Football, Tennis & Nationalism

Well that's the football over now, thank god the Germans didn't win! I had high hopes for the Dutch but the Spanish are worthy winners. It's been a great tournament which as you'll have noticed from previous blogs, I wasn't that excited about to start off with, but from the off the tournament has produced some exhilarating football. It only goes to highlight our own inadequacy's, we can but dream.

This weekend has also seen Glastonbury music festival arrive. A lot has been made about Jay - Z headlining, being a hip-hop, non - rock artist (shock horror!) and by all accounts its been a big success. If the BBC I-Player is anything to go by, even late on Sunday night his set has been the most watched, so unless the organizers don't want to be commercial (& Glastonbury has always been eclectic) then all power to him. Let's face it if you want to rock out go to Reading or Leeds! I'm a big fan of the I-Player, for those that have not tried it, if you have broadband is simple to use and is definitely the future way we will watch television. TV on demand (to download free) rather than sitting down as a nation to watch simultaneously. It's certainly more convenient but does kill that water cooler moment when you can discuss the previous nights entertainment. However you can discover loads of programmes you might not have watched at the time ( or couldn't be bothered recording to your generic hard-drive player) and with the best of wills its hard to keep up with what's on them all!

I'm currently watching / listening to Rob Brydon's Identity Crisis, on the fore mentioned I-Player and as an Englishman living in Scotland with a Welsh step-father ( and family) and a Scottish connection on my Mother's side, this whole British identity has always intrigued me. Maybe I had a sheltered up-bringing but because our family and holidays were all over Britain I never realized until later on in life that there really is a deep rooted dislike of the English around Britain and even in England there is then a dislike of Londoner's / Southerners. I'm aware of all the history of course and I think a lot of English people aren't that patriotic maybe because of it? ( with the exception of letting our hair down for sporting events), or maybe we are just not defensive about our nationality or take it seriously enough, as we're now in a multi-cultural society we are now less defined than ever. That's a good thing isn't it?

Anyway enjoyed the programme & got me thinking about Andy Murray & Wimbledon. Not only is he Scotland's number 1 but he's Britain's number 1 too and critics here would say that should he win he'll be referred to as British rather than Scottish! Andy has never been one to be shy about the English and even famously said during the last world cup that he would not cheer on England. He wears his heart on his sleeve ( or his saltire flag on his wrist - do you think Tim Henman would've ever worn St. George wristbands?) but I do feel that when you're Britain's number 1, you don't want to alienate three quarters of the island! He definitely seems to have toned it down a little as he's matured and I'm sure will be a fine ambassador for us all. Wimbledon this year has seen a strict dress code imposed where the players must stick to wearing all white ( and no flags), and it definitely gives the tournament an air of understated elegance (unrivaled anywhere else in the world), which I've always thought of as a British trait?
So come on Britain's number one, super Scott Andy Murray!