1066 And All That
‘THERE are only three dates in British history worth knowing, according to the Sun.
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| World Bowls Champion 1588-93 |
In 1588, Philip II of Spain sent 130 ships to try to topple Queen Elizabeth I. Bosh! Two days later, they were sent packing and Sir Francis Drake was crowned World Bowls Champion.
In 1805, the French and Spanish fleets vied with us for supremacy on the seas. Bosh! Lord Nelson sent them packing at the Battle Of Trafalgar and then kissed a bloke called Hardy.
And in 1940, Adolf Hitler sent his Luftwaffe over to destroy the RAF and prepare the way for an invasion of Britain.
Bosh! Winston Churchill and a few brave Biggles lookalikes sent them packing, and never was so much owed by so many to so few.
No mention of Waterloo in 1815; nor of the millions who died in World War I; nor even of the countless occasions in the past few years in which our finest have imposed their own brand of martial law on peaceful continental towns and villages.
No mention either of 1066, when the French came over and gave us a terrible kicking; nor of 1688 when a Dutchman and his missus walked in and took the throne; nor even of 1970, 1990 or 1996 when the Germans beat us on the football field.
No, but the Sun is upset because after 1,000 years of fighting invaders Tony Blair is preparing to surrender Britain to Europe in what the paper calls ”the biggest betrayal in our history”.
The Prime Minister, it says, is about to nod through the broad thrust of a new EU Constitution ”that will hand control of our economic, defence, foreign and immigration policies to Brussels”.
All this – and we don’t even get a referendum on it.
”It is,” says the Sun, ”nothing short of a surrender of everything this country stands for and which it has fought for centuries to protect and enjoy.”
The Mail joins in with an anti-Europe rant of its own, celebrating 40 years of ”duplicity, obfuscation and downright dishonesty to con – or try to con – the British public”.
And we are at Anorak are happy to add our own quiet voice to the clamour for a referendum.
If, like us, you think public flogging is too good for Johnny Foreigner, press 1 on your keypad…
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Posted: 15th, May 2003 | In: Tabloids Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
