UA-100768763-1 Jump to content

British.......


Recommended Posts

So....we're hosting the Olympics & I hope to God nobody f*8ks it up for everybody from everywhere . Not really my stuff but I hope it goes well because my country....for all its failings....is about the best you'll ever find.... although I'm biassed......ENJOY :thumbsup:

Class.......... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19020220 .....of which I have.........none :tongue:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Queen, Bond and The Chariots of Fire sections I enjoyed along with the Punks on the Kangroo boots.

The Cauldron where the flame resides is a art piece and should be left burning and the way it was lit by young athletes is a good choice.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm in an odd place where my britishness is probably starting fade or become distorted, I haven't been back to the UK for nearly 5 yrs and haven't lived there in well over a decade. I did have an interesting conversation the other day about my legal status and if I would give up my british citizenship to get an american one and I'm pretty certain that I wouldn't give up my british passport, I guess I do still have some pride in my country of birth after all!

T.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It was literally brilliant, I was waiting all evening for something to go wrong. How long until Boyle gets his knighthood then?

Very proud right now, though I doubt our athletes are suddenly all going to be good.

Ness - that Spice Girls rumour was all but confirmed, I do think would've been a nice touch.

As for British things that weren't in the ceremony... we could habe had Superman, Batman & Spider-Man, shame!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Of course when the Germans came in there was a bloke doing a seig heil salute to them with our lord mayor of London Good old boris laughing in the background

http://www.opposingviews.com/i/entertainment/tv/man-does-sieg-heil-salute-2012-olympics-opening-ceremonies

Edited by winkerbean
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Congrats to you Brits, the opening ceremony was a lot of fun. I had the pleasure of spending 2 weeks in London about 18 years ago, and I loved it. I have a legitimate fondness for your country and your culture, and really hope to return one day.

That said, I have a very basic (ie: American) understanding of the map of the UK, so I have to admit that while I am watching the cycling this morning, I keep looking for a guy swimming in a pond, surrounded by sheep and toy barns. :)

Timbo, I had no idea you were a Brit! Definitely keep that citizenship!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ness - that Spice Girls rumour was all but confirmed, I do think would've been a nice touch.

:confused: i was only joking. didn't realise they were actually in talks to be there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I really liked the tardis sound in the musical montage, i'm glad dr who got in there somewhere

You heard that too? Nobody else in my house did, I thought I was going batty! highfive2.gif

Great job, Britons! Excellent Opening ceremony. I actually got teary-eyed at the lighting of the torch. Great symbolism of all the nations coming together into one whole.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ness - that Spice Girls rumour was all but confirmed, I do think would've been a nice touch.

:confused: i was only joking. didn't realise they were actually in talks to be there.

Well, they did announce a reunion recently, so it's not that far outside of the realm of possibilities. I guess you'll have to settle for Blur's reunion. I have to say, as a fan of BritPop... I can't stand Blur.:yucky:

Jon Stewart had a very funny bit about the problems with the runup to the Olympics this week:

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-july-24-2012/mind-the-crap

Sorry, I can't get it to embed.:confused:

Edited by hellpop
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Queen, Bond and The Chariots of Fire sections I enjoyed along with the Punks on the Kangroo boots.

The Cauldron where the flame resides is a art piece and should be left burning and the way it was lit by young athletes is a good choice.

This!

It was absoulutely stunning and I loved the humour it had. Can't remember a opening ceremony that was both, as amazing and funny as this at the same time. Very well done, guys!

Of course when the Germans came in there was a bloke doing a seig heil salute to them with our lord mayor of London Good old boris laughing in the background

http://www.opposingviews.com/i/entertainment/tv/man-does-sieg-heil-salute-2012-olympics-opening-ceremonies

I was shocked when I read your comment, winkerbean! I haven't realized this at all during the ceremony, so I googled it to find out mor about it. The "bloke" is Walther Tröger, former president of the German Olympic Committee and it seems that he's using his left instead of his right arm, which would defenitly be the "Hitler Gruss". So he might actually be "just" waving and cheering in a very clumsy (meaning franensteinian) way. Or he's just an old FUCKER! (Sorry, I hardly use that strong language here, but guys behaving like this make me really, really angry and it's one of the reasons I just can't be proud of our country. With a history like ours and people still behaving and acting like this makes me just sick.)

In other news: the US swimm team made me laugh!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's sad that you can't be proud of your country Bob ,I have a fascination for WW2 that is based on a healthy regard for the fact that Germany suffered as much if not more than other nations during that horrendous period. You have much to be proud of in modern-day Germany not least the fact that your country is propping Europe up financially at the moment whether Europe likes it or not.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I get what you're saying, BHM and I'm glad you have this well balanced view of my country - especially as a Brit! :tongue:

I definitly regard a lot of things here in Germany as very well, even great. Basicly everybody graduating from high school has the possibility to go to university because our law states that you don't have to pay for education - to point out one example. There really are a lot of things in modern-day Germany that I won't miss. But that doesn't make me proud of Germany as a whole. It is very important at least for me to not see just modern-day Germany. I try to regard today in its historical context. Know were you come from. That does include the 1930s-1945. Neglecting the history and having next to no critical view of what happened is something way too many of my fellow inhabitants are practicing - especially, and that's sad, a lot of younger people. I might be too critical here, but I do prefer that to forgetting the past.

Although I like it, I won't discuss politics here in detail, since it's the 'verse, but I'm glad you shared your thought. :yes:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

For the record, I absolutely love Germany and its people... can't wait to go back some day.

Glad to hear that! Where have you been in Germany?

And also for the record: I love living here! But being proud of Germany would be a different issue. The whole concept of "being proud", of Nationalstolz - natinoal pride -, was terribly perverted and twisted during the Third Reich. It's hard to believe in such a concept afterwards. There's an entry in the english Wiki which talks about that special case. While cheering for the German team - that's what the article refers to - I would've never hung the flag from our window and I was one of those guys who was pretty annoyed by it. Why? Because I've seen a few people doing it plus adding some hidden symbolism to it. An "88" for example, which in that context refers to the 8th letter in the alphabet and thus "HH" being a code for "Heil Hitler". And Fuckers like these - sorry for the language again - make it really, really hard for me. I know that - thank God - they are only a minority here, but still. One black fly ruins your chardonnay, as Mrs. Morissette once pointed out.

But enough with the politics.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I realise there was a lot more to what you said Bob, and understand there are still 'shadows' if you will, hanging over the the country (or as well as I can understand, being on the outside looking in)... thought I'd lighten the mood a little!

I went to Hamburg a number of years ago (playing chess for the UK Schools team, no less), and thought it was a beautiful place. Would really like to see more of the country, anywhere so into huge sausages and great beers is fine by me. Met a number of German people whilst at university, every single one is incredibly laid back, articulate, and very amusing indeed. I'm also a big fan of German football, which is quickly becoming pretty huge over here... the recent Dortmund side are as enjoyable to watch as any team in Europe just now. Can you suggest some 'must see' places Bob?

Anyway, yes... how are we all enjoying the olympics? I've found myself watching all kinds of nonsense, and thoroughly enjoying it. Spoilt for choice really, it is essentially on 2 of our regular channels 24hrs a day... as well as having introduced 11 or so extra channels just for live coverage. It is quite incredible.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I saw a lot of Germany during the 2006 World Cup when I went out there for 3 weeks or so. Loved it, some remarkable cities.

And I must say, despite all of our media perceived "differences" I find that the German sense of humour is very similar to ours in the UK. Met some great people, was just a shame that some of our footy fans that made the trip were such morons.

I do sometimes wonder what the rest of the world thinks of us when they see overweight shirtless men covered in tattoos, screaming nonsense at the top of their lungs. At least these games can help to dispel the myth that our sports fans are all from a certain mould.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was kinda bored with the opening ceremony. I was in Atlanta in 1996 for the entire Olympic games. It was like being in crazy town. The opening ceremony in ATL was probably the coolest event I have ever been to (and I have been to just about every major sporting event known), but imagine it was lame to those not attending. I was surrounded by people of the world and we all got along like we had known eachother for years. The night the bomb went off in Centennial Park, my phone rang off the hook with family members checkin on me. The whole thing was a mess in my eyes, but I enjoyed all the events I went to. Don't ever let anyone tell you Olympic Badminton is boring...

I hope the best for London. It seems many a crazy person or group will do their best to make trouble while the world is watching, but the Brits seem to have it covered.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...