Britannia metal was used to make the solid core of the Oscar statuettes. The -pound (4 kg) statuettes were Britannia metal plated with gold. The awards have since changed to a bronze core. In his essay, "A Nice Cup of Tea", writer George Orwell asserts that "britanniaware" teapots "produce inferior tea" when compared to chinaware. Britannia metal Britannia metal (also called britannium or Britannia ware) is a specific type of pewter alloy, favoured for its silvery appearance and smooth surface. The composition by weight is typically about 92% tin, 6% antimony, and 2% copper. Britannia metal is usually spun rather than cast,
This Is the Day...This Is the Hour...This Is This! United Kingdom, and combines metal guitar riffs, disco backing and conspicuous drum stomps. Throughout the album, there are what AllMusic's Ned Raggett described as "intriguing surprises," including multiple moody goth and post-punk elements. Influences of rap, heavy metal and the band's early influence of punk rock are spliced with numerous "found" auto artefacts "collected from all over the junk-culture landscape," including Motown snippets, adverting slogans and the "play-by-play call of a John Elway touchdown pass. The music press found the band's sound hard to categorise. Band member Graham Crabb explained: "Nobody's really come up with a description of what we