Somebody asked for ‘less obvious’ examples of British design classics – 21 super stylish items you might have missed

Running down Britain is a favourite hobby of the people who only want to get their hands on it to run it down even further – yes, we’re looking at you, Farage – when actually we have plenty of things to be proud of, both big and small.

The good folk of the AskUK subreddit have been discussing this after According_Sundae_917 posed this question:

‘Red buses and phone boxes are iconic – what are the less obvious but still ‘classically British’ designs seen in public life or at home?

‘The whole lollipop lady ensemble of the jacket, hat and sign feels particularly British. Those old Neighbourhood Watch illustrated signs you still see have a British feel to them. That 90s Smarties mug everyone seemed to have. The Guide Dogs Labrador charity box outside newsagents.

‘What else?

It turns out we are surrounded by stylish, high-quality stuff, if only we care to look, as the replies showed…

1.

‘I know a lot of people would consider it dull, but our road signage is quite distinctive and well-designed, and a lot of the typeface used and colour coding, design language, etc. hasn’t changed for a long time and is kind of part of the fabric of British life.’
–BobBobBobBobBobDave

2.

‘BS 1363 13 amp plug of course!’
–IndigoQuantum

3.

‘Pretty much any primary school hall looks very similar, especially with the benches for year six set up.

Also, the apparatus.’
–pajamakitten

4.

‘Henry hoovers.’
–Scared-One9295

5.

‘F1 teams are so high-tech they make all their own tools in-house. Even a basic spanner will have been CNC milled on machines they also made in-house, to perfectly fit the right bolts, that they were also made in-house.

Yet between sessions they’ll still give the cockpit a once-over with a battered old Henry.’
–RecentTwo544

6.

‘Jumbo Sports Direct mug.’
–alphahydra

7.

‘The Tube map is absolutely iconic design. Ever other metro/subway is either based on the tube map or completely unintelligible.’
–deformedfishface

8.

‘The classic black cab. Equally famous as the NY yellow cab… maybe.’
–TheGorgieGeorgie7492

9.

‘One for my homies over 40 here but… The NatWest Pigs.’
–ResplendentBear

10.

‘Police helmets.’
–MuggleWumpLiberation

11.

‘Black square bins with gold detailing. As quintessentially British as the red pillar box.’
–DuckMagic

12.

‘The ‘Brown Betty’ style classic teapot.’
–DameKumquat

13.

‘Meal deals.’
–Specific_Pomelo_8281