whatever happened to the "proud to be british" sentiment

Off-topic
1

I was listening to the radio this morning, and it mentioned there are nearly 8000 journalists, tv crew, photographers etc alone from all around the world to get coverage of the royal wedding tomorrow.They reckon almost a third of the worlds population will watch it.

So, why is it that the Americans, Japanese, New Zealanders and everyone else is more interested in what happens tomorrow, than people in the UK?

I have no doubt that the majority of responses to this will probably be from people who are more interested in the day off, and im just curious as to whats happened?

Me? Personally im interested, but i dont get on well with crowds and cramped spaces, so im off to the new forest for a break.

Being from Northern Ireland however, ive found over the years living in England ive been less inclined to get into arguments with people over why im proud to be British, and more proud to be Northern Irish.

So why is this i? People are more proud to be Northern Irish, Scottish, Welsh or English than they are British nowadays?

and if this is the case, what happened?

(for the mods, i saw this more as an open general all round question than a current affairs one :wink: )

2

Well my dad was from Edinburgh, my mum’s family were all from Ireland and I’m English from Sheffield, so I am PROUD TO BE BRITISH:D:D

I like the diversity and tolerance of this country - where else would you get so many people of all walks of life and so many different cultures living together relatively peacefully?

Where else would you get people ironing their shirts on the M1, rolling cheese down hills for a competition, drinking warm beer, stripping off when the temperature hits 19 degrees to proudly show off corn beef thighs and large white bellies, talking non stop about the weather and whose favourite national dish is one from another nation (curry).

I actually quite enjoy the way everyone has got into the Royal Wedding - even though most of them have ended in divorce, it shows we still have that sense of blind optimism - and I have even got some Red, White and Blue sandals LOL (although I might draw the line at Wills and Kate stickers on my Triumph).

3

I’m proud to be English :slight_smile: oh and slightly Maltese :wink:

4

It’s amazing that many people are not proud.

For those that are then there’s another chance to celebrate St Georges day next week !!!

“As Easter often falls close to St George’s Day, the church celebration of the feast may be moved from 23 April. In 2011 and 2014, the Anglican and Catholic calendars celebrate St George’s Day on the first Monday after Easter Week (2 May and 28 April, respectively).”

5

I’ll tell you why, multiculterisam has ruined this country and thTs the bottom line.

We’ve emphasised that yes you can have your own culture in our country and not worry about integration …

Believe me when I say that I will soon be moving out of London to more British countryside as I want my daughter to grow up knowing about other countries but being proud of the one she’s in.
Smiled.

6

I am afraid that the capital is now often referred to as Londonistan.

7

i hear ya Captain…;).smiled.

8

british people are a bunch of wingers - fact. That’s why people arn’t proud, they are so deluded they think this is a smelly hell hole and the rest of the world have it lucky.

I love this country, it is full of opportunity, beautifull places, is respected on the world stage as we take on responsibility to sort out the worlds problems not just our own (rightly or wrongly)

Yes our weather is unpredictable, but so what thats half the fun of life isn’t it? not knowing whats round the corner?

As for the royal wedding, couldn’t give two hoots tbf as I don’t see the royal wedding as a big part of being british.

9

Re the proud to be British thing, I believe that devolution has divided the country in a bad way.

Re London, sometimes I think wtf is going on, but at other times I work somewhere that is a national institution and really appreciate our heritage and culture. That’s not something that any government can build, but it is certainly something that they can destroy.

If we want to be proud of our country, just do it. Be proud.

10

I like the British culture. It’s true that london isn’t british tho.

The wedding thing would have been good but I’m sick of the media throwing it in our faces day in and day out. It has taken the exitement out of it :crying:

I’m sure once the event arrives tomorrow everyones feelings will change and it will be a fab day out, but the media can go jump in a lake. they ruin everything

11

I am proud to be British- it is a beautiful country to call home. However, I’m also privileged to be British. No-one chooses where they are born or who they are born to but anyone born in this country does have the benefit of freedom of expression and to a certain extent ‘free will’ to choose their own destiny (compared to some other places in the world at any rate). We should be protecting these rights and privileges and ensuring that anyone who lives here and calls themselves British is made to feel as British as the next man, no matter where they were born.

12

i love you man…;).

smiled.

13

The evidence suggests that plenty of people are proud of being British - and the royal wedding is a particularly good example.

London alone will be having more than 500 street parties - and that’s just the ones that have been notified to the local authorities. Across Britain there will be thousands, from the northernmost community in Shetland to the Scilly Islands. Even here in the People’s Republic of Hampstead there’s Union Jack bunting almost wherever you look.

One of the questions asked by the recent Census was, what nationality do you feel yourself to be? English, Welsh, Scottish, Irish, other… or British?

I don’t know about you, but I ticked British.

Yes, it’s hard nowadays to know quite what the Royal Family is for - or rather what it will be for after the Queen dies - but I suppose the answer to that it will not - cannot - be what it has been.

I don’t want a non-executive president. It just makes me think of Hindenburg. And if a royal figurehead -anachronistic and weird, human and flawed; grossly unfair both in the rewards it bestows and the costs it exacts - can continue, against all the logic, to work for Britain, so be it. So long as the people at the heart of it understand that their constituency is every person on these islands of ours, then it’s okay by me.

Even though theoretically I don’t approve.

I liked this piece by Stewart Lee.

14

Love u too :kiss:man hugs all round :PPs. I think I’m British. English Grandparent, Irish mum. I can’t help it she decided to get a leg over in South Africa :P:D

15

argh im scared for life jamie :stuck_out_tongue:

16

Its like this Steve you have a nice petite blonde bird perfect tits and a fanny like a mouses ear and an arse like two skinheads fighting under a blanket… she is perfect in everyway and sometimes she is even up for the ‘Tradesmans entrance’ and she wants it all the time and you see her everyday she is also appears breifly on Tv and in the paper, you live with her too… she even expects you to pay for everything, but it doesnt matter because you love her so much… but even over time you get used to her and her being there all the time seeing her face everywhere you go and that perfection leads to boredom… untill eventually you dont care anymoreThis is a bit like the Royal Family Yes they are british (Apparently) but only a small percentage of brits are interested in them, Like the Eiffel Tower only has small percentage of froggies running up and down it a day, its mainly tourists! I think Harry and Wills are the only two decent royals but like its been said You cant open the front door or paper, turn on the TV or Radio without hearing about it I my personnel view is I couldn’t give a shit about the wedding! … Im proud to be british but not proud of our society or how multi-cultral we are a lot of people in this country never wanted it this way so why is it??? its full of free loaders and spongers now, while hard working people have to subsidise them while our ederly people who fought for this country die because they cant afford to turn on the heating… Its f*cked up thats what it is!

Steve you sure you didnt pop into London and leave any packages laying about before you head off to the new forest??

17

Proud to be a British Republican…simples:D

18

Being proud to be British is totally different to being interested in the wedding of two fabulously privileged people.
I’m extremely proud to be not British, but English, but two toffs getting married doesn’t float my boat.
Let’s face it, there’s not a great deal of British blood in the Royal family anyway…

19

Wonder if they get the day off in Germany, Greece, Belgium, Russia…

20

Well, another way of thinking about it is this… What makes you proud to be british?
Is it merely that feeling you get whenever you see a street lined with the Union Flags? Is it that warmth on your back in spring, when you’re hooning around the twisties on your bike? Or the lump in your throat when you hear “Jerusalem” being sung by a welsh male voice choir? That tear in your eye when the British Lions tour a country and come back with more wins than losses?
Is it the feeling you get when you’re sat on a hill in one of our beautiful national parks, overlooking unrivalled scenery? The warmth of the wood fire in the pub on a cold winters day, whilst you drink a nice pint of real ale?

I’ll tell you what pride is… Pride is seeing the people in Royal Wooten Basset welcoming home the services personnel who have paid the ultimate price for this country, week after week… It is the fire in your belly when you watch an international game and stand shoulder to shoulder with all of your countrymen… It is never surrendering to the will of terrorists, and showing them that we shall never be beaten… It is seeing everybody stop and stare when the Queen drives past in her carriage… It’s standing to attention when the national anthem is played, and hopefully knowing more than one verse! :stuck_out_tongue:

In one way or another, whether you were born in this country or you have been nationalised into it, there are many things that people are proud of in this country. It’s not just about the royal family, or tourist spots. It’s about the things that make us British…

Real ales… Bacon sarnies… Tower Bridge… Breakfast tea… Hot cross buns… Sh1t weather… Nice weather… Rugby… Cricket… Pimms… A glorious and grisly history… An amazing Armed Forces, who do a fantastic job, regardless of cr@p that is thrown at them daily… A fair justice system (Kaos, before you comment, name me any country with more rights!)… A very historical motor industry… The devonshire cream tea with clotted cream… A vast range of beautiful lovely whiskies and whiskeys!.. The list goes on and on, ad infinitum… :slight_smile:

Yes, we have our down side to all of this. We have negative points. We have a problem with immigration and unemployment etc… But, who doesn’t?! :satisfied:

I’m very proud to be British. I always have been, and always will be! When I swore my oath of allegiance, it was to Queen and Country. I still stand by it, and will until the day I die. :satisfied:

So, regardless of whether you will be celebrating the wedding or not, I’d like to wish the happy couple a fantastic day and ongoing happiness. :wink:

PS… Kate, be nice to Grandma and always wear your seatbelt! :wink: :stuck_out_tongue: :w00t: