political commentator * author * publisher * bookseller * radio presenter * blogger * Conservative candidate * former lobbyist * Jack Russell owner * West Ham United fanatic * Email iain AT iaindale DOT com
I'm old enough to remember when this day was celebrated by a school holiday. More's the pity that we don't even tell our kids about it any more, or show any pride in our nation. Of course, it isn't ours any more as immigrants don't give a toss and the socialists have us all well and truly screwed!
Thanks Iain, Best wishes on our saints day to you.
Please forgive my diversion to matters football. I see West Ham play away to Man U on the last day of the Premiership season. I hope you get a ref with some of the courage ascribed to Saint George to give you a penalty at Old Trafford if it is justified under the rules of football as opposed to those of Ferguson. I support Boro enough said.
St. George was beheaded for his defense of those with Christian beliefs...I wonder why that jars with New Labour?...the wife of the Emperor who ordered his death was so taken by his...er bravery(so it is reported) she became a Christian too and was put to the sword as well by her loving hubby!
Attended a St George's Day Ball on Saturday evening that is organised for charity and very well supported by the whole City. For the first time the Labour MP was there as well! (are there elections coming up?)
All stood and sang Jersusalem with gusto and feeling like we do every year, listened to a reading of This Sceptered Isle and a message from the Birthday Girl, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, whom we then toasted - which is more than can be said for the current Labour Mayor of the City when he was sworn in last May..
Can't wait 'till Labour lose and rebrand and we can claim back the Red Rose too...
St. George then looking round about, The fiery dragon soon espy'd, And like a knight of courage stout, Against him did most furiously ride; And with such blows he did him greet, He fell beneath his horse's feet.
For with his launce that was so strong, As he came gaping in his face, In at his mouth he thrust along; For he could pierce no other place: And thus within the lady's view This mighty dragon straight he slew.
The savour of his poisoned breath Could do this holy knight no harm; Thus he the lady sav'd from death, And home he led her by the arm; Which when King Ptolemy did see, There was great mirth and melody...
Now when St. George did surely know This lady was a virgin true, His heart was glad, that erst was woe, And all his love did soon renew: He set her on a palfrey steed, And towards England came with speed.
Where being in short space arriv'd Unto his native dwelling place, Therein with his dear love he livd, And fortune did his nuptials grace: They many years of joy did see, And led their lives at Coventry.
On Saturday 23 April 1994, Manchester United beat Manchester City 2-0 at Old Trafford thanks to two first-half goals from Eric Cantona.
1966 was truly a great year England, the national football team won 'World War III' against the Germans in our own backyard to win the World Cup and Eric Le King was born.
It's good that some people remember St. George's day.
For a day of 'Britishness' the old Empire Day marking Queen Victoria's birthday should be resurrected and given a slightly more acceptable name. Date for your calendars - May 24th.
Fascinating, is it not, that George was a Turk and is also the patron saint of Greece, Serbia and Ethiopia to name but three. National identity and patriotism are complicated things - not that this thread's dimmer element has noticed.
excellent I have celebrated on my blog by posting a picture of a naked woman with three st george crosses covering her "bits" She is also covered in soap suds , Its what St George would have wanted.
"For a day of 'Britishness' the old Empire Day marking Queen Victoria's birthday should be resurrected and given a slightly more acceptable name. Date for your calendars - May 24th."
Can I ask you (And Gordon Fucking Brown) What Britishness means, and what is the point of 'Britishness' when Great Britain does not really exist any more. What country do you live in? I'll give you a clue, it's not England, Scotland or Wales, because these aren't countries any more, they are districts. It's not the Union of England and Scotland, its not Great Britain. It is in fact the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Irelend.
So worrying about "Britishness" is similar to worrying about being Kentish or from Somerset or Cornish etc.
I am an English Patriot and as such I spurn the silly idolisation of saints ,. What are we a bunch of jabbering Latins or sadly insecure Welsh who feel a Daffoldil stuck up their collective arse adds to their dignity. Look at the mean Pictish Horde to the North they blather on about a poet that wouldn`t get a job writing rhymes for crackers and who with great good sense they otherwise ignore.
No no we need no such tragic pantomime we carry our country in our hearts and we can have a piss up with the Paddys .
Anyway I feel sorry for the Dragon, couldn`t he have just trailed an artificial Dragon scent and chased that around instead. (Iain only likes him because he thinks he was called St.Boy George)
JAVELIN It has been quite obvious that that her Maj would be a Gooner.She is right about evrything including this . Still Thanks for bringing the front page of the Sun to a smaller audience?
The "Anon" at 2pm is off-target - the post he attacked spoke of "Britishness", which certainly exists. I am the first to pick people up for calling the country Britain or worse Great Britain, it is the UK. But the nationality on our passports is "British", and hence there is Britishness.
Interestingly British Columbia (Vancouver) in Canada still has Queen Victoria's birthday as a public holiday. I was there once for it and very fine it was too.
We could make it the nearest Monday to 24th May and call it Victoria Day (celebrating all things British) instead of the late spring bank holiday or whatever it's called. With "May Day", that would be one for them and one for us, so to speak.
Thank you, Iain! And a happy St George's Day to all the English people posting here, wherever they may be! (And this goes for all the people in the Anglosphere who are of English descent - our American, Canadian, Ozzie and NZ cousins!)
That's Boris Yeltzin, not Johnston. Post above gave me a shock, as I thought Johnston!
A gooner is an Arsenal supporter, verity. HM has shown immaculate good taste by supporting the North London aristocrats of the game, rather than any disreputable East End rabble that certain people might occasionally mention...
A Gooner Verity is a superior breed or more properly strain between the breeds Homosapien that over long generations has evolved to be noticeably superior to others . Genetic testing has located their home territory in the North of London. Interestingly just to the east there seems to have been a parallel development for another sub group or strain often referred to colloquially as the “Spurs” on account of their intellectual parity with a horse or pig say. Typically the “ Spurs “ or cleaning Latrines for the Gooners comfort . The relationship is somewhat like the Spartan and the Helots and the lesser breed show little sign of wishing to displace their superiors . It is speculated that so many years of abject subjugation have rendered them incapable of believing anything but miserable failure is possible for them.
At some stage, you may even have the chance to see a programme about Mrs Beckham as well, where you can see her doing very interesting things; looking at houses, and schools for her kids. The later episodes are all being planned now.
All riveting stuff. I can wait...
This is one good reason to stay living in England though ;0)
And, for the record,'being given the gooner', meant getting the sack, when I was much younger!
Chaps, chaps - honour our friend Verity with a straight answer to a straight enough question.
A "Gooner" is a loyal Arsenal fan... who will spend the rest of this season watching superior teams scoop the silverware and will spend next season watching the same teams playing in Europe.
The Beckams personally do not hold any allure for me. Here is the sum total of my knowledge about them: I know what David Beckham looks like. He is very handsome. Who he plays for, I haven't a clue.
Victoria Beckham - Wouldn't recognise her (unless she was standing next to David and I could make the connection - but she came to my attention when she had her first child and they named him Romeo. A member of the press asked her, "Why did you name your son Romeo? Was it after the play?" to which Mrs Beckham replied, "What play?"
I wouldn't mind a bank holiday today if we could replace the Socialist May Day (or first week of May) BH. There are too many bank holidays around this time of year though. Far better to have an Agincourt Day in the Autumn, and/or a Flodden Day replacing the meaningless August Bank Holiday.
And the same to you Iain. Have a great day in our great nation.
ReplyDeleteGoogle could have joined in.
Thank you Iain for celebrating the patron saint of the English. Shows not all Tories have New Labour stockholm syndrome.
ReplyDeleteI'm old enough to remember when this day was celebrated by a school holiday. More's the pity that we don't even tell our kids about it any more, or show any pride in our nation. Of course, it isn't ours any more as immigrants don't give a toss and the socialists have us all well and truly screwed!
ReplyDeleteWonder how many people actually know what St George is all about.
ReplyDeleteI vaguely remember the date from school days but haven't got a clue who he was or why is is the English patron saint.
Happy St George's Day Iain
ReplyDeleteI'm planning a drink down the local to celebrate, I think that's what St George would have wanted.
PS
I wonder how long before the anti English/St George’s day sentiment starts in the comments?
Thanks Iain, Best wishes on our saints day to you.
ReplyDeletePlease forgive my diversion to matters football. I see West Ham play away to Man U on the last day of the Premiership season. I hope you get a ref with some of the courage ascribed to Saint George to give you a penalty at Old Trafford if it is justified under the rules of football as opposed to those of Ferguson. I support Boro enough said.
And thanks to Ken Livingstone for backing official St George's Day events in London today and over the weekend just gone.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.london.gov.uk/gla/events/index.jsp
Happy St. George's Day.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't you have ironed that flag before you hung it up?
It's a shame that St. George's Day isn't really celebrated anymore. I'd rather celebrate this than the proposed 'Britishness Day'
I think the problem is that the day falls between two bank holidays already so it does not have the same significance as it should.
St. George was beheaded for his defense of those with Christian beliefs...I wonder why that jars with New Labour?...the wife of the Emperor who ordered his death was so taken by his...er bravery(so it is reported) she became a Christian too and was put to the sword as well by her loving hubby!
ReplyDeleteAttended a St George's Day Ball on Saturday evening that is organised for charity and very well supported by the whole City. For the first time the Labour MP was there as well! (are there elections coming up?)
All stood and sang Jersusalem with gusto and feeling like we do every year, listened to a reading of This Sceptered Isle and a message from the Birthday Girl, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, whom we then toasted - which is more than can be said for the current Labour Mayor of the City when he was sworn in last May..
Can't wait 'till Labour lose and rebrand and we can claim back the Red Rose too...
When you get your new car iaian get a St George's flag on the plates
ReplyDeleteSt George's Day
ReplyDeleteAnon. Old English
St. George then looking round about,
The fiery dragon soon espy'd,
And like a knight of courage stout,
Against him did most furiously ride;
And with such blows he did him greet,
He fell beneath his horse's feet.
For with his launce that was so strong,
As he came gaping in his face,
In at his mouth he thrust along;
For he could pierce no other place:
And thus within the lady's view
This mighty dragon straight he slew.
The savour of his poisoned breath
Could do this holy knight no harm;
Thus he the lady sav'd from death,
And home he led her by the arm;
Which when King Ptolemy did see,
There was great mirth and melody...
Now when St. George did surely know
This lady was a virgin true,
His heart was glad, that erst was woe,
And all his love did soon renew:
He set her on a palfrey steed,
And towards England came with speed.
Where being in short space arriv'd
Unto his native dwelling place,
Therein with his dear love he livd,
And fortune did his nuptials grace:
They many years of joy did see,
And led their lives at Coventry.
Happy St George's Day, Iain and everyone!
Auntie Flo'
A surprisingly thoughtful piece on the Grauniad CIF website this morning.
ReplyDeletehttp://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/david_cox/2007/04/unbeloved_country.html
Having largely grown out of God-bothering, I prefer to celebrate the birth and death on this day of Will Shakespeare (who was, at least, not Turkish).
Well done Iain, it's a brave man these days who dares to speak of the Day that dares not speak it's name.
ReplyDeleteditto :+)
ReplyDeleteOn Saturday 23 April 1994, Manchester United beat Manchester City 2-0 at Old Trafford thanks to two first-half goals from Eric Cantona.
ReplyDelete1966 was truly a great year England, the national football team won 'World War III' against the Germans in our own backyard to win the World Cup and Eric Le King was born.
Ere mate, you got planning permish to fly that flag?
ReplyDeleteSeen this, Ian? Third story in.
ReplyDeleteBest
Jason.
http://news.independent.co.uk/media/article2472431.ece
It's good that some people remember St. George's day.
ReplyDeleteFor a day of 'Britishness' the old Empire Day marking Queen Victoria's birthday should be resurrected and given a slightly more acceptable name. Date for your calendars - May 24th.
Happy St George's Day to you too Iain.
ReplyDeleteFascinating, is it not, that George was a Turk and is also the patron saint of Greece, Serbia and Ethiopia to name but three. National identity and patriotism are complicated things - not that this thread's dimmer element has noticed.
Best Wishes.
your best post for weeks
ReplyDeleteVery Bad news Iain The Sun is reporting the Queen is a Gooner.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,31-2007180693,00.html
excellent
ReplyDeleteI have celebrated on my blog by posting a picture of a naked woman with three st george crosses covering her "bits"
She is also covered in soap suds , Its what St George would have wanted.
I'm dsyflagsic, I thought it was the Swiss flag you had posted...
ReplyDelete"For a day of 'Britishness' the old Empire Day marking Queen Victoria's birthday should be resurrected and given a slightly more acceptable name. Date for your calendars - May 24th."
ReplyDeleteCan I ask you (And Gordon Fucking Brown) What Britishness means, and what is the point of 'Britishness' when Great Britain does not really exist any more. What country do you live in? I'll give you a clue, it's not England, Scotland or Wales, because these aren't countries any more, they are districts. It's not the Union of England and Scotland, its not Great Britain. It is in fact the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Irelend.
So worrying about "Britishness" is similar to worrying about being Kentish or from Somerset or Cornish etc.
Britishness my arse.
Oh and happy st George's day!
I am an English Patriot and as such I spurn the silly idolisation of saints ,. What are we a bunch of jabbering Latins or sadly insecure Welsh who feel a Daffoldil stuck up their collective arse adds to their dignity. Look at the mean Pictish Horde to the North they blather on about a poet that wouldn`t get a job writing rhymes for crackers and who with great good sense they otherwise ignore.
ReplyDeleteNo no we need no such tragic pantomime we carry our country in our hearts and we can have a piss up with the Paddys .
Anyway I feel sorry for the Dragon, couldn`t he have just trailed an artificial Dragon scent and chased that around instead. (Iain only likes him because he thinks he was called St.Boy George)
JAVELIN It has been quite obvious that that her Maj would be a Gooner.She is right about evrything including this . Still Thanks for bringing the front page of the Sun to a smaller audience?
Of course, it isn't ours any more as immigrants don't give a toss and the socialists have us all well and truly screwed
ReplyDeleteVIENNA WOODS- Why don`t you say what you mean. I `m tired of this PC dithering you seem to go in for .
XXXXX
St. George was beheaded for his defense of those with Christian beliefs...I wonder why that jars with New Labour?...
ReplyDeleteYawn.
I'm sure it also jars with 'right-on' David Cameron, too.
The Tories really can't continue to peddle this partisan nonsense any longer, not when their own leadership apes New Labour in every practical sense.
A plague on both your houses. ;o)
The "Anon" at 2pm is off-target - the post he attacked spoke of "Britishness", which certainly exists. I am the first to pick people up for calling the country Britain or worse Great Britain, it is the UK. But the nationality on our passports is "British", and hence there is Britishness.
ReplyDeleteInterestingly British Columbia (Vancouver) in Canada still has Queen Victoria's birthday as a public holiday. I was there once for it and very fine it was too.
We could make it the nearest Monday to 24th May and call it Victoria Day (celebrating all things British) instead of the late spring bank holiday or whatever it's called. With "May Day", that would be one for them and one for us, so to speak.
no blog about the death of boris yet?
ReplyDeleteThank you, Iain! And a happy St George's Day to all the English people posting here, wherever they may be! (And this goes for all the people in the Anglosphere who are of English descent - our American, Canadian, Ozzie and NZ cousins!)
ReplyDelete(What's a gooner?)
That's Boris Yeltzin, not Johnston. Post above gave me a shock, as I thought Johnston!
ReplyDeleteA gooner is an Arsenal supporter, verity. HM has shown immaculate good taste by supporting the North London aristocrats of the game, rather than any disreputable East End rabble that certain people might occasionally mention...
A Gooner Verity is a superior breed or more properly strain between the breeds Homosapien that over long generations has evolved to be noticeably superior to others . Genetic testing has located their home territory in the North of London. Interestingly just to the east there seems to have been a parallel development for another sub group or strain often referred to colloquially as the “Spurs” on account of their intellectual parity with a horse or pig say. Typically the “ Spurs “ or cleaning Latrines for the Gooners comfort .
ReplyDeleteThe relationship is somewhat like the Spartan and the Helots and the lesser breed show little sign of wishing to displace their superiors . It is speculated that so many years of abject subjugation have rendered them incapable of believing anything but miserable failure is possible for them.
Oh Londoner you rotter you spoilt my fun...
ReplyDeleteHe's the patron saint of Moscow too, from where I send these fraternal greetings.
ReplyDeleteI would have sent fraternal greetings from Moscow also if I wasn't dead.
ReplyDeleteI know who David Beckam is and that about covers football in my life.
ReplyDeletelondoner - who is boris johnston ?
ReplyDeleteWell Verity,
ReplyDeleteAt some stage, you may even have the chance to see a programme about Mrs Beckham as well, where you can see her doing very interesting things; looking at houses, and schools for her kids. The later episodes are all being planned now.
All riveting stuff. I can wait...
This is one good reason to stay living in England though ;0)
And, for the record,'being given the gooner', meant getting the sack, when I was much younger!
Chaps, chaps - honour our friend Verity with a straight answer to a straight enough question.
ReplyDeleteA "Gooner" is a loyal Arsenal fan... who will spend the rest of this season watching superior teams scoop the silverware and will spend next season watching the same teams playing in Europe.
The Beckams personally do not hold any allure for me. Here is the sum total of my knowledge about them: I know what David Beckham looks like. He is very handsome. Who he plays for, I haven't a clue.
ReplyDeleteVictoria Beckham - Wouldn't recognise her (unless she was standing next to David and I could make the connection - but she came to my attention when she had her first child and they named him Romeo. A member of the press asked her, "Why did you name your son Romeo? Was it after the play?" to which Mrs Beckham replied, "What play?"
Verity -
ReplyDeleteThe first Beckham brat was called "Brooklyn", supposedly because that it where the little mite was conceived.
Following this line of thinking, I'm sure we can expect many more chav brats to go under names like "Citroen Saxo" or "Underthepier."
OK,Romeo was the next one, then.
ReplyDeleteChelsea Clinton was called Chelsea because that's where she was conceived. I think this is way, way too much information.
I wouldn't mind a bank holiday today if we could replace the Socialist May Day (or first week of May) BH. There are too many bank holidays around this time of year though. Far better to have an Agincourt Day in the Autumn, and/or a Flodden Day replacing the meaningless August Bank Holiday.
ReplyDeleteVerity -
ReplyDeleteFar be it for me to contradict you but - assumes a crouching position behind the sofa...
I had always believed that Chelsea got her name from "Chelsea Morning" by Joni Mitchell.
Or maybe that was just a nice story, made up by two far-from-nice parents...