Rule Britannia

What is it with ladies of a certain age and national flags?

For several years now, the BBC have organised  three Proms in the Park classical concerts that run simultaneously to their daddy at the Albert Hall in London.
This year Colwyn Bay ( which is just down the road) was the Welsh venue, alongside Belfast and Glasgow, so we took our flags , picnic hampers, champagne and blankets to watch the fun.

Now for those that don't know The Last Night Of The Proms is a slightly tongue-in-cheek , undeniably patriotic gallop of a concert, where the audience ( high on good nature and/or  wine)  participate in rousing renditions of British sea shanties, a flag busting Rule Britannia and a tearful There's no place like home. 

The principality concerts tend to be " more inclusive" in nature, what with " pop" singers doing their own hits - backed by a BBC Symphony orchestra but there was plenty of classical turns to watch and enjoy even if the Prof was nearly apoplectic with rage as the Welsh Concert didn't feature Land of Hope And Glory. 

Everyone likes a big finish! 

My sisters ( one in her fifties and the other in her sixties) did what any self possessed British matron would do at the Proms after a couple of glasses of champagne, they spent most of tne second half of tne concert running amok with two oversized flags trailing behind them.
Their interperation ( through the medium of dance and semaphore) was particulary evident during a classical version of Pharrell Williams' Happy and Quincy Jones'  soul Bossa-Nova from Austin Powers! where they cantered up and down like two over excited shetland ponies trailing their harnesses behind them
More Flag Waving

The Prof and sister Janet

Husband & Husband



85 comments:

  1. I listened to it in bed on headphones. I thought the singing was amazing this year or maybe headphones just made it sound amazing. I wondered if you were up there in Colwyn Bay. xx

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  2. I'm with the Prof on the matter of Land of Hope and Glory!
    The last night just ain't the last night without it! X

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    1. Anonymous10:53 am

      " Prof this, Prof that"
      It is interesting that you have the need to always refer to him by his Professional title
      Social climbing per chance?
      Or is it just showing off?

      Petra
      Aka Queen Of The Night

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    2. Ah.....just saw this one! Missed it before!
      The prof prefers to be a more shadiwy figure on going gently.....however, if it is any of your buisness , i am incredibly proud of all of his hard work and am happy to fly the " prof " flag whenever i can.
      Have you ever worked hard for anything Petra?
      Scrub that question ....you are no longer in a position to answer it anymore!

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    3. I like the semi-anonymous title of "the Prof" for your husband. It wouldn't be fair to reveal too much specific stuff about him on your blog without his express permission each time.

      And you should be proud of your husband and all he's accomplished. Someone must be more than a little jealous...I wonder why. On second thought, no I don't...jealous people are simply unhappy with their own meagre lot in life.

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    4. someone has twisted poor Petras knickers just a wee bit too tight ..

      I always refer to my husband *online* as The Yankee.
      He doesn't/didn't blog so why should I name him all the time .. invade his privacy ?
      This Petra person is getting to be boring ..

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    5. well I was going to comment on John's post until I saw this comment. You obviously don't follow Going Gently as you would know John like we do for the lovely generous man he is.
      On my Blog, my husband is Husband as you don't know him through blogging so no reason to say his name.

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    6. Your resting bitch face is getting old, tired and saggy Petra, do give it a rest before your desperate need for attention becomes even more obvious.

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  3. My partner joined in at the end - he said it was singing. Neither I nor the cat agreed with him. Havent seen the cat since.

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    1. A man after my own heart

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    2. Funny how cats are when you sing .. or sing to them. My dog would swoon when I sang him a lullaby, my cat tries her best to bite my nose. Only when I sing. Hmmmm.

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  4. Oh no ......singing Land of Hope and Glory is my favourite bit !!!!! I'm very much like your sisters and would have been singing at the top of my voice and waving my flag !!!!!! 🇬🇧 XXXX

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    1. But would you have been galloping around like a madcow?

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    2. YES.... With bells on!!!!!! XXXX

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  5. Think I have the same genes as your sisters John Gray, I too, like to run amok, quite often actually !!!

    See Moaning Myrtle is back !!!

    You refer to the Prof as the Prof, well, I have my Cycling Proficiency Badge, you can now call me Tufty !!!!

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    1. Anonymous11:43 am

      Fucking Tufty
      Fucking Professor
      Fuck off good writing

      P
      QOTN

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    2. Block back on.....sigh

      You racid bitch!

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    3. Anonymous12:20 pm

      Oh no, not this again! Please John, be strict and block Anon and all these dump comments for all the future.

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    4. Anonymous12:22 pm

      Sorry John, something went wrong. I try again not to be "unknown"

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    5. Strange people sit on the internet and find the oddest places to vent their weirdness.
      I guess blocking/ reviewing before publishing is the route to go with this pathetic creature.

      Delete
  6. Anonymous12:02 pm

    Relax, John. You are the one advocating "humoUr". Come on: Petra, the Queen of the Night, is good value for no outlay.

    I have just learnt that you have TWO sisters. Surely you know all about "needling". It's what Petra does. Do what my brother did. Rise to the challenge. We adore him.

    If Petra comes from one corner (Prof) I come from the other: "Husband"? What's with all the official possession obsession? The man has a name.

    Hugs and hisses, Albert will understand,
    U

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  7. And 'Land of my Fathers' at full belt.

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    1. It was sosban fach that was sung
      For those that dont know sosban fach is a traditional welsh song which translated means small saucepan

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  8. Land of Hope and Glory always brings tears to my eyes and a lump in my throat, so that my singing is more like croaking. Always my favourite bit!

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    1. Me too and Jerusalem

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    2. Anonymous4:17 pm

      I flew to the UK for my dad's funeral last year. After the service, on the way out of church, we'd arranged for the organist play Jerusalem as the processional. My brother and I walked side by side behind the pall bearers with my sister and son behind us. Nobody else sang but my brother and I belted out the words as we walked, it was one of mum and dad's favourites. Afterwards my son told me that he'd managed to hold things together through the whole service but cried buckets when my brother and I started to sing.

      I can't sing it any more without shedding a tear and it's a good thing.

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    3. Wonderful graham wonderful

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  9. bobdammit, the twat twins are back (P & U).

    the last pix is the best.

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    1. Twat twins!
      Oh you are adorable

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    3. The "PU" made me laugh! :)

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    4. happy to entertain you! :)

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    5. You're brilliant anne marie!

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    6. nah, just trying to make sense of it all.

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  10. Anonymous1:13 pm

    Anne Marie in Philly, I have noticed that you are quick on the uptake when it comes to putting people down; not that you expend any effort on reasoning. "Twat"? Do not look further than your mirror. In fact, why not make it triple twats? Safety in numbers.

    U

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  11. If we are discussing twats..." Twat twins" sound much better than " triple twats"
    Having said that triple twat sounds fun too

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  12. Lets keep tge subject to proms!

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  13. Ooo I love a good canter with a large flag, being of a "matronly" age and figure you can imagine the effect, more cantering shire horse than Shetland pony, but who cares? From 20 to 28 I along with two friends bought season tickets to the Proms every year, we had a great time, saw some wonderful artists, conductors, singers etc. Oh my misspent youth. Loved the photo of you and the Prof at the end, really sweet. Sue

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  14. I watched most of it but managed to switch it off before 'Land of H & G' and the usual boringly predictable (I assume) speech - but stayed with it only because I wanted to see the mystery solved as to how the world-famous Peruvian tenor (of whom Id never heard) would turn out. I thought it was going to be as Paddy Bear either emblazoned on a tee or even him in a full bear costume, but that was rather pre-empted in his first-half appearance. So, as it transpired, how wrong can one be? Quite knocked out I was by his rig-out, not to say jealous.

    I'm glad you brought a touch of sobriety and decorum to the masses at C.Bay. Must have been disconcerting to see all those crazed women flying around trailing flags, streamers - and, if they hadn't been your own sisters, I shouldn't have been surprised to hear, knickers round ankles? But, being of your own stock, they'd have been far too respectable for 'that sort of thing', I'm sure. :-)

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    1. I was the designated driver raymondo!

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    2. Ah well, even if you hadn't been I can't imagine you being other than a model of respectability - providing you hadn't gone in your pj's of course. ;-)

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  15. oh gawd, I have a sister like that too! 60 something senager

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  16. I just love the last picture so very much.

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    1. You can see my double chins

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    2. Only you would notice that. I learned long ago that people who love us only see the person they love. It is only we ourselves who see the 'flaws'.

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  17. No - sorry. Sounds like all Dante's nine circles of hell.

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  18. Loved your description of the interpretation as "through dance and semaphore." My dad was a signalman in the Coast Guard during WWII, stationed in the South Pacific. When we were kids, he used to do semaphore flag demonstrations for us that often took a naughty turn. We knew he was spelling out something risque because of the twinkle in his eye and my mother's exclamation of "Oh, Jack!"

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  19. Do you mean to tell me you didn't fall in love with the chap in costume singing Rule Britannia?

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    1. No but the conductor here in wales WAS a dish

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  20. we watched this great event on the set last night and when I saw Colwyn Bay I started look for you in the crowd. What a glorious feast that was, I hope you had a jolly good time!! Always loved the Proms but I have never experienced it live. That is yet to come!! Land of hope and glory!!!

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  21. I love the photo of the Prof looking silly with his sister. That's a side of him we don't often see here on GG.

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  22. This is all such a foreign concept to me as we have nothing similar, but it sure sounds like a good time! Your sisters are just proving that age is nothing but a number :)

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    1. "age is nothing but a number" - says the 62 year old adorable american (according to john)!

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  23. Lovely photographs John. My word, I remember singing Sosban Fach so often at school. Memories.

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    1. The prof couldnt quite believe what the song meant in English

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  24. What a fun night! But...are you guys wearing coats??? I'm so jealous. I live in Florida and our AC is still cranking away...it was 89 degrees today! I love Colwyn Bay...I've visited northern Wales three times and can't wait to get back.

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    1. Amy ... I want a coat where I live too ... in the middle of the night when the ac finally chills the house off well ( I live in Florida now too :)

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  25. What a fun night! But...are you guys wearing coats??? I'm so jealous. I live in Florida and our AC is still cranking away...it was 89 degrees today! I love Colwyn Bay...I've visited northern Wales three times and can't wait to get back.

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    1. It was bloody cold after the sun went down

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  26. I'm shocked! We're from New Zealand and we ALWAYS watch LNOTP, and Jerusalem and Land of H&G are unmissable - how could they have been left out!!

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  27. I never did understand the flag-waving tendency. It says nothing whatever to me except "I like waving flags". Here in Northern Ireland of course the flag-waving tendency is taken to an absurd extreme. Any excuse to put up a Union Jack or a tricolour and up they go, usually staying there for months until they've been tattered and shredded by the elements.

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  28. I sort of understand the US flag waving thing ..
    you know the Star Spangled Banner etc. The flag stands for something more than just being this country's flag .
    And then there is the famous photo / statue of the Americans at Iwo Jima http://www.iwojima.com/bond/lflage.gif

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  29. Not my cup of tea but so happy you all had a good time, John.

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    1. I bet you have waved the old maple leaf once or twice eh?

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  30. It looks as though the Florida chapter of "Friends of John" should arrange an outing... Key West anyone?

    I love the photos, particularly the last two.

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  31. Are we sure Petra is not the name for some drag Queen of the night. Maybe just a jealous poor lonely man envious of your and the Prof happiness.

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    1. I suspect i know who petra is ......mia moore?

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    2. Anonymous5:17 am

      No, John, it's not Mia Moore. It's not her style. Mia Moore is straight forward and signs off under her name.

      However, I myself do have a strong inkling who "Petra" is. What people don't realize is that, a bit like one's gait, it's not easy to disguise a style of writing.

      If I am right (and I hope I am not) then you'll be in for a shock.

      U

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    3. Someone told me that mia was you!
      Anyhow , block will remain on all anonymous comments so unless ithe offender joins google, we wont hear anything more

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  32. Are we sure Petra is not the name for some drag Queen of the night. Maybe just a jealous poor lonely man envious of your and the Prof happiness.

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  33. "like two over excited shetland ponies trailing their harnesses behind them." A perfectly wonderful simile. :D

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  34. We went to Hyde park one. Not allowed booze but smmugled some Pimms in. Twenty quid for bog standard vino is a rip off. Madness and Quo were brilliant.

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  35. We went to Hyde park one. Not allowed booze but smmugled some Pimms in. Twenty quid for bog standard vino is a rip off. Madness and Quo were brilliant.

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  36. John love the husband and husband photo, a tender moment.

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  37. Love that last picture :-)

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