By Nigarish

Editors:

Ashley captains our ship with a steady hand! Editing arti-

cles, coordinating our contributors and writing her own

beautiful creative contributions—thank you, Ashley!

Serene is the force behind many of the illustrations in the mag-

azine. Her eye for detail and beautiful designs keep The Windmill

looking great!

Nigarish is the talent behind the front AND back covers on this

issue. We’re sure you’ll agree that the magazine looks beauti-

ful!

Interested in getting involved? Speak to one of our friendly

editors, or see Miss Kemp in Room 93!

Meet the team...

Esme is back with more brilliant recipes! This issue, she’s planned you

some snacks for a great British picnic.

Emily has been indulging in a Shakespearean classic—Romeo and Juli-

et! Read her thoughts on the Baz Luhrmann film in her review.

Barira has researched the origins of our patron saint, in honour of St

George’s day earlier this half term. Did you know: The ultimate Briton nev-

er actually spent any time here! Check out her piece for more.

Charlotte is our film guru extraordinaire! This month she’s em-

braced our Britannia theme and counted down her Top 5 British mov-

ies. Perfect for a cosy half term film night!

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Tamseela has contributed a lovely poem on the theme of family,

in honour of this month’s International Family Day. Check out her

piece in Poetry Corner!

Wajiha has investigated the oldest British institution: the Royal Fam-

ily! Love them or loathe them?

Asal shares her views on Beauty Pageants in response to Year 7’s

ongoing study of Beauty in the Media.

Emily has kindly allowed us to publish her excellent English piece on

Beauty in the Media—are celebrities good role models? Check out

her article to find out!

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Shamaila has enthusiastically joined the team and shared what

Britain means to her.

In this Issue...

What Britain Means to Me—Our team share their thoughts

on what makes Britain great.

St George’s Day—Barira delves into the history of our pa-

tron saint.

Top 5 British Films– Charlotte counts us down.

The Royal Debate– Wajiha investigates attitudes to the

Royal Family.

Recipes: The Great British Picnic– Esme has some ideas for

your half term feasts.

The Man on the Floor– Creative writing by editor Ashley.

Poetry Corner– Tamseela writes on the subject of Interna-

tional Day of Families.

Beauty Pageants: Should the be banned? - Asal shares her

views.

Are Celebrities Role Models? - Emily’s fabulous Beauty in

the Media assessment.

What Britain Means to Us...

This month’s issue is a celebration of all things British!

From the Royals and Shakespeare, to Harry Potter and a cream tea, we’ve been musing over what

makes Britain great. What does being British mean to us? We’ve even roped in a few teachers, too!

Enjoy the issue,

Team Windmill

“Britain means togetherness, being mindful and respectful of each others belief systems for the greater good and always being posi-tive no matter what… Also the Premier League the best league in the world!” - Mr K

"To me, being British means lots and lots of tea! I have tea a

breakfast, tea when I get home from school, and tea before

bed! Anything goes with tea, but it definitely tastes best

with rich tea biscuits!" - Charlotte

“I think that Britain is a beautiful place to live in. It

is not just beautiful; it is also very safe. I haven’t

lived in Britain for very long, but I feel like this is

where I’m happiest. Also, thinking about all those

terrorism attacks outside Britain, I think that I am

very glad to be here.”—Shamalia

“Britain means having tea, fish and chips on Friday and

an successful future.” -Wajiha

“To me, Britain is the perfect mixture of tradition and new

ideas. Also: Harry Potter.” - Miss Kemp

What Britain means to me:

Rainy days

Queues

and good literature!

- Emily H

Britain to me is everything that can possibly be associated with weather. Cold

grey days where a warm drink is the best thing ever invented. Starry nights

where the sky looks as though it were a Van Gogh painting. Warmer, happier

weather, sitting in a park with a books and food

and friends.

- Serene

“To me, Britain means a combination of the best cultures, peoples

and attitude from around he world. Britain has been formed over

hundreds of years, and hopefully its best years are yet to come with

a new generation!” - Mr Flood

Being part of Britain is amazing. I like how everyone can be themselves

without fear of being discriminated against. I’ve been here 4 years now

and I love everything to do about the UK. I love how multi-racial it is and

how bad England is in football. However, nothing can taste better than

the delicious fish and chips.

—Nigarish

Britain, to me, means diversity: of people, places and cake. Also: Shakespeare! - Miss Gatt

“Britain, to me, means tradition and History. Giving so much in terms

of culture and civilisation to the world. For such a little island, we

have a lot to be proud of and really should celebrate this.” - Mr Knicz

“Britain for me means a sense of pride, cups of tea, Pimms in a green park and watching Chelsea FC every weekend rain or… Rain.” - Mr Austen

Britain, to me, is a multicultural country that welcomes eve-

ryone with open arms and keeps everyone safe. Britain is a

great country! - Barira

“Parks, open space, green and pleasant land that is England. Earl Grey

tea in a china cup watching Wimbledon on the telly. Blustery gales

and puddle jumping children, flying kites and home for tea with toast

and marmite.” - Mrs Marillat

I’ve lived in Britain for the majority of my life and I couldn’t

imagine living anywhere else. I love how we are all one big

community and even though we as the British public do have

our differences (Football) we can all come together as a na-

tion and watch Britain’s Got Talent.

—Ashley

St George’s Day

Barira explains what it’s all about...

As many of you may know that Saint George’s Day was recently celebrated on 23rd April 2017.

Fervent English fans mark the day up and down the country with parades, dancing and waving

flags from buildings and pubs. Here is everything you need to know about England’s dragon-

slaying saint.

What is it?

St George’s Day is England’s national day and is

celebrated on April 23rd each and every year.

This day remembers St George and his coura-

geous acts. A Christian martyr, St George repre-

sents traditional English chivalry and bravery,

even though he wasn't English, and probably

never set foot in this green and pleasant land.

Even so, we made him a symbol of our nation.

His emblem is a red cross on a white back-

ground, which is England’s flag and forms part

of the Union Flag. Every child that lives in Eng-

land have at least once in their life, heard the

legend of St George slaying a dragon to save a

princess.

Who was St George?

St George was apparently born in Cappadocia –

the area is now known as Turkey—around the

year 280. As a soldier, he quickly rose through

the ranks of the Roman army. The Emperor

started to persecute Christians causing St

George to protest . He was later imprisoned,

tortured, dragged through the streets and be-

headed in Palestine on April 23rd. He stayed

loyal to his faith until the very end - and due to

the stories the Emperor's wife was so inspired

by his bravery that she too became a Christian,

and was also executed.

How is St George’s Day celebrated?

In 1415, St George’s Day was declared a nation-

al feast day and holiday in England. It grew to

have become a massive holiday (like Christmas)

until the 18th century when celebrations

waned after England united Scotland in 1707.

Surprisingly, people still go to work on this day

despite in the recent years there has been a

push to make the day a national holiday in Eng-

land. Ireland gets a bank holiday for St Patrick's

Day and Scotland gets a day off for St Andrew's

Day. William Shakespeare is thought to have

been born and died on the same date as St

George, so you can celebrate with games and

acting workshops at the Globe Theatre as well

as traditional hog roasts and medieval-themed

frolicking. Many historic people would wear a

rose on their chests. Roses became the symbol

of the patron saint because a beautiful bloom is

How long has St George been our patron

saint?

In 1222 the Council of Oxford declared April

23rd to be St George’s Day. However, it wasn’t

until 1348 that St George became the Patron

Saint of England.

St George's cross emblem was adopted by Rich-

ard the Lion Heart and brought to England in

the 12th century. The king's soldiers wore it on

their uniforms during battle to avoid confusion.

What about the dragon? The legend apparently was originated from the town of Silene in Libya which was apparently guarded by a ferocious dragon. In order to get water, residents had to offer a sacrifice each day, chosen by the townsfolk. One day, they agreed to offer their princess up for sacrifice. On the day she was due to be killed, a knight (Saint George) from the Crusades came riding by on his white horse, dismounted, drew his sword and killed the dragon, saving her life. As a mark of their gratitude to St George, the people of Silene apparently converted to Chris-tianity. The fairy-tale of St George and the drag-on has captivated millions of children over the years.

Top 10 Facts about St George’s Day

1 St George wasn't English, in fact he never set foot on the English soil in his life.

2 Bulgarians celebrate St George’s Day on May 6 when it is traditional to roast a whole lamb.

3 A fifth-century myth tells of him recovering three times after being killed, including once when he was chopped into many pieces and buried.

4 St. George was adopted in England because the story in The Golden Legend, about his slay-ing of a dragon, was similar to an Anglo-Saxon legend.

5 Despite the fact that St George has been England's patron saint since the 14th century, a re-cent survey showed that only one in five people know that St George's Day falls on April 23.

6 The same survey showed that a quarter of English people do not even know who their patron saint is.

7 St George died on the same date as Shakespeare. St George died on 23rd April while Shake-speare followed on that day in 1616.

8 There are 365 Orthodox churches in Georgia named after St George, according to the num-ber of days in a year.

9 St. George is also the Patron Saint of Aragon, Catalonia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Greece, Lithua-nia, Palestine, Portugal, and Russia.

10 The country Georgia is named after St. George.

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Top 5 British Films

This month, film-guru Charlotte counts down the ultimate British films.

Snuggle up with a cup of tea and enjoy!

5. The Queen

At number five, we have "The Queen", a British

fictional drama film exploring the royal family's

reaction to the death of Princess Diana in 1997.

Staring Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth, this

brilliant movie won the Academy Award for

"Best Actress" and is definitely worth a watch!

4. The Theory of Everything

In at number 4 on our list is the heart-

wrenching tale based on the love life of Ste-

phen Hawking: a successful theoretical physicist

with Motor Neuron disease which weakens

muscles and makes it very hard to swallow,

breathe and speak. It is a Biographical Romantic

Drama film which explores Hawking's relation-

ship with his ex-wife, Jane Wilde Hawking. The

movie received 10 "British Academy Film

Awards" nominations and won "Outstanding

British Film", "Best leading actor" and "Best

Adapted Screenplay". This emotional film really

tugs at your heartstrings, and so has earnt it's

place on my top 5.

3. The King's Speech

At number 3 we have "The King's Speech", a

British historical Drama film about King George

VI who had a stammer, making it hard for him

to speak publicly. It won seven "British Acade-

my Film Awards", and four "Academy Awards".

This film is interesting and gratifying, and so

earns it's third place on my top 5!

2. Paddington

In second place, it's Britain's favorite bear! "Paddington" is a

cheerful family comedy about a lost bear looking for a new

home. When he finally finds a family willing to take him in at Pad-

dington Station, Paddington bear gets into a whole lot of trouble!

It was nominated for the "BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screen-

play" in 2014. This film is extremely funny and great for all the

family - what's not to love about Pad-

dington bear?

1. Harry Potter

Stealing the top spot in my top 5 simply has to be

the Harry Potter film series based on the novels by

J. K. Rowling. Consisting of eight fantasy films, the

Harry Potter series has entranced millions of people

worldwide with the mystical magic of Harry's adven-

tures. It is no wonder that Harry Potter is the sec-

ond highest earning film series ever (just behind the

Marvel Cinematic Universe Films), earning billions

of pounds in box offices across the world; that's

even more than James Bond, Indiana Jones, and

even Star Wars! I think it's safe to say that no British

Movies can top the world's favorite wizard!

A Royal Debate

Beloved figureheads or outdated nonsense? Wajiha investigates...

Many people don’t support the monarchy for

many different reasons. It is stated in the news

the ‘ A survey by pollsters ICM found that only

43% of those questioned thought Britain would

be worse off without the royals’. In addition, an-

alysts believe more people care less about the

Royal Family.

Support for the royals was at its highest in the

late 1980s (at more than 70%) but began to dip

at the time of Princess Diana’s death in August

1997.

When the Princess died in a car accident in Par-

is, some people thought the Queen was inade-

quate in her grief and argued that the family

were not mourning Diana with enough respect.

Many people also believe that the royals spend

millions of dollars on themselves, instead of

spending it on the poor,

homeless children and

spreading the wealth.

Some also believe that

One commenter said: “What do they do indeed? Other than sit on her

throne, what does Queen Elizabeth do? How's their homeless situation

over there? How about education? Is that good? Other than Americans

being obsessed with this family, what exactly do they have? If the sons of

Princess Diana had any marbles, they'd stay away from the limelight, get

out and make something of themselves other than waiting to be crowned

the next figurehead.”

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Other critics have commented: “We don't really need them. It has always been my opinion that the Royal Family does not have any real purpose in our modern soci-ety due to the fact that we are no longer a monarchy and are now a democracy and as such there is no reason for there to be any form of monarchy.”

However, some people aren’t against the Royal Family and instead admire them. One supporter has stated: “Support our country be-cause all of the royal family are giv-ing us pleasure of living in homes with warmth and shops just round the corner for us and if we didn't have this our world would be a com-pletely different place today but if we didn't have them we would not have this much money in our world.”

The statistics pictured here reflect an overall belief that the Royals are here to stay… Whether we like them or not.

Synopsis:

When the children of the two feuding families meet

and fall in love, they have to hide it from their fellow

Montagues and Capulets, who will not allow them to

be together. The star crossed lovers fight, but their

families are shrouded in sorrow at the end…

Our Thoughts:

We both loved this movie, for different reasons.

Esme liked the way it was modernized (The charac-

ters use guns instead of swords, but the brand of the

gun is called ‘Sword’, for example), and I liked the ro-

mance and the cast of the movie. It has been given a

12A rating, but we both thought that it could be seen

from the age of 11 and up. We think that you should

give it a try this May!

William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet

Emily reviews this cult adaptation of Shakespeare’s star crossed lov-

ers… What could be more British than the Bard himself ?

Esme and I saw the modern spin on the classic Shakespeare play Romeo and

Juliet together a few weeks ago, and we loved it!

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This issue, baking goddess Esme brings you her favourite British snacks… Per-

fect for a half term picnic!

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The building filled rapidly as Big Ben struck 9am, on that particular day. As usual-

ly happens in a company that size, each person had developed a certain comfort

zone – a block of space within those four walls that became theirs after the sec-

ond or third sitting.

It was bring your child to work day, Mr Finlux had brought his daughter to his

job on Baker Street. On that morning a stranger stood at the entrance of this

colossal sized building. As the employees walked up to the entrance, they no-

ticed him rummaging through the trash can nearby. “Oh no! I don’t believe it,”

whispered a lady to her co-worker. “That’s all we need – a homeless man ruin-

ing our business.”

Mr Finlux’s daughter tugged on her dad’s sleeve. “But Daddy…”

Mr Finlux was busy sizing up the bearded stranger, whose baggy, outdated

trousers and faded flannel shirt had dusted too many park benches.

“Don’t stare at him, honey.” He whispered and hurried her inside.

The chorus of tapping keyboards filled the high-ceiling room. Interns rushed

around getting coffee and tea.

Sunlight suddenly flooded the room. The double doors swung open and the

homeless man, sloppy and stooped, headed towards the front desk.

“Oh no, it’s him!” somebody muttered.

“What does he think he’s doing, anyway?” snapped a big-headed intern.

The stranger set his bagful of dumpster treasures on the chair which had been

covered in an expensive soft teal fabric just three months ago. The typing

stopped. And before anyone had a chance to react, he strolled up to the table

and stood up on it, where he faced a wide-eyed room of business people.

The messy stranger spoke haltingly at first, in a low, clear voice. Unbuttoning

and removing his top layer of clothing, he described how we shouldn’t judge

people by their looks...

The Man on the Floor British Values of Care and Kindness

by Ashley

“It’s not very nice to think certain things about people just because of what’s on the outside”

“I am not wearing fashionable clothes or sporting a modern hairstyle. As you saw me for the first

time I am sure you all began to make assumptions about me.”

Stepping out of the baggy old trousers to reveal the second layer of clothing, the stranger went

on to describe a society where people make of judgements based on first appearances.

“We look at someone and decide that they are good or bad, boring or exciting, rich or poor, a bul-

ly or easily bullied and so on just on the basis of how they look.”

Men and women squirmed as reality hit them like an electrical current. The stranger tugged at his knotted grey beard, and removed it.

“Don’t judge a book by its cover!”

The stranger was now in a perfectly white shirt with a black tie. Trousers ironed and cleaned.

The boss of the company had disguised himself as homeless man to test his employees.

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A mother,

A father,

A brother,

A sister

Erased her past,

To make my future.

To make it last,

Well she nurtured.

Worked day and night,

To bring me up.

Worked with all his might,

In the smooth and the rough.

Made me laugh,

When I thought I laughed my last.

My other half,

Away my worries did he waft.

And as for my sister,

My cutie little thing.

I love her, I love her,

My tiny everything.

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Poetry Corner

Tamseela commemorates International Day of Families...

Most definitely. When it comes to puny girls

either prancing on an enormous stage or

who think that they’re ugly and not worth it,

that’s when it has become enough. Tight-

fisted parents need to stop pressuring their

poor sons and daughters to be perfect and

win a beauty pageant just to please them-

selves. It’s sickening to watch.

Beauty pageants follow the families who’ll

do whatever it takes to win coveted beauty

pageant titles, crowns, sashes and the lucra-

tive cash prizes that come with them.

For nearly 50 years, children have become

subjected to the world of beauty pageants

where they have been forced to behave as

young adults rather than the five year olds

they actually are. Young children are spend-

ing numerous hours a day practising speech-

es and model walks for upcoming events, ra-

ther than focusing on schoolwork and play-

ing with friends.

Parents dress their children in inappropriate

clothing, which sometimes reveals a lot of

skin due to cuts on the sides and at the back.

It’s disgusting. This is teaching the child that

dressing that way is acceptable, but it’s not.

Their mind will stay with

the fact that being pretty

is the best thing in life. If

they don’t win, they’ll

think that they’re not

good or pretty enough,

which will lower their self

-esteem. They even think

that our outside should

be more beautiful be-

cause it’s “more im-

portant” than the inside.

Over 50% of eight year old girls have said

that “facial beauty is the most important

thing in life.” This captures the issue thor-

oughly. Now, young children think that the

only way to be happy is to be pretty and

“win.” On Toddlers & Tiaras, five year old

girls are on camera with an incredible

amount of make up caked on, a fake tan,

hair extensions and more. It’s disgraceful!

Beauty Pageants

Should they be banned?

by Asal

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Even with our abundance of sensational role models,

we still look up to celebrities: For example Taylor

Swift and Kendall Jenner. Due to the inarguable evi-

dence, experts discovered that one in four teenagers

admitted that they’re more influenced by celebrities

than people they know.

Evidentially, I believe celebrities should take this

responsibility more seriously and use their power for

the good—by helping the world. Celebrities like Tay-

lor Swift should use their magical musical voices to

inform the world about 3rd world problems. For ex-

ample, they work to ensure that girls and boys

around the world receive an education, because

many have to work for their families, who are strug-

gling financially. In addition, some girls aren’t al-

lowed to go to school because their society does not

believe in educating females. An equally crucial point

that celebrities should stress is the struggle that

many families face: difficulty paying for food and

supplies, or living in dreadful conditions—for exam-

ple, living in one room or in tents, with no appliances

or running water. Celebrities like Taylor Swift should

sing about these careworn people and not about her

personal life—that isn’t what we people to learn

about, is it?

Did you know that

53% of young girls are

uncomfortable with

or dislike their bodies,

and that that number

increases to 78%

when they reach 17?

That percentage is likely to skyrocket with the influ-

ence of celebrities like Kendall Jenner. There is

compelling evidence to suggest that young girls will

try very hard to appear like their favourite celebri-

ties and role models, and sometimes even starve

themselves to look beautiful—just like their role

models.

As well as this, many celebrities such as Kendall Jen-

ner have been quoted as saying that they have no

regrets about reveals a lot of their bodies on the

runway… But what are these picture-perfect bodies

doing to those who follow her? It is indisputable

that this could cause a lot of problems. She may not

appreciate how sensitive young girls may feel when

talking about these situations, and it is undoubtedly

true that she has a very large following of potential-

ly vulnerable people.

Without a doubt, children of the 21st century

should be inspired instead by people like Michelle

Obama, Emmeline Pankhurst, Malala, and Emma

Watson, who have tried to make the world a be-

tween place for everyone. They put 100% effort in-

to helping everyone and everything. I urge you to

consider that celebrities that focus on body image

and their private life aren’t good role models for

teens and children in the 21st century.

“Children of the 21st century should

instead be inspired by people like

Michelle Obama, Emmeline Pankhurst

and Malala…”

Are Celebrities Good Role Models?

Emily shares her fantastic English work...

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By Nigarish