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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to be embarrassed about our national anthem?

129 replies

TrinityMotherOfRhinos · 04/02/2011 19:48

its a hideous depressing sounding dirge

not meaning to offend anyone but genuinely interested in how others feel

OP posts:
undercovamutha · 04/02/2011 20:14

Jerusalem gets my vote. The BRITISH national anthem is ear-achingly awful.

flowery · 04/02/2011 20:14

Agree with jamfran, I can't hear the Welsh one without visualising John Redwood making a fool of himself. Grin

WonderingStar · 04/02/2011 20:15

Just thinking about made me smile.

Rebeccaruby · 04/02/2011 20:16

Totally agree. My other half is Scottish and a rugby fan. He loves Flower of Scotland, and I love Jerusalem. Or even Land of Hope and Glory, although I admit some of the lyrics are a bit "bashing Johnny Foreigner".

GSTQ is so gloomy. It doesn't even celebrate England particularly, just talks about saving some member of a largely German family. Does anybody remember the Billy Connolly joke about us winning more Olympic medals if we had the theme tune from the Archers as the anthem, as it was a bit more upbeat? Smile

SarahBumBarer · 04/02/2011 20:16

YANBU and what MrsSippy said. My vote goes to Land of Hope and Glory or Jerusalem. Also like Rule Britannia but it's a bit rabble rousing perhaps.

DewinDoeth · 04/02/2011 20:17

The Welsh are out in force on this thread, strangely! Grin
It may be the British national anthem officially, but it's English, English, English: it's only in England I think where it would be known as British, because the other countries have our own.
I find it dire musically, and am amused that the tune is called 'America'. Hmm

My DH who is English also hates it, and his opinion is that it should be the Queen's personal anthem, like Hail to the chief in the US for the President, and a different, better and more relevant anthem should be sorted for big events.
Doesn't Billy Connolley have a long standup routine on it? Grin

bettybosseye · 04/02/2011 20:18

I could watch John Redwood squirm all day long Thanks for cheering me up WonderingStar.

Strictly · 04/02/2011 20:18

Our anthem would lead anyone to believe we live in a dictatorship... All the nonsense about how long we hope the queen lives for and how we enjoy being pathetic little subjects.

I've not sung it in a decade and will never ever sing it again. I am a patriot but I do not see myself as someone to 'reign over'.

DewinDoeth · 04/02/2011 20:19

Well, x-posted with SarahBumBarer on Billy Connolley, and Bettybosseye agree on nobody outside England...I was too chicken to post that!!

jamfran · 04/02/2011 20:20

Wonderingstar - makes me cringe every time I see that!

onimolap · 04/02/2011 20:20

fishtankneedscleaning "If you are talking about the English National Anthem YANBU....."

What English National anthem?

There isn't one!!!!!!!!!

SarahBumBarer: I'm with you for "Land of Hope and Glory". Rule Britannia Is, of course, British not English.

AtYourCervix · 04/02/2011 20:20

jerusalem is he WI anthem. c

DewinDoeth · 04/02/2011 20:21

Cervix and also the naturist's society, I'm told.

onimolap don't get me started on use of the term British...Grin

AtYourCervix · 04/02/2011 20:23

British is useful for the mongrels amongst us though.

Pictish · 04/02/2011 20:23

Even though Flower of Scotland is not our official anthem, it is widely recognised as our real one.....and it's a beauty!

YANBU OP - God Save the Queen sucks.

fishtankneedscleaning · 04/02/2011 20:24

John Redwood is obviously not Welsh, therefore he has no business attempting to sing the Welsh National Anthem. Nor does anyone else who is not Welsh. They will never be able to do it justice!

The Welsh National Anthem comes from the heart, as does the irish and Scottish Anthems :).

God Save the Queen is supposed to be the Anthem of Great Britain. (I would never sing it tho). ;)

Idlewild · 04/02/2011 20:24

Flower of Scotland is also shit imo. We could do better.

bettybosseye · 04/02/2011 20:25

Onimolap- As i've already said, it might be British to the English but it most definately is not to everyone else. You can keep it. Smile

DewinDoeth · 04/02/2011 20:26

LOL, I was thinking of the misuse of the term - it was the Romans' name for the native population (and their land) when they arrived, and who were still there when they left - the ones speaking Brittonic, which developed into Welsh...Wink

Anyway, back to the point, God save the queen is rubbish and irrelevant, and if England has no national anthem it's time you got one. But make it good! Grin

fishtankneedscleaning · 04/02/2011 20:28

Onimolap. The English national Anthem the English supporters sing at the start of every rugby match. Otherwise known as God save the Queen. Is there a problem with that? Other than its a dirge?

Pictish · 04/02/2011 20:29

Flower of Scotland is NOT shit! Shock
Take that back at once!

It's a beautiful song.

onimolap · 04/02/2011 20:30

Bettybossyeye: not an opinion; a basic fact of the United Kingdom.

(BTW: I may live in England at the moment, and have a British passport now, but am not myself English, and my views therefore cannot be taken as representative of English people).

DewinDoeth · 04/02/2011 20:30

Pictish as one of the Brittanic lot, I like your name!

bettybosseye · 04/02/2011 20:30

My OH is English by the way, incase i'm coming across as an English basher type.(your anthem still sucks though)Grin

Ormirian · 04/02/2011 20:31

Tis dull. I prefer Jerusalem.