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The Queen and our national anthem

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    FMKKFMKK Posts: 32,074
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    I agree that our national anthem has to be one of the most dull in the world. Just about every country manages to have a powerful and uplifting anthem whereas ours is is likely to send you to sleep. At times it almost sounds like a funeral march.

    I think the Irish one is quite the dirge too in all honesty. I saw someone warbling it at a Gaelic football match on TV recently and it was like a funeral.
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    drillbitdrillbit Posts: 1,687
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    imo, this :cool:should be our national anthem a song that would unite both royalists & republicans together, and not least its a bloody good tune that brings a lump to my throat :cry:
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    yaristamanyaristaman Posts: 1,844
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    Mark1974 wrote: »
    Nothing to do with new members winding up the usual suspects.

    This is a discussion forum in a free country, and a democracy. Understand the concept and wind your neck in.

    And you couldn't have used one of the countless other Royal threads on General Discussion??
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    SpouthouseSpouthouse Posts: 1,046
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    yaristaman wrote: »
    And you couldn't have used one of the countless other Royal threads on General Discussion??

    Isn't it in the very nature of discussion that the same topics will often come up regularly. Would you say to someone discussing royalty in a pub "excuse me, but somebody already had that discussion earlier. Please go and find them and join their discussion."

    Just ignore a discussion if it annoys you.
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    Mark1974Mark1974 Posts: 4,162
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    yaristaman wrote: »
    And you couldn't have used one of the countless other Royal threads on General Discussion??

    Errr no, sorry if it's spoilt your evening.

    Life REALLY is too short! Zzzzzzz.
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    solarflaresolarflare Posts: 22,383
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    A_Zombie wrote: »
    For a more modern twist, you could try:

    Don't mess wiv da Queen,
    she be packin
    You be messin
    and she'll be slapin

    Alternatively, I think the Benny Hill theme tune could work.
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    dreadnoughtdreadnought Posts: 1,783
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    When I lived abroad there was one tune you would hear on telly which reminded me of Britain and would make a great anthem, it also has the benefit of being short, not like some anthems

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1RsgSBySXk
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    KellerKeller Posts: 5,970
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    I quite like the new one the Irish rugby team sing. When you are in a stadium hearing 40,000 folks sing, it tends to get the hairs on the back of your neck standing up even if you are an opposition supporter.

    Ireland's Call? Nice enough but it annoys me when it's the only one they play at away games, makes people think it's our real national anthem which it really isn't worthy of.
    Wolfman13 wrote: »
    Yep and the Irish has something in theirs about Saxons, I mean talk about being stuck in the past. :o
    The official national anthem is just the chorus of Amhrán na bhFiann and doesn't mention any foreign lands by name.

    Considering independence was only declared less than 100 years ago in 1916 and full independence achieved in 1931 with the anthem adopted in 1926, it is still very relevant to Irish history and will forever be connected to the birth of the nation as it is today.
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    plateletplatelet Posts: 26,386
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    c0lefax wrote: »
    I think one of the original versions of the anthem had something like:

    "and to rebelious Scots we crush". :blush:

    Seriously.

    I don't think that was in any way original, rather added much later in jingoistic fashion just to annoy them.

    Though the idea of adding a verse now to say ...

    Rebellious Scots to irritate a bit so they buggered off

    Does appeal - but I doubt it would scan
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    Hugh JboobsHugh Jboobs Posts: 15,316
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    Semierotic wrote: »
    Come on, regardless of one's Royalist tendencies it's hard to deny it's an incredibly dull drone of an anthem. I'm not even religious but I'd happily take Jerusalem's stirring melody over that.

    I do love Jerusalem. That would be my choice if the anthem had to change. But then of course the atheists would whinge about it.
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    Trsvis_BickleTrsvis_Bickle Posts: 9,202
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    I agree that our national anthem has to be one of the most dull in the world. Just about every country manages to have a powerful and uplifting anthem whereas ours is is likely to send you to sleep. At times it almost sounds like a funeral march.

    That really isn't true. An awful lot of them are grinding, solemn, dirges. La Marseillaise is the exception, not the rule.
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    highking1014highking1014 Posts: 1,189
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    FMKK wrote: »
    I think the Irish one is quite the dirge too in all honesty. I saw someone warbling it at a Gaelic football match on TV recently and it was like a funeral.

    You should be on the terraces, it is cringy as hell, people standing with their hands behind their backs looking towards a flag whilst the anthem is being played and when it's finished let out almighty roars like they are letting out 900 years of built up anger, hence why I arrive at games late.
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    Jimmy ConnorsJimmy Connors Posts: 117,895
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    My fav is La Marseillaise. The French know how to do it! :)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lu3eSNi__4w
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    cessnacessna Posts: 6,747
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    Several suitable replacements come to mind, including Land of Hope and Glory. During the darkest days of WW2 the BBC precededr the main news broadcast with a stirring rendition of 'Lilliburlero' played by the band of a Guards Regt. with mass drums intro. Although its origins are vague (Irish, Scots, French etc) Dull it was not.








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    kampffenhoffkampffenhoff Posts: 1,556
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    I can't see the connection between being a royalist or not and finding God save the Queen boring. It's a boring tune with boring words which have very little relevance to modern life. I know ardent royalists who hate it and I know republicans who hate it. I also know other anthems from other countries that are boring and awful too but that's irrelevant. Saying oh yes it's boring but so is the anthem from so and so doesn't stop ours being boring.

    For all I know the Queen might find it boring too. After all she's heard it a lot more than I have and she often does look bored when it's being sung so
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    culturemancultureman Posts: 11,701
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    If the crowd is "the twelfth man" at sporting events, then the national anthem is the thirteenth.
    And ours plays for the other side. Dreadful dirge expressing centuries old, anachronistic outmoded ideas.
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    ustarionustarion Posts: 20,322
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    The anthem is good for the Queen, but not much else.

    I could never imagine a rousing performance such as this being performed because the lyrics don't lend themselves to it.
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    Kiko H FanKiko H Fan Posts: 6,546
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    The Welsh anthem is the best, closely followed by the Italian and French.

    GSTQ is indeed a true dirge.

    Irelands Call and Flower Of Scotland are folk songs? Or based on folk songs?
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    LostFoolLostFool Posts: 90,662
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    Semierotic wrote: »
    Come on, regardless of one's Royalist tendencies it's hard to deny it's an incredibly dull drone of an anthem. I'm not even religious but I'd happily take Jerusalem's stirring melody over that.

    The main problem with GSTQ is that the standard version is dull but it can be done in a more creative way. The arrangement used at the 2012 Last Night of the Proms was much better. See here, starts at 3 mins following Jerusalem: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=041nXAAn714

    Jerusalem is a stonking song and tune but it the problem is that is refers only to England, so not really suitable for a UK anthem. Land of Hope and Glory doesn't mention any country and Rule Britannia might be a little too jingoistic for modern tastes,
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    Hugh JboobsHugh Jboobs Posts: 15,316
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    ustarion wrote: »
    The anthem is good for the Queen, but not much else.

    I could never imagine a rousing performance such as this being performed because the lyrics don't lend themselves to it.

    That performance was dire. Nowhere near as god as this one.
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    darkjedimasterdarkjedimaster Posts: 18,621
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    It is about time we had a modern anthem instead of the mind numbingly wrist sitting one that we have got now. But until that happens, we can thank the wonders of modetn technology to avoid it as much as possible.

    When anything related to that old battleaxe parasite is on the TV, the channel gets changed.

    When the national anthem is played at sports events, it gets muted due to the BS lyrics.
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    lubaluba Posts: 1,314
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    I like the arrangement they do at The Last Night Of The Proms.
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    Patti-AnnPatti-Ann Posts: 22,747
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    cessna wrote: »
    Several suitable replacements come to mind, including Land of Hope and Glory. During the darkest days of WW2 the BBC precededr the main news broadcast with a stirring rendition of 'Lilliburlero' played by the band of a Guards Regt. with mass drums intro. Although its origins are vague (Irish, Scots, French etc) Dull it was not.
    .

    I thought of Land Of Hope And Glory :)

    A far more stirring tune - plus you wouldn't have to change the words to King or Queen ;-)
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    batgirlbatgirl Posts: 42,248
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    Dirge.
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 3,181
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    The Welsh & Europe Anthems are quite lively, whereas the English is something of a `Dirge`

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AM4mIlYKG9s
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