I did not expect to be writing a post about my own country quite so soon especially not one about the Royal Family but when I got up this morning and put on the TV to catch up on the news, I had totally forgotten that Prince William was marrying the beautiful Kate the commoner (I love that expression, only used in relation to royalty, just like gentil only used in relation to Jews). I have to admit I felt rather tearful watching it all and I had to stop and try to think why.
I do not consider myself a royalist or a republican in fact INDIFFERENT in capital letters would be the category that I would put myself in. I realised that the fascination for our Royal Family that was all over the world was good for our tourist coffers if not for our image as a modern democracy!
I think I just felt homesick and sad that my children and I were not there to enjoy and remember what is essentially a great big party with a truly British sense of irony whether you spend most of it slagging off the Royals and making fun of them or watching on adoringly …….. that is our prerogative. Yes we are a modern democracy that still has a House of Lords and a Monarchy and that is ridiculous, but I like the fact that we are ridiculous.
In this time of celebrity culture I think I would prefer to watch this wedding more than J-Lo´s or Tom Cruise´s. A New York friend was surprised that I was watching it and said ¨ohh that is so tacky¨. A British Royal Wedding can be many things to many people but tacky no, we leave that to the Hollywood stars they do it so well.
SO what would I be doing if I was home. I noticed that there was the usual alternative Royal Wedding Party in Shoreditch my old stamping ground in the Bohemian multi-cultural Eastend but I have to say the party in Hyde Park looked pretty good! Lots of great British picnics and lots of bottles of champagne being passed around. And even though I am a socialist I am a champagne socialist! The weather was good, London looked beautiful and so did Kate and her dress and for a moment I felt as though I was watching Shrek with my kids and the sadness of the real world melted away.
The Syrian Ambassador was disinvited. Tony Blair didn´t receive an invitation (cool, slimy little toerag) but Margaret Thatcher did (very uncool). Victoria Beckham managed to get in there hanging on the arm of her husband (very uncool as she is TACKY).
Nico asked me. Is that what you did when you married Papa? I didn´t like to tell him that we had never had the time or the inclination as I sat there staring at the screen wondering if I could wear that dress like a pathetic teenage girl!
I wonder how many people watched the Royal Wedding in Cuba? Not many I suppose! I wonder who watched it here in Guatemala? My nanny Juju just arrived full of questions. She liked the dress too!