I can't believe this
Yesterday, Britain had one of its golden sporting days of all time. The World Athletics Championships closed with two more silver medals - with Britain winning many more than had been expected, and that in spite of the fact that the great Paula Radcliffe had not been able to take part - and, which tasted much sweeter in British mouths, the Australians were comprehensively beaten at cricket. Americans and other non-cricketing countries will not understand this, but "the Ashes" (as victory in an England-Australia cricket series is called, from an old and unimportant joke) is probably the greatest rivalry in all sports, and certainly of immense importance to Britain. In recent years, except for the epic Flintoff victory of a few years ago (on which I blogged at the time), England have been habitually pounded by the Australians. This time the shoe was very much on the other foot, and while the great Freddie Flintoff was clearly at the end of his physical form, he nevertheless managed one of the great moments of the triumph, a splendid throw from across the field that ran out the Australian captain, Ponting, just as Ponting looked like rescuing his side. It was, in short, the kind of victory of which people will be speaking in years (well, perhaps not in Australia).
So what is it that leaves me astounded and dumbfounded?
This. In any country, anywhere, under any circumstances, the local political leaders would have rushed to congratulate the heroes of athletics and cricket; both out of real pleasure in a great moment of national self-assertion and shared public happiness, and out of the instinctive desire to rub on some of the stardust of sporting triumph. (As a more than usually cynical Italian PM, Spadolini, said at the time of Italy's World Cup triumph of 1982, what matters is whether you are seen to have luck.) Even if you are not a fan, indeed even if sports bore you, it is simply political commonsense to be seen to share in the joy of the commons; and the Queen, this time, was the first to do so.
So where were her Prime Minister and his government?
Nowhere.
I have rarely seen such a devastating demonstration of Gordon Brown's, and of his party's, complete and utter lack of contact or empathy with the people they are supposed to represent.
So what is it that leaves me astounded and dumbfounded?
This. In any country, anywhere, under any circumstances, the local political leaders would have rushed to congratulate the heroes of athletics and cricket; both out of real pleasure in a great moment of national self-assertion and shared public happiness, and out of the instinctive desire to rub on some of the stardust of sporting triumph. (As a more than usually cynical Italian PM, Spadolini, said at the time of Italy's World Cup triumph of 1982, what matters is whether you are seen to have luck.) Even if you are not a fan, indeed even if sports bore you, it is simply political commonsense to be seen to share in the joy of the commons; and the Queen, this time, was the first to do so.
So where were her Prime Minister and his government?
Nowhere.
I have rarely seen such a devastating demonstration of Gordon Brown's, and of his party's, complete and utter lack of contact or empathy with the people they are supposed to represent.