God Save Our Queen At Twickenham Stadium
31
December 2016
Theme:
The Edison Project List
My recent posts have focused on the fact I have become a dad – a series I refer to as ‘Playing Dad’. Being a dad is now my go-to topic of conversation, and the focal point of all my social media accounts. It will come as a surprise to some that this post returns to the original subject of my blog – ‘The Edison Project List’.
Around this time of the year, I would normally begin to transition the spotlight from the previous year’s list to that of the ensuing year. However, progress on the 2016 list is not quite over. In fact, I managed to tick off two items in less than 24hrs taking my final tally of completed items to 17 for 2016 (for the record, that is a new PB having completed 16 items in 2015). So, what were these two items? (Is it me, or do others find rhetorical questions pointless when used in this context? It is pretty obvious what the answer is thanks to the blog post title and supporting image.) Anyway, I diverge. The first item was #90 – Attend an England international rugby game.
On the 3rd December, I was invited to Twickenham, the Home of England Rugby, to see England take on Australia. This was a game of much importance, not just for the rivalry between the two nations, but also because England had the opportunity to equal their 14-test winning record set back in 2003.
Strictly speaking, this was not my first time at Twickenham to see the England rugby team. My previous experience was a school trip to see an England select take on Argentina, but this trip lacked many of the things that made this experience so appealing.
At the rugby – England vs. Australia, Twickenham Stadium
Photograph by Nicholas Moon
On that occasion, there were more empty seats than there were taken. The game was a show-game purely to inspire school-aged children to take up the sport. The low attendance and youthfulness of the crowd in turn impacted on the atmosphere. My desire was to experience a sell-out 82,000 singing ‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot’. The other factor missing from this show-game was the fact it was an England selection. Many big names were missing, and I wanted to see the best-of-the-best. The England vs. Australia autumn international fixture therefore ticked a number of boxes I wanted to experience.
As we took our seats, I was not disappointed. It was a sell-out crowd, and the national anthem was about to commence. This is where the second item completed on my list comes into play. Item #80 was to ‘Learn the national anthem, and sing with pride at an international sporting event’.
The fact I did not know the national anthem will come as a surprise to many, and it is something I have been embarrassed to admit. I am not the only one though. Last year I read an article quoting less than 50% of Brits know the national anthem. That is a shocking stat. It is even more ironic when you consider the criticism given out to our international sports stars when they fail to sing the national anthem aloud. Whilst I agree our athletes should be setting an example, I suspect many of their critics are also ignorant to the full lyrics. Like me, they probably sing aloud the more familiar “god save the queen” lines, and then revert to mumbling in-between. For reference, I have listed all six verses of the national anthem below:
The National Anthem
God save our gracious Queen,
Long live our noble Queen,
God save the Queen!
Send her victorious,
Happy and glorious,
Long to reign over us;
God save the Queen!
***
O Lord our God arise,
Scatter her enemies
And make them fall;
Confound their politics,
Frustrate their knavish tricks,
On Thee our hopes we fix,
God save us all!
***
Thy choicest gifts in store
On her be pleased to pour;
Long may she reign;
May she defend our laws,
And ever give us cause
To sing with heart and voice,
God save the Queen!
***
Not in this land alone,
But be God’s mercies known,
From shore to shore!
Lord make the nations see,
That men should brothers be,
And form one family,
The wide world over.
***
From every latent foe,
From the assassins blow,
God save the Queen!
O’er her thine arm extend,
For Britain’s sake defend,
Our mother, prince, and friend,
God save the Queen!
***
Lord grant that Marshal Wade
May by thy mighty aid
Victory bring.
May he sedition hush,
And like a torrent rush,
Rebellious Scots to crush.
God save the King!
***
So on route to the stadium, I spent the whole journey listening and reading the lyrics (primarily the first verse) over-and-over again until it was committed to short-term memory. My plan was to enter the stadium and video the singing of the national anthem in all its glory. Instead, we grabbed a beer, rushed to our seats, and I found myself in awe of the stadium forgetting to film the experience in the process. This is probably a blessing in disguise given my lack of singing ability.
The game itself started poorly for England with a number of errors allowing Australia to take the lead, but over time England clawed it back to eventually win 37-21, securing a 14-test game winning record.
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Photograph by Nicholas Moon
Seeing an England international rugby game was thoroughly enjoyable, and certainly something I highly recommend others to experience at least once. Twickenham Stadium is an impressive venue, especially at full capacity, but the symmetry of it does lack character. The atmosphere was friendly and jovial, and certainly more gentlemanly than what you would experience at a football match. And whilst I found the experience refreshing, my allegiances remain firmly with football. This does not mean I will not return to experience more rugby. Maybe I can build on the experience and attend a game supporting my local team – Saracens.
It is the end of the year, and I will shortly be writing up a review on how much I crossed off the list in 2016. This will no doubt be followed quickly by a summary of the new list for 2017. Fingers crossed this idea continues to inspire new people to take on more experiences and challenges.