Britannia and the British Empire what Marianne is to France or perhaps what Columbia is to the United States. Britannia became a very potent and more common figure in times of war, and represented British liberties and democracy. During the 1990s the term "Cool Britannia" (drawn from a humorous version by the Bonzo Dog Band of the song "Rule Britannia", with words by James Thomson [1700–1748], which is often used as an unofficial national anthem), was used to describe the contemporary United Kingdom. The phrase referred to the fashionable scenes of the era, with a new generation of pop groups and
Britannia Airways Britannia Airways was featured in the first series of the ITV fly on the wall docusoap "Airline" show. During 2000, Thomson Travel Group, and thereby Britannia Airways, were acquired by Preussag AG (TUI Group) of Germany. As part of a wider reorganisation of TUI's UK operations in September 2004, it was announced that Britannia would be rebranded as Thomsonfly. The aircraft of this airline carried the Thomson colours and logo while Thomsonfly became the trading name of Britannia Airways. On 1 November 2005, the legal name of the company was changed from Britannia Airways Limited to Thomsonfly Limited. Thomsonfly later