Another name for the Ursa Major (Great Bear) constellation. I pride myself on nearly always being able to spot it..not that it's hard to spot or anything.

Usage of the term for rollercoaster is not limited to England, but is also used in the former British colony of Australia.

The two most famous Big Dippers in .au are in the Luna Park amusement parks in Sydney and Melbourne.

The Melbourne Big Dipper is a grand old wooden rattler, making it's dips a stone's throw from the salt-spray of Port Phillip Bay. The Sydney 'Dipper is a modern steel monster, soon to be discontinued due to noise complaints from it's well-heeled neighbours.

The title of a Built to Spill song, which I won't quote in its entirety, but the first verse quite accurately portrays my own forays into amateur astronomy, and perhaps yours as well.
When I was little someone pointed out to me
Some constellations, but the Big Dipper's all I could see
writ by Built to Spill, from their 2nd album There's Nothing Wrong with Love

This was also the name of a band from Boston in the 80s, who recorded for Homestead Records. It featured ex-members of other Boston bands Dumptruck, Volcano Suns, and The Embarassment. In addition to the 3 albums they released, they were also on the Shonen Knife tribute album.

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