Commonwealth Games: England’s National Anthem Jerusalem Plays And England Forgets The Words
COMMONWEALTH Games: They played Jerusalem when Fran Halsall stood on the podium. The 20-year-old winner of the 50m butterfly at the Dr SJ Mukherjee Aquatics Complex is the first person to ever hear the strains of Hubert Parry’s score played at a sporting event.
The tune was chosen because 1,896 entrants in a YouGov survey voted like this:
1. Jerusalem: 52.5%
2. Land of Hope and Glory: 32.5%
3. God Save The Queen: 12%
Duncan Lewis, Marketing Director for Commonwealth Games England, said, “The nation has spoken…”
Around 60 million people live in the UK.
The tops–selling single of all time in the UK is Elton John’s Candle In The Wind 1997 / Something About The Way You Look Tonight, which in 1997 alone sold 4.8 million copies.
That is the nation speaking. And it’s a double A-side, so everyone can be happy. The last word is with Halsall:
“I don’t really know the words to Jerusalem, I was going to sing Land of Hope and Glory because that’s the one I know.”
Altogether now: Land of dope and Tories….
Posted: 5th, October 2010 | In: Sports Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
