Queen's Jubilee

[mjdgreg]

Glad to hear that it's going to rain on the Queen's parade. At least she won't be on the throne for another 60 years.

[The Red Baron]

I didn't have you down as an anti-Monarchist, Mick!

I didn't used to be that keen on the Royal Family, but now I see them as a better alternative to President Thatcher/ Blair/ Cameron etc. And I think William has the makings of a very good King indeed.

I'm old enough to remember the Silver Jubilee- 1977. Now that was a good summer- punk rock and thrashing the Aussies 3-0 in the Ashes! I was there when Sir Geoffrey ran out Derek Randall at Trent Bridge and also when he scored his hundredth ton at Headingley a few weeks later. Happy days!

[mjdgreg]

I didn't have you down as an anti-Monarchist, mjdgreg!

I didn't used to be that keen on the Royal Family, but now I see them as a better alternative to President Thatcher/ Blair/ Cameron etc. And I think William has the makings of a very good King indeed.

I'm old enough to remember the Silver Jubilee- 1977. Now that was a good summer- punk rock and thrashing the Aussies 3-0 in the Ashes! I was there when Sir Geoffrey ran out Derek Randall at Trent Bridge and also when he scored his hundredth ton at Headingley a few weeks later. Happy days!

It amazes me that the plebs are quite happy for these inbred Royals to have a life of luxury at our expense. You have a point about President Blair/Brown etc. However 2 wrongs don't make a right.

I remember not celebrating the Silver Jubilee but like you remember with pleasure the sporting events you mention.

[jucyberry]

Oh I do find the whole at the tax payers expense blurb so very irritating..I'd rather pay 60 odd p a year towards the monarchy than £s in tax for war and other things..It is a very small ammount and she does repay it by giving her life in service .

I am glad we have the royal family, I wouldn't stir my bones to flag wave at Sandringham on an xmas morn,I'm not a fanatic, but I like them very much.. Great Britain has such a diverse tapestry of history but the one constant (aside from that mad man from Ely and his ten year rampage) through out our history is our Kings and Queens. I like that consistency.

[donnyroversfc]

I have no care in the wrold about the royal family, if i suddenly woke up tomorrow morning to find out they no longer exist, i dont think i would be bothered.


Having said that, i am very grateful for my free lager, courtesy of the queen's jubilee 

[mjdgreg]

When there are people living on the streets it's totally immoral that people live in palaces through a quirk of birth.

[RedJ]

When there are people living on the streets it's totally immoral that people live in palaces through a quirk of birth.

well if people lived within their means

[jucyberry]

And that is piffle too, you might as well say any one with over 1,000,000 in the bank should give it up just because some have less than others..
They are the custodians of OUR treasures, these things belong to the nation, not them..Why envy that?
It's more about jealousy than anything else imho, some people resent the fact that others have more.. Well life is far too short to be coverting the wealth of others, as you are always say Mick, it's up to you to make the most of what comes your way..

How would you like to live their lives? cos I dammned well wouldn't. I like the freedom of being a nonentity even if it is a poor one.

[Donnywolf]

I didn't have you down as an anti-Monarchist, Mick!

I didn't used to be that keen on the Royal Family, but now I see them as a better alternative to President Thatcher/ Blair/ Cameron etc. And I think William has the makings of a very good King indeed.

I'm old enough to remember the Silver Jubilee- 1977. Now that was a good summer- punk rock and thrashing the Aussies 3-0 in the Ashes! I was there when Sir Geoffrey ran out Derek Randall at Trent Bridge and also when he scored his hundredth ton at Headingley a few weeks later. Happy days!

I was there the day AFTER he ran out Randall and I KNEW he had to make a ton to make up for his crime (running out the local lad). He took a long long time to get there and (for him) took a very quick 2 to get to his Ton.

There was an Irish guy sat to my right and he gave me a prod on the arm after the applause died down and said " its ok you can breathe again now"

There was a very good laugh before the game as the England team came out to go in the nets - as Randall and Roope (I think) detached themselves and made their way to the Wicket itself. All the crowd looked on and though ffs what are they doing. Once they had everyones attention Randall shouted YES at the top of his voice and ran like his life depended on it - and when he was 3/4 s of the way to Roope - Roope shouted NO and sent Arkle (Randall for those under 45) back to the end and he then bowed his head and walked off supposedly run out.

In short - an exact replica of the day before. Funny as f*** at the time

I missed Sir Geoffs 100 x 100 by 5 minutes as I was listening all day wanting him to do it but not till I got home. I checked at the Gatehouse when I clocked off and he was in the 90s. I knew it was in the lap of the gods and I got home with him on just over a ton -  B******

[mushRTID]

Mick seems a very bitter man. Enjoy your extra day off and have a beer.

[Mr1Croft]

Mick, we have no codified constitution, so if you take away the monarchy and we lose the only part of our culture that makes our culture so attractive to the rest of the world; our regal, British way, our sovereignty. You may envy the Royal family, but it is not them that makes us different from the rest of the world, it is the crown; the establishment, the tradition.

[mjdgreg]

I don't envy the monarchy. I feel sorry for them. They lead very weird sad lives. I just think it's morally repugnant that they have such incredible wealth that they haven't earned and so many plebs think it's ok. Total mystery to me. I used to work at a plumbers merchant many years ago and when the Queen came to RAF Finningley we got an order for a complete new set of sanitaryware just on the slight off chance that she would want to have a crap while she was there. What's wrong with her using the bogs like the rest of us. Absolute joke and a right waste of money.

[Nudga]

I don't envy the monarchy. I feel sorry for them. They lead very weird sad lives. I just think it's morally repugnant that they have such incredible wealth that they haven't earned and so many plebs think it's ok. Total mystery to me. I used to work at a plumbers merchant many years ago and when the Queen came to RAF Finningley we got an order for a complete new set of sanitaryware just on the slight off chance that she would want to have a crap while she was there. What's wrong with her using the bogs like the rest of us. Absolute joke and a right waste of money.

Yup, her shit is still the same colour as ours.

[mjdgreg]

Depends on whether you're a Guinness drinker or not.

[The Red Baron]

I didn't have you down as an anti-Monarchist, Mick!

I didn't used to be that keen on the Royal Family, but now I see them as a better alternative to President Thatcher/ Blair/ Cameron etc. And I think William has the makings of a very good King indeed.

I'm old enough to remember the Silver Jubilee- 1977. Now that was a good summer- punk rock and thrashing the Aussies 3-0 in the Ashes! I was there when Sir Geoffrey ran out Derek Randall at Trent Bridge and also when he scored his hundredth ton at Headingley a few weeks later. Happy days!

I was there the day AFTER he ran out Randall and I KNEW he had to make a ton to make up for his crime (running out the local lad). He took a long long time to get there and (for him) took a very quick 2 to get to his Ton.

There was an Irish guy sat to my right and he gave me a prod on the arm after the applause died down and said " its ok you can breathe again now"

There was a very good laugh before the game as the England team came out to go in the nets - as Randall and Roope (I think) detached themselves and made their way to the Wicket itself. All the crowd looked on and though ffs what are they doing. Once they had everyones attention Randall shouted YES at the top of his voice and ran like his life depended on it - and when he was 3/4 s of the way to Roope - Roope shouted NO and sent Arkle (Randall for those under 45) back to the end and he then bowed his head and walked off supposedly run out.

In short - an exact replica of the day before. Funny as f*** at the time

I missed Sir Geoffs 100 x 100 by 5 minutes as I was listening all day wanting him to do it but not till I got home. I checked at the Gatehouse when I clocked off and he was in the 90s. I knew it was in the lap of the gods and I got home with him on just over a ton -  B******

I didn't manage to see the full extent of the Randall run-out as I was watching through binoculars and hence missed exactly what happened- although I saw it on the TV later. I did, though, get a good look at Boycott after the incident and he was absolutely horror-struck.

Boycott then batted like a man in a trance for a long time and only seemed to come to life again when Alan Knott came in. Knott was the real hero of the situation for me, because he coaxed Boycott along and played a brilliant counter-attacking innings. When you look back at the scorecard it looks like an easy win for England, but it could easily have gone the other way.

Anyway- here is the run-out in all its glory:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rwuo4RZRjDU

[BillyStubbsTears]

TRB

I'm genuinely interested. How would you define "a very good King indeed"?

[mjdgreg]

I've had the telly on for 15 mins and am already totally cheesed of with the number of times the sycophantic presenters have waffled on about the Queen's Jubilee. Can't we just have all the guff on one channel so republicans like me can avoid it?

[Filo]

I used to work at a plumbers merchant many years ago and when the Queen came to RAF Finningley we got an order for a complete new set of sanitaryware just on the slight off chance that she would want to have a crap while she was there.

That order might just as well have kept you in a job at that time, giving you chance to earn your collateral to launch your business empire and become the highly successful billionaire you are today!

[The Red Baron]

TRB

I'm genuinely interested. How would you define "a very good King indeed"?

Notice I said "the makings of..." You can't really judge monarchs until after the fact. He appears to be genuinely interested in people and seems to realise that he may have to play a very important role in the future.

Nowadays, of course, we don't hold monarchs responsible for the fate of the nation. There's an interesting piece in the Daily Mail today which points out that the Queen is held in the highest regard despite the fact that her reign has coincided with an unprecedented period of national decline. That might say as much about the Mail as the Queen or the monarchy as an institution, but it is something to consider.

[mjdgreg]

I remember it was a crap order. Pretty bog standard. What got me annoyed was that we had to put gold plated fittings on everything instead of the usual chrome. When I enquired what were the chances of the royal arse taking a dump I was told to stop talking shit.

[Filo]

I remember it was a crap order. Pretty bog standard. What got me annoyed was that we had to put gold plated fittings on everything instead of the usual chrome. When I enquired what were the chances of the royal arse taking a dump I was told to stop talking shit.

You never did take that advice then?

[BillyStubbsTears]

TRB. I know you said he had the potential. But I still don't understand what the criteria are for judging whether a monarch has been a success.

As for the comments in the Mail, I am regularly surprised by my ability to hold that shit rag in lower contempt than I did previously. If they truly believe that the UK is a worse place now than it was in 1952, then I give up.

[mjdgreg]

Many congratulations to Queenie. It must be great never having to buy your own houses or pay rent. 60 years on state benefits and not paying tax must be a record.

[jucyberry]

You could say that of any child eagerly rubbing their hands together waiting for their elderly parents to fall off their perches so they can INHERIT homes they didn't actually pay for..
That is a singularly childish arguement... in effect the royal palaces are nothing more than fancy tied houses, they go with the job.

Sneer all you want, but this is a piece of history, your children and quite possibly your great grandhchildren will never see the like in their lifetimes..The potential of having a monach that has ruled for 60 years will not come in Williams lifetime, and perhaps not even in his childrens either.

[mjdgreg]

Kevin Mcguire of the Daily Mirror sums it up quite nicely:

'A single family with the monopoly on figureheads is the ultimate block on social mobility.

But great strivers and achievers of the calibre of JK Rowling would be fantastic ambassadors.

Instead, at the heart of the country we have an institution that legitimises unearned wealth and inequality'.

[Serring]

Many congratulations to Queenie. It must be great never having to buy your own houses or pay rent. 60 years on state benefits and not paying tax must be a record.

The Queen began paying Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax in 1992 on a voluntary basis on her private income

[The Red Baron]

Kevin Mcguire of the Daily Mirror sums it up quite nicely:

'A single family with the monopoly on figureheads is the ultimate block on social mobility.

But great strivers and achievers of the calibre of JK Rowling would be fantastic ambassadors.

Instead, at the heart of the country we have an institution that legitimises unearned wealth and inequality'.

Bloody hell, Mick! Reading the Mirror? You'll be singing the Red Flag and calling for increased Public Spending next!

The social mobility thing is a bit of a red herring IMO. Other countries have monarchies and also manage to have much greater social mobility. Then again, they probably enjoy far superior educational systems.

[mjdgreg]

The Queen pays tax on a voluntary basis from her private income, but not on "head of state expenditure" which is where she fills her boots from ordinary tax payers. She did not pay almost £20m of inheritance tax after the death of the Queen Mother when she should have done. She only pays a small amount of tax on her private income because she knows this will keep the uneducated fawning masses happy that she isn't robbing us blind when clearly she is.

On another point when Vincent O'brien went to collect his trophy yesterday  for winning the Epsom Derby everyone was applauding him except Queenie. How rude. 

[mjdgreg]

Bloody hell, mjdgreg! Reading the Mirror? You'll be singing the Red Flag and calling for increased Public Spending next!

The social mobility thing is a bit of a red herring IMO. Other countries have monarchies and also manage to have much greater social mobility. Then again, they probably enjoy far superior educational systems.

Steady on. I like to get my information from as many sources as possible so I can post well balanced reasonable arguments. You'll be pleased to know that I have no plans to start singing the Red Flag and will be calling for more Public Spending cuts at every opportunity.

I do think social mobility is a massive problem and it all starts with the monarchy. I say cut off the head and the snake will die. I agree the education system in many other countries is much better than ours. Labour  wasted an absolute fortune on changing it but the results have been very poor. Go to the bottom of the class. 

[hoolahoop]

Mick, we have no codified constitution, so if you take away the monarchy and we lose the only part of our culture that makes our culture so attractive to the rest of the world; our regal, British way, our sovereignty. You may envy the Royal family, but it is not them that makes us different from the rest of the world, it is the crown; the establishment, the tradition.

Very well put and my God it brightened up some very grey lives.............a committed Royalist.
Proud of our country, people and history, you can stick your Republicanism.