Share this one! I agree that all seems subserviant to Brussels, and that is not a good thing. Remember Bonaparte!
England my England
Goodbye to my England , So long my old friend
Your days are numbered, being brought to an end
To be Scottish, Irish or Welsh that's fine
But don't say you're English, that's way out of line.
The French and the Germans may call themselves such
So may Norwegians, the Swedes and the Dutch
You can say you are Russian or maybe a Dane
But don't say you're English ever again.
At Broadcasting House the word is taboo
In Brussels it's scrapped, in Parliament too
Even schools are affected. Staff do as they're told
They must not teach children about England of old.
Writers like Shakespeare, Milton and Shaw
The pupils don't learn about them anymore
How about Agincourt, Hastings , Arnhem or Mons ?
When England lost hosts of her very brave sons.
We are not Europeans, how can we be?
Europe is miles away, over the sea
We're the English from England , let's all be proud
Stand up and be counted - Shout it out loud!
Let's tell our Government and Brussels too
We're proud of our heritage and the Red, White and Blue
Fly the flag of Saint George or the Union Jack
Let the world know - WE WANT OUR ENGLAND BACK !!!!
If you are English, pass it on please.
Very strange one this and I found it contradictory. It talks about being people not accepting the English as English. It is saying that the Welsh and the Scots are ok to be separate and then at the end the writer is saying we should be proud of "Red, white and blue" and the "Union Jack"!!
I am English and proud of it. We have the St Georges flag and when we are in France during football contests such as the European or World Cups, our red and white flag will be seen flying high on our caravan awning. I am also European and proud of that too.
As a Scot who's lived in England for half my life, with a combination of English, German, Austrian and Scottish ancestry, I find this to be complete tosh!
Celebrate being English if you are, a bit of national identity is a good thing. But don't pretend you're being picked on.
There's a great couple of songs by Billy Bragg called "England, half English" and "Take down the Union Jack" which are far more accurate...
TAKE DOWN THE UNION JACK (formerly Millennium Song)
Take down the Union Jack
It clashes with the sunset
And put it in the attic
With the Emperor's old clothes
When did it fall apart ?
Sometime in the 80's
When the good and the great
Gave way to the greedy and the mean
Britain isn't cool you know
And it's really not that great
It's not a proper country
It doesn't even have a patron saint
It's just an economic union
That's past its sell-by date
Take down the Union Jack
It clashes with the sunset
And ask our Scottish neighbours
If independence looks any good
'Cos they just might understand
How to take an abstract notion
Of personal identity
And turn it into nationhood
Is this the 19th Century
That I'm watching on TV ?
The dear old Queen of England
Handing out those MBE's
Member of the British Empire
That doesn't sound too good to me
Gilbert and George (A pair of British modern artists whose reputation is doubtful)
Are taking the piss aren't they ?
Gilbert and George are taking the piss
What could be more British than
"Here's a picture of me bum"
Gilbert and George are taking the piss
Take down the Union Jack
It clashes with the sunset
And pile up all those history books
But don't throw them away
'Cos they just might have a clue
About what it really means
To be an Anglo hyphen Saxon
In England-dot-Co-dot-UK
To be an Anglo hyphen Saxon
In England-dot-Co-dot-UK
Words & Music : Billy Bragg
ENGLAND, HALF-ENGLISH
My mother was half-English
And I'm half-English too
I'm a great big bundle of culture
Tied up in the red, white and blue (the colours of the Union Flag)
I'm a fine example of your Essex Man (an English stereotype - Billy Bragg comes from Essex)
And I'm well familiar with the Hindustan
'Cos my neighbours are half-English
And I'm half-English too
My breakfast was half-English
And so am I you know
I had a plate of Marmite soldiers (A slice of bread cut into strips and spread with Marmite - a yeast extract. Popular with English children and English men)
Washed down with a cappuccino
And I have a veggie curry about once a week
The next day I fry it up as 'Bubble 'N' Squeak' (A traditional English recipe that basically involves frying up leftovers)
'Cos my appetite's half-English
And I'm half-English too
Dance with me
To this very English melody
From Morris dancing (a form of English folk dancing that involves bells and sticks) to Morrissey (former lead singer of The Smiths, now a solo artist)
All that stuff came from across the sea
Britannia (A female English icon from ancient history), she's half-English
She speaks Latin at home
St. George (the patron saint of England) was born in the Lebanon
How he got here I don't know
And those three lions (the logo of the England football team) on your shirt
They never sprang from England's dirt
Them lion's are half-English
And I'm half-English too
Le-li Umma le-li-ya, le-li Umma le-li-ya
Le-li Umma le-li-ya, bledi g'desh akh! le-li-ya
Oh my country
Oh my country
Oh my country
What a beautiful country you are