General Chat

Did any one watch the coverage on the telly yesterday ?

I was most amused at the antics of the old boys waiting in the queue to do the march past . They had realised they where in the back ground of an interview that was taking place and kept popping their heads out and stepping out of line to get noticed.
It really made me laugh.....did anyone else think it was funny ?

Hi, yes it was funny, old boys young at heart, do we ever grow up, lets hope not, LOL

I thought it rather lowered the tone of the occasion. Playing 'Harry Worth' etc did not seem appropriate. Sort of 'Look at me on the tele!' very school childish.

Yesterday, I was squashed in the crowd near to the Cenotaph. If anyone has seen The Sun, I was standing immediately behind Connor.

I watched it on iplayer today, and found it very amusing. They may have been larking about, but when it came to the marchpast, I bet they were very respectful. They have probably seen and experienced tragedies that we hopefully never have to witness.

It reminded me of going to Normandy with my grandad for the D-Day commerations. In between the memorial services (3+ per day), the veterans still had a sense of humour

I'm glad that others have seen it in the same light that I did : ))

If those " old boys " hadn't got a lively sense of humour they might not have got through the trials of life and war that they had faced .
The chap who was being interviewed certainly thought it amusing as well .

Joanne.....it must have been awesome to actually be in that crowd....good for you : ))

I make a point of watching it every year, and found yesterday's particularly moving. I think because this year there was more of a connection with the public at large, due to Afghanistan, which makes it all the more relevant to younger people.

I was saying to my mum only yesterday, talking to children today about WW1 is the same to them as talking to me about the Battle of Tragalgar. It's so much in the past, in relation to when we were born. Now we have new casualties of war, people children can see, whose horrific injuries they are surviving, whereas in WW1 and WW2 they probably would not survive. This brings home the worst side of war. Then we see the regular 'parade' (for want of a better word, through Wooton Basset on the news, of the fallen.

OK, there was a bit of messing about, but I really don't think it was out of disrespect. As someone else on here said, without a sense of humour in the worst of situations, how have soldiers, past or present, managed to get through it? It's the British way, to laugh in the face of adversity.

My 15 year old daughter was on the computer whilst I was watching the programme . I'd told her the two minute silence was coming up and she was duly quiet . She looked surprised when I started laughing ( at the antics of the old chaps ) and even insisted that I rewound the programme so she could see ( I didn't even know I could do that with the telly.....lol ) .
She found it amusing as well and then asked a few questions regarding Armistice day in general.......something that she probably wouldn't have paid much heed to at all...........so the daftness of a few have led to my girls awareness of the past : )

I always find it so sad to see the faces of the veterans knowing how they are thinking of their comrades who were killed. This year of course it was sad that we have lost our three soldiers from WW1. Hope they are all having a great reunion now.

Bless them all.

Did anyone notice that the Queens's wreath had fallen down? I couldn't believe that no-one at all moved forward to pick it up.
I too saw the men, it was absolutely magic, so natural, and not at all inappropriate. They've earned their right to a bit of levity by the mere fact of being there.

Jenny