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Go On, Give Yer Mum Some Bloody Flowers

by Tom Henderson (Subscribe to Tom Henderson's posts)
Mar 12th 2010 7:00PM

1Comments

Filed under: Weird But True

"I wish me son was not such a bloody git." Is this your mum? A lot of London mothers apparently go without flowers during the country's Mothering Sunday. Credit: Getty Images.


Many a mum in London won't be singing "Sonny Boy" for Britain's annual Mothering Sunday on March 14.

More likely it will be, "You Don't Send Me Flowers Anymore."

Mothering Sunday is Britain's equivalent of Mother's Day -- coming about two months earlier than the celebration in the United States.

Mums in London may not have a lot to celebrate, however. PR Newswire reports lots of British mothers get flowers on Mothering Sunday. Just not in London.

Compared with the majority of towns and villages in Britain, according to PR Newswire's Web site, research finds London mothers are more often snubbed by their little ingrates.

Britain's largest city came in 56th in a national ranking when it came to mothers getting flowers on their special day. The list was compiled by the online florist Serenata Flowers.

"We looked back at our Mother's Day sales figures from previous years and examined which towns and cities were the most -- and least -- likely to receive flowers," explains Peter Ahl, managing director of the Serenata Flowers, to the Web site.

Of course, an online florist coming out with a study the week before Mothering Day that its largest (by far) market doesn't buy enough flowers might be a bit suspect. It would be like FAO Schwarz coming out with a study Dec. 18 that New Yorkers lag behind the rest of the United States when it comes to buying toys for their kids.

And, it turns out, Mothering Sunday is not traditionally associated with flowers. Although it has become synonymous with Mother's Day, it is not exactly the same thing.

It's a religious celebration of the fourth Sunday of Lent. For centuries, it marked the day when people returned to their home or "mother" church. This was often the occasion for family reunions, especially for daughters who had left home to work as domestic servants.

It is also known as Simnel Sunday because of the tradition of baking simnel cakes for family reunions. Mothers have been historically honored with baked goods rather than flowers.

Nonetheless, a lot of flowers are bought for mothers these days. According to the survey, the luckiest mums live in York, followed by Norwich, Colchester and Cambridge.

"It surprised us that London is near the bottom of the table, especially as the standard of living and salaries are traditionally higher in the capital," Ahl tells PR Newswire.

Related: Still Single? Not As Skinny As You'd Like? Blame Your Mom

Tags: flowers, london, mothering sunday, Mothering Sunday Mothers Day London Flowers Mums, MotheringSunday, mothers day, MothersDay

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