> Around here (mid-Atlantic USA) it's nearly always 'icing'. How about you Brits and Antipodeans?

Icing, and, medical opinion to the contrary notwithstanding, it isn't just a stingy way to stop a cake from drying out. It can, instead, add a great deal to a cake, especially if it has a different but complementary flavour. An example of this is a beautiful, incredibly dark chocolate cake my wife makes with an icing of pure white chocolate. Given the cost, it certainly isn't stingy. Heavenly, yes, stingy, no way.