National Cream Tea Day

The cream tea story

Crumbly scones, sticky fruit jam, lashings of clotted cream and perfectly brewed tea. It’s a heavenly combination, but where did it all begin?

Time for tea

Britain’s love affair with tea began when Portuguese Catherine de Braganza married Charles II in 1662, bringing the custom of drinking tea at court with her and making tea popular worldwide. In 1706, Thomas Twining opened London’s first tearoom. Before long, a flurry of tearooms appeared across the city, a far sight more inviting for a lady than the male-oriented coffee houses.

Afternoon tea

Tiring of the long wait between lunch and dinner, we have the Duchess of Bedford to thank for the invention of afternoon tea. What started out as simply ordering tea and treats to her room when peckish soon evolved into a gowns-and-all social affair, inviting friends to join her in her country house.   By the middle of…