The Conversation (0)
Greg Evans
Apr 16, 2020
A campaign has been launched by the television personality Ben Fogle, to get everyone in the UK to sing 'Happy Birthday' for the Queen.
In a similar vein to the weekly rounds of applause that have been seen for NHS staff and care workers from people's homes on Thursday evenings, Fogle asked for the Queen's birthday on 21 April to sing Happy Birthday to Her Majesty at 9am to bring "good cheer" to not just the Queen, but for the whole nation.
However, Fogle's idea, which is obviously well-meaning and has nothing but good intentions, has not quite resonated with everyone, many of whom have pointed out that if we start doing this then we'll end up doing all sorts of things to celebrate others.
Good grief. What's next? Tap dance for Churchill? Cry wank for Thatcher? https://t.co/8bbaj9ZoZI— Nooruddean (@Nooruddean) 1587025225
People wonder if at some point the Tories' coronavirus response will see them found out and plummet in the polls, b… https://t.co/XnnrNtbqif— Tom Whyman (@Tom Whyman) 1587024020
It's Iggy Pop's birthday next Tuesday. Let's throw him a surprise. At 9am 21st April, we are calling on the whole c… https://t.co/SjX2Z8rYNq— Dai Lama (@Dai Lama) 1587021446
I'm just going to leave this here, and say no. https://t.co/vl5Cxk5Wz5— KLS 💙〓〓 #TAXTHERICH (@KLS 💙〓〓 #TAXTHERICH) 1587021406
@Benfogle Great idea but can we do this a day earlier and for my nan instead? She’s older than the queen and, even… https://t.co/q3M7AdpVU6— Si Lloyd (@Si Lloyd) 1587025599
@Benfogle At 9am on the 21st April we are calling on the whole country to laugh from their windows and doorsteps at… https://t.co/DhdIjHUpS6— TechnicallyRon (@TechnicallyRon) 1587026245
We're yet to find anyone who thinks that this would be a good idea but some did joke Fogle had "ruined the surprise".
You've ruined the surprise well done. https://t.co/uqC4ykWBSO— barney farmer (@barney farmer) 1587021363
surprise ruined. nice one mate queens cryin https://t.co/72CaUYOWzN— Richard Chambers (@Richard Chambers) 1587025203
This is similar to the campaign to have the nation clap for Boris Johnson while he was recovering from Covid-19 in intensive care which was met with similar scepticism. Ultimately, some people did applaud the prime minister during his recovery period but wasn't a widely participated in as the "clap for carers" applause. We're sure that some people will sing happy birthday to the Queen but, judging by this backlash, it's unlikely that it will be a resounding success.
Three hours after this article was published, Fogle addressed the response to his tweet, saying singing to the Queen was his daughter's idea and that some of the replies had been "mean spirited".