Musings on the Queen’s Jubilee…

britain, british, elizabeth

It is the Queen’s Jubilee Weekend, where one half of Northern Ireland is celebrating, while the other half looks on in bewilderment. I was on a day trip to Bangor yesterday and a group of women were singing God Save the Queen off the back of a boat. One of the women appeared to be an old punk with a Mohican so they may have been ironic and it was actually a tribute to the Sex Pistols. I confess to …

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The Real Reason Why Britain Still Has a Monarchy

If you were designing, or aiming to design, the perfect form of government from scratch, then the verdict on monarchy (in whatever form it came) would be, to cite an old Irish cliché, ‘I wouldn’t start from here.’  Whatever view you take of Meghangate, and its ongoing outworkings, there is no easy way to defend a system where the job of Head of State is reserved for just one family.  I don’t know the full details of what was said …

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A Northern Ireland Rorschach test…

Tell me what do you see? TRH The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge at Salthill Knocknacarra GAA Club in Galway. #RoyalVisitIreland 📸: Getty images pic.twitter.com/HF8Xzl3uok — Isa (@isaguor) March 5, 2020 Leo I’m really sorry but somebody had to do it..#GAA #RoyalVisitIreland pic.twitter.com/BtfOIMkK9Q — Jim Sheridan (@Jim_Sheridan) March 5, 2020 “(Rorschach) II” by dailyinvention is licensed under CC BY Brian O'NeillI help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background …

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Harry and Meghan resign to spend less time with their family…

Quite the shock as Prince Harry has decided to quit the family firm. From their statement: After many months of reflection and internal discussions, we have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution. We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen. It is with your encouragement, particularly over the …

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Prince Andrew to step down from royal duties…

Prince Andrew has stepped away from royal duties to spend more time with his conscience. The Prince has a lot of local connections. He is Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Irish Regiment as well as Baron of Killyleagh. He also has several streets named after him across Northern Ireland. I wonder what the residents’ views on him are? He will cease to receive £249,000 of taxpayers’ money from the Sovereign Grant used to pay for his office, but aul Andy does …

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Bees contribute more to the UK economy than the Royal Family

Here’s a story to bring a smile to our Nationalist readers faces. According to research conducted by the University of Reading, Bees contribute more to the UK economy than the Royal Family. They found that bees contribute £651 million to the UK economy a year, £150 million more than the Royal Family brings in through tourism. I await with pleasure all your “Queen Bee” puns. …. Full story here David McCannDavid McCann holds a PhD in North-South relations from University …

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Cartoon – A shared future (of talking to inanimate objects)

On Tuesday May 19 2015 Prince Charles met and shook hands with Gerry Adams in Galway, composing a vista unimaginable until recently. The Colonel-in-Chief of the parachute regiment meets with Uachtaráin Sinn Féin, arch-monarchist and arch-republican. Brian SpencerBrian is a writer, artist, political cartoonist and legal blogger. Actively tweeting from @brianjohnspencr. More information here: http://www.brianjohnspencer.com/ www.brianjohnspencer.com/

Is it the end of the line for Queen Elizabeth?

Earlier today the bookmaker Coral closed the market on bets around whether the Queen would announce in her Christmas broadcast this year that she was to step down. This would follow the practice of other European Monarch’s who have annouced their abidications in favour of a younger generation. There was a flurry of bets in the aftermath of her speech being recorded by the BBC. Buckingham Palace has denied the report. So, will Queen Elizabeth step down in 2015? David …

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There is nothing like a Dame-Australia re-introduces Royal Honours #auspol

When I first heard this story I must admit the song that kept going through my head was that famous Morecambe and Wise sketch ‘There is nothing like a Dame’ Last week, the Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott re-introduced the Knights and Dames system that was abolished by the Hawke Labor government in the 80s. This decision has been met with ridicule and general disapproval within Australia as event Abbott’s predecessor and avowed Monarchist, John Howard spoke of his belief …

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