This country, celebrated for its stiff upper lip, seems to be open-mouthed and trembling rather a lot lately, and it's not a pretty sight.

Now and again, Britain is gripped by a kind of collective hysteria.

It's partly because old disciplines imposed by the Church, families and poverty over the centuries have steadily become eroded, and partly because of the speed of modern communications.

A lie can be halfway round the world before the truth has time to put its boots on and a rumour can travel at astonishing speed.

The old British traditions of not showing emotion, keeping mum and showing matchless self-sacrifice in the style of Captain Oates probably needed loosening.

But we have gone to the other extreme of uncontrolled blubbing and greed.

The first signs of it came in the food shortages of the Seventies when people were pointlessly storing bread and other basics during strikes, causing difficulties for others who were really in need.

If no one had panicked during last year's fuel protests, there would have easily been enough petrol for everyone.

But the classic example came when Princess Diana died in 1997 and most of the country was plunged into grief.

The new Prime Minister, Tony Blair, understood the collective mood and reacted to it brilliantly. The buttoned-up Queen did not and had to be shown how to display her feelings before there were riots on the streets. She did so, but with little conviction.

The funny thing is that now the Princess seems to be scarcely remembered at all, even on the anniversary of her death.

Now there is hysteria over foot and mouth disease which is being treated by some commentators and country dwellers as if it were the Black Death.

The fact it is a fairly mild complaint from which most animals recover in a few weeks seems to be largely forgotten.

There are pictures of farmers crying over the slaughter of their animals, but you never see them sobbing at the abattoirs which is where normally many of these creatures end their lives.

While most people feel sorry for anyone whose livelihood is endangered, sympathy should go to rural tourism where business is threatened by overreaction.

There is talk of delaying the general election in a country where everyone can claim a postal vote, few go to public meetings and where public services are largely unaffected by foot and mouth.

I hope the Prime Minister, a politician notoriously sensitive to the vagaries of public opinion, does not allow himself to be affected. Instead he could recall that the normally unflappable Harold Macmillan had a motto in Downing Street 40 years ago that quiet, calm deliberation disentangles every knot.

And I hope we can learn from these over reactions not to repeat them.

With food shortages, there's no need to panic because it only makes things worse.

With people like Princess Di, there's no point in building up false images only to burst them later.

With fuel protests, we shouldn't have the whole transport system reliant on oil.

With foot and mouth, we should remember its chief impact is commercial rather than clinical.

Britain's influence was at its height when the nation exhibited great self-control, never better than during the last war.

Now the world watches while we slowly sink, grasping and slurping, with only a trace of national dribble left to denote we were ever there.