British military staff in the United States have released a video showing how to make a proper cup of tea, with Americans then firing back a coffee tutorial in response.
Members of the armed forces showed off their skills making a brew, with an RAF commander even able to drink a cuppa while flying in a plane.
The video comes after an American nurse caused outrage by releasing a video making “British tea" in a microwave.
Michelle, originally from North Carolina, released a TikTok last month showing how she made tea by microwaving a mug of cold water, pouring in the milk, before finally adding the tea bag and heaped spoons of sugar.
In response, Dame Karen Pierce, the British ambassador to the US, asked her military advisers to demonstrate how “making tea is a survival skill."
Army, RAF, and Navy personnel obliged by showing how to make their best cup of tea.
Squadron leader Mark Hume, a Poseidon Flight Commander based at the Naval Air Station in Jacksonville, said:
“The British military really does run on tea. We all have tea in our ration packs and every hard-working service person will tell you a good cup of tea really is good for morale."
“I've been in America for a while now and if you want some buffalo wings then you're in the right place, but if you want a cup of tea you need a Brit."
The video, which was released on the @UKdefUS Twitter account, quickly went viral with more than 230,000 views.
Mr. Hume said:
“I wasn't expecting the video to take off quite like it did, but it is quite funny when you see us all together, playing to our stereotypes whilst injecting a little bit of fun."
“2020 has been a tough year for us all and it's great to have some humor every now and then. Perhaps there's some light 'tea'sing of our US allies too, but I don't think they mind – we're not just historic allies, but friends, and that's what makes us strong, just how I like my tea."
"Regarding the attempts by 'Michelle from North Carolina' to make a British cup of tea?"
“What can I say? Orange tang, powdered lemonade, and microwaves? It's probably a very tasty beverage, but it's just not tea is it?"
In response to the video, US Ambassador to the UK Woody Johnson has now released footage showing how to make an “American cup of coffee", using instant coffee and milk.
