ard macha is right: English and Irish teas always seem stronger to me than the tea you get in America, and I assume this is because they are created with the assumption that you are going to drink them with milk.

Spaw, I am fascinated by the idea of young Sam Pirt teaching your missus some arcane tea-making ritual, and her having to buy "paraphernalia". Typically, in my experience, the paraphernalia required to make tea in an English kitchen is:

tea bags (I use PG or Earl Grey or, if I'm feeling exotic, chai)
boiling water
a mug
some milk
sugar (optional)

The process is pretty straightforward. But maybe they do things differently in Yorkshire. :)

Olddude, in England those plunger things are called "cafetieres", and are a good low-tech substitute for the ubiquitous filter coffee machines found in every American kitchen. But usung it for brewing loose tea is a good call!