Has Britain really gone off the boil?

Regular readers, family and friends all know how important my cup of tea is. I can't start my day properly without a panad. A day that begins without a brew does not bode well at all. Speak to me before I have had a brew and you can expect nothing more than a cursory response, my eyelids will be mostly still glued shut, I just let enough light in to allow me to locate the kettle. Not only does my day begin with a cuppa, it ends with one too. Curled up in bed with an abundance of pillows behind me as my brain tries to remember everything I need to do the next day.

So when I saw an advert online offering the chance to sample two different types of Twining's Tea - I jumped at the chance. I love a freebie and I like trying new things so I filled out the online form, chose my teabags and a few days later they arrived.

I wasn't struck on the peppermint tea so we will gloss over that but the other had me at the first sip. Twining's Blossom Earl Grey. Wow this was lovely, my taste buds were dancing! This tea was limited edition so I was happy to find it in the Co-op.  I admit that these teabags are expensive compared to my usual bulk bought brand but since I only drink the odd cup as a treat it didn't matter. The tea as I said was limited edition and after the Co-op ran out I couldn't find it again. On their boxes along with the Royal Warrant, (yes get me I've gone all posh!) was a little section suggesting customers contact them to 'talk about tea' .......offering me a chance to talk, red rag to a bull! So I decided to email their customer services to ask where I could buy more.

 I know what it is like to deal with customer requests (a long story which I will save for another day) so I decided to jazz up my request a bit, OK I obviously have too much time on my hands but I thought it might just entertain someone. So I wrote a poem/rhyme/ditty all about my search for their teabags, emailed it to them and awaited a response. Here it is, it was just a bit of fun but see what you think.


I answered an offer to try something new today choosing to sample your Blossom Earl Grey.
My sample arrived and duly I took my first nervous and tentative sup.
Your tea was delicious, a delight, a revelation, no nicer drink since the dawn of creation!

I am a proud Welsh girl so I am sure you can see just how important tea is to me.
A cup when I wake is an essential, I crawl out of bed and on goes the kettle.
With five children to care for, a husband, a home, not far from a teacup do I ever roam.

Tea helps my sleep deprived brain to function,
It is so much more than a beverage to accompany luncheon.
When I fall into bed at the end of the day, I love to relax with my Blossom Earl Grey.

Still I’ve encountered a problem and help me; I hope you will do, because,
I can’t find more of your delicate brew.
Limited Edition the package did say, so where can I find more Blossom Earl Grey?

I’ve bought every box in my local Co-Op, to my dismay, no more do they stock!
Believe me I’ve tried, I’ve looked and I’ve looked.
Help me Twining’s I beg of you Today, I need to locate more Blossom Earl Grey.


Do you know what they thought? Absolutely nothing! I received a standard, bland reply thanking me for my email with an accompanying list of retailers phone numbers. They did mention that due to customer demand they had decided to add this tea to their range which was good news but that was it. Not even a pat on the back for my effort. I didn't want a freebie, I had already enjoyed the sample but from the company who invites us to contact them because in their words they love to talk about tea, would it have hurt them to have laughed? Do their customer services staff really take themselves that seriously? Mary Portas keeps encouraging us to buy British. When British companies have lost their sense of humour have we simply gone off the boil?