It is always a good sign when the notices go out advertising the annual garden show at Stansted Park
It means that Summer has truly arrived.
The annual show is a brilliant event and is, usually, graced with reasonable weather.
We’ll be there. Will you ?
The Garden Show at Stansted Park
Follow the link below to see my previous thoughts on how little we think of the English patron saint compared to the patron saints of the other countries that make up the United Kingdom.
This year, my online calendar doesn’t even mention St. George’s day. And yet, staring me in the face are entries for St. Patrick and St. David both celebrated in the same month.
The people of this country do my head in. They get bent out of shape because Nike introduce a multi colour version for the England football strip, but seemingly ignore St. George, for whom the flag is a symbol.
And let’s not forget that the cross of St. George forms an integral part, if not the basis, of the Union Flag symbol of Great Britain, the United Kingdom.
I did a quick trawl of the interweb to find out what was happening in my area to celebrate St. George’s Day. Well, apparently, not much.
I found several instances referring to parades and services associated with Chichester Cathedral. Sadly, they were all for years gone by.
Also sad, if there is any truth in it, is this text
We do recognise St George’s day In England, although as a more multicultural society it is not observed by all. There is also an air or Political correctness that abounds in England today that the St George’s flag (white with Red Cross) is viewed by some as racist.
https://www.quora.com/
Racist !!! Where the hell did that come from ? The national flag of multicultural England is racist. More woke/BLM bullshit.
Similarly, another snippet
Observed on the 23rd of April each year, you’ll find parades and a range of celebratory activities popping up around England. Expect to see the symbol of St George (a flag with a red and white cross) everywhere, as well as people flooding the streets and local pubs, as well as church services.
https://www.rabbies.com/en/blog/how-celebrate-st-georges-day-2024#:~:text=Observed%20on%20the%2023rd%20of,as%20well%20as%20Church%20services.
At the grand old age of seventy-two, I can safely say that I have never seen a parade for St. George, nor people flooding the streets.
Most churches will hold services for St. George and some pubs will certainly put up some bunting and promote St. George, in the hope of drawing in a few more punters.
But, St. George is not embedded in our psyche. If we had a national holiday, then more people might sit up and take notice.
But that isn’t any more likely now than it was in 2011 when I lasted posted on this subject.
This was us, Gerry, me and a couple of friends out for a Fridays entertainment.
Honestly, we were in the stalls, somewhere just left of centre, three rows from the back.
The picture was taken at the very end of the show by Genesis Connected, a very competent tribute act.
I have been a Genesis fan since the early 70’s. In fact, the first time I saw them live, they were only 2nd or 3rd on the bill, still very much on the rise.
I followed them closely, seeing them live every time they visited Portsmouth. That is until Peter Gabriel departed.
After that, I found it very difficult to differentiate between Genesis with Phil Collins taking the lead vocals or a Phil Collins solo effort.
This new phase for Genesis saw the band transition from Prog-Rock to Pop-Rock, and my interest in Genesis waned.
Not having any prior knowledge of this act, I will admit to being a little disappointed during the first half of the show. I was expecting more offerings from Prog-Rock Genesis.
Where were tracks from Trespass, Nursery Cryme, Foxtrot, Selling England By The Pound, and The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway ?
Turns out that I was being a tad unfair. The image below tells why.
“Celebrating the hits ….”
Genesis didn’t start to have hits until they transitioned to Pop-Rock, although they did enter the UK charts with a track taken from Selling England By The Pound. I Know What I Like was a minor hit, reaching number 21 in April 1974.
Once I had rationalised what this band was about, I began to enjoy the show more.
We were treated to crowd pleasers such as Living Years and Cup Of Coffee from Mike and The Mechanics, Biko, Sledgehammer, and surprisingly Panopticom from Peter Gabriel, but for the most part, this was a Phil Collins love-in with songs such as In The Air Tonight, Easy Lover, Turn It On Again, Invisible Touch, Sussudio and more besides.
Genesis Connected had the audience singing along, clapping, and even dancing for the final song of the night.
All in all, it was a polished performance. I sang and clapped with the rest of the audience but when it was over I was left hankering for the Return Of The Giant, Hogweed, The Knife, Watcher Of The Skies, just a little more Prog-Rock.
Having said all that, I would go to see them again. I’ll just have to get my Prog-Rock fix elsewhere.
WrAnTz 