experience — places where they can truly immerse themselves, switch off, and feel connected to an area through its landscape, culture and history, whether that’s walking the countryside, exploring local towns or visiting National Trust properties.

At the same time, there have been incredible developments in British farming and agriculture, with the country becoming far more self-sufficient and confident in its own produce. The ingredients I have access to in Somerset are just as good as what I worked with in France, Switzerland or New York — there’s no need to look any further. This focus on local ecosystems has helped countryside restaurants develop a strong and distinctive identity, allowing them to stand out on the world stage while remaining deeply rooted in place.

Merlin Labron-Johnson, chef and owner of Osip

Cars and motorsport

The engine that pushed Lando Norris and the McLaren MCL39 to a F1 Driver’s and Constructor’s World Championship is about the same size as one you can find in a Volkswagen Polo. That engine, which produces about 850bhp, is a perfect metaphor for the automotive credentials of the UK.

On this tiny island, shivering in the North Atlantic, you will find the headquarters of six of the 10 constructors in F1 — not since 2008 has a team based outside of England delivered a World Championship. We have produced 11 World Champion drivers, more than Germany, Brazil, Argentina, Australia and France combined.

Outside of the track, the ‘Best Cars in the World’ are made by Rolls-Royce in West Sussex, James Bond’s Aston Martins are built in Warwickshire, McLaren’s road-going supercars roll out of a futuristic factory in Woking and few brands are better at combining luxury and performance than Crewe-based Bentley.

The future of the automotive industry is somewhat uncertain. Will we still be producing internal-combustion engines in 2035? Will cars even need drivers in 20 years? There are lots of questions surrounding the industry. What we do know, however, is that Britain will continue to build the best. A small compact unit, producing world-beating power. Domination doesn’t even cut it.

James Fisher, Country Life’s Digital Commissioning Editor

The countryside

‘And once below a time I lordly had the trees and leaves / Trail with daisies and barley / Down the rivers of the windfall light,’ as Dylan Thomas wrote so exquisitely in his poem Fern Hill, perfectly encapsulates the allure of the British countryside for me. Whether sodden by rain, battered by gales or bathed in the soft, ethereal light of an early May morning, our landscape is as beguiling as any the world over.

As a gamekeeper’s daughter, who was raised to not only understand, but also to live by, the rhythm of the seasons and the land — from Devon’s deep combed valleys to the vast expanse of the Vale of Belvoir or the windswept North Norfolk coast, where acres of sugarbeet stretch out to creake-riven marshland that merges into the sea — my heart will always beat faster for it. And I am not the only one. Whether that’s those who, every week since 1897, have been drawn to the pages of Country Life and its desire to celebrate the countryside or the millions who support charities such as The National Trust, English Heritage and the RSPB, there are plenty of us who feel equally passionate about protecting it and the wildlife that thrives here.

Not that it’s all about the way that it looks, of course. What truly makes the British countryside great is all of those who live and work in it. Whether that’s our beleaguered dairy farmers, who could fill 78 million bathtubs with the milk they produce every year or the landowners who maintain almost 500,000 miles of hedgerows in the UK — enough to wrap around the world’s equator more than 18 times. Quite simply, it wouldn’t be what it is without them and the magazine will never flinch from telling their stories and campaigning to ensure that country people’s voices are always heard.

Paula Minchin, Country Life’s Managing & Features Editor

Tolerance

Despite assaults from many quarters, Britain remains a bastion of tolerance. Historically, this is the country that, although keeping a close eye on their activities, still gave a home to many radical political exiles. Italian unification might not have happened had London not offered shelter to Giuseppe Mazzini, but even Karl Marx — silenced in his native Prussia, expelled by France, arrested in Belgium — found a safe haven here.

Yes, there have been blights over the decades (Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988 — the one that forbade ‘promotion of homosexuality’ — looked rather like a 19th-century throwback that should have no place in a modern country), but also many successes: just take the introduction of civil partnership for same-sex couples in 2004, followed by same-sex marriage in 2013 (which, it’s worth remembering, is still not recognised today in some OECD countries). Or simply consider the fact that marches and demonstrations from sides holding opposing views over the same issue will usually both be allowed.

We are also broadly accepting when it comes to the individual sphere: how people look, choose to dress and live. Of course, we could always do better and there are fraught issues that we struggle to tackle, not least the boundary between freedom of speech and racial, religious or other hatred. However, if you compare Britain with many other countries, including several Western democracies, tolerance here has a greater hold than elsewhere. Which is why it is vital to protect it from any attempt to curb it.

Carla Passino, Country Life’s Arts & Antiques Editor

Publishing

If you stop to think about it, it is odd how many British journalists are global celebrities. Jeremy Clarkson, obviously, and Piers Morgan too. Boris Johnson is still a hack at heart and I reckon Anna Wintour is one of the most famous people in the world.

Over in the States, former Sunday Times editor Emma Tucker has taken the reins at the Wall Street Journal with great aplomb, and Will Lewis's tenure at The Washington Post is proving to be rather more controversial.

What this all goes to say is that journalism in this country is still regarded as one of our leading cultural exports. The drunken legacy of Fleet Street may have given way to a more sober (but no less frenzied) panache for breaking stories, for informing and entertaining the reader. Under Roula Khalaf and Janine Gibson's aegis, the Financial Times has matured into the most stylish broadsheet in the English-speaking world. The Spectator has never employed more journalists or enjoyed more paid subscribers. Ian Hislop has edited Private Eye longer than I've been alive, and the magazine has never enjoyed such a high circulation. Further down the scale, my own magazine, The Fence, has just enjoyed another year of growth, and Jonathan Nunn's Vittles has become the most essential food publication in only its fifth year of operation. (Ed. note: Country Life’s own newsstand grew by 5% in 2025.)

Despite the looming spectre of AI and the worrying travel for the Royal Mail under the new ownership, there are many reasons to be optimistic in 2026 for those labouring in the content mines — and for the readers who pay their wages.

Charlie Baker, editor of The Fence