THE cultural ambience in the city this year has a particularly British flair to it with hosts of events lined up to mark the 400th death anniversary of William Shakespeare.

Local fans of the Bard are putting in long hours just to get the perfect British accent to his all-time classic line — “to be or not to be!” They are also exploring the British culture and their lifestyle so as to get a hang of the multi-talented playwright’s works.

Shanghai’s interest in British culture can be traced back to 1843 when the former British concession was established around the Bund. Many Victorian-style architectures are still well preserved in the city, for example, the Queen Anne-style building at No. 2, Lane 1094, Beijing Road W.

The influence of British culture can still be seen in our local dialect, for example 大兴 (daxing in mandarin, meaning fake), coming from the English word “dashy.” Nowadays, many people embrace English in a more classic and authentic way.

Be sporty

Sports is popular topic in UK next to weather — from football, which is followed worldwide, to classy riding, from cricket to golf.

“While the French Revolution invented the Citizen, the English creation is the Game,” wrote Jeremy Dickson Paxman, a BBC journalist, in his book “The English: A portrait of People.”

“Sport came to occupy a control role in English culture,” Paxman said.

Sports is appreciated not just for its vitality by the Englishmen but also for following the rule.

“The Englishman is seen at his best the moment that another man starts throwing a ball at him. He is then seen to be neither spiteful, nor vindictive, nor mean, nor querulous, nor desirous,” wrote Vita Sackville-West, a famous English writer known for her aristocratic life, giving “a good sport” a detailed description.

People in Shanghai can experience cricket and riding — two typical English sports. Cricket, a bat-and-ball game originated in England. It is known for its sporting spirit and manner, respecting both the game and opponent and hence the term — “a gentleman’s game.”

Upper-class British families encourage their children to play the game of cricket simply because it reflects their class and status. The annual cricket match between Harrow School and Eton College is one of the most watched events in UK.

The team batting first will try and score as many runs as possible in the allotted overs, before trying to bowl out the team that bats second for less.

Manners play a key part during a game of cricket. For example, an “appeal” is an act by a player asking if an opponent player is out. But the player, showing respect to the umpire, asks: “Howzzattt?” or more appropriately: “How was that?”

The umpire either raises his index finger, signaling out, or just shakes his head, suggesting not out.

The Shanghai Cricket Club has more than 150 years of history and boasts over 300 members. Watch them in action against Kowloon team at the Wellington College ground in August.

Check out the club’s website www.shanghaicricket.com for more information.

Horse riding is an expression of social status and passion for sport. English horse riding distinguishes itself through its dressage and riding attire. Classical dressage pursues a close and harmonious relation between the rider and the horse, emphasizing that horses need to be trained like a person — their body and mind both need to be cared.

While watching horse riding, you can see horses perform collected and medium gaits. If you are fortunate enough, you can see riders train the horse such as capriole (the horse performs a vertical leap with a backward kick of the hind legs) and levade (the horse holding the position around 35 degrees from the ground).

English riders wear traditional style hunt cap, fitted jacket and shirt, breeches and tall boots.

Horse riding only started becoming popular in Shanghai over the last few years, especially among people with overseas background or open to Western culture. Qing Qing Equestrian Club in Qingpu District was founded 10 years ago. It is known for offering riding classes. Both mandarin and English-speaking coaches are available.

One-on-one teaching as well as group lessons are available for students with different needs.

The club is also one of the few in Shanghai that plans to hold a riding summer camp for kids.

The club, covering an area of 20,000 square meters, is located in a forest park in suburban Shanghai, where students can enjoy fresh air and spacious grassland. It has more than 40 horses for riding.

“English riding is all about caring and understanding the sport and developing a deep connection between the animal and the rider. A rider should be patient when the horse loses its temper or occasionally fails to complete the task,” a member of the staff at the club said.

The fees range from 220 yuan (US$33.42) to 380 yuan for 45 minutes. Foreign coaches charge 240 yuan for 45 minutes while local coaches charge 80-160 yuan/45 minutes.

• Qing Qing Equestrian Club

Address: 388 Chenhuagong Rd, Qingpu District

Take a cup of tea

Tea is another tradition and the British developed and promoted it as a social event.

Afternoon Tea can be traced back to the 1830s when the Duchess of Bedford served tea, sandwiches and cakes to her guests to fill the gap between lunch and dinner.

Britain, known for its act of class, has two versions of tea — high tea and low tea — to satisfy the public and the upper class respectively. High tea is served on a high table along with hot meal for people to relax after work. Low tea is served on a low table with three-tiered tea stand to satisfy the upper-class. However some local people confuse the two concepts, considering that “high” refers to high class and vice versa.

People hoping to experience authentic English low tea can head to The Langham Xintiandi and The Peninsula Shanghai. Langham Hotel in London is the first hotel to serve afternoon tea in the world, setting the standard for tea etiquette. Langham Xintiandi insists the tradition of using Wedgwood, one of the finest china ware that originated in England. The Langham Corporate shares some of the most important tea etiquettes to show authenticity:

Tea is added into the cup prior to milk. Clinking the sides of the cup is not allowed when stirring tea. Three-tiered food is served from the bottom to top, from savory to sweet.

The Peninsula Shanghai is known for its elegant tea ambience, enlightened by a live orchestra performance. Its latest afternoon tea menu pays respect to English heritage, highlighted by homemade strawberry jam and clotted cream, English short bread and London roll to celebrate its parent company, The Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, being the first one to introduce afternoon tea in Shanghai in 1923.

• The Peninsula Shanghai

Address: Lobby Floor, 32 Zhongshan Rd E1

• The Langham Xintiandi

Address: Lobby Floor, 99 Madang Rd

Go to the theater

Last but not least, go to the theater to watch Shakespeare. There’s an area in the center of the West End in London called Theatreland which has 40 venues.

According to the 2015 annual results by the Society of London Theatre, Theatreland enjoyed 12th year of growth at the box office, with 623 million pounds (US$898.6 million) in box office revenue.

“Theater is very much part of the general energy of British culture. Artists in Britain have long thought of theater as an important form of self-expression and social comment,” said Paul Stebbings, artistic director of TNT Theater Britain and The American Drama Group Europe.

As part of Shakespeare’s celebrations, The Royal Shakespeare Company is bringing the English play (with Chinese subtitle) “The Merchant of Venice” at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center in September. The RSC will also perform the “Henry V” in November at Shanghai Drama Art Center.

• Shanghai Oriental Art Center

Address: 425 Dingxiang Rd

• Shanghai Drama Art Center

Address: 288 Anfu Rd