Prince Phillip

[FGR Stroud]

My condolences to family and friends of the Duke of Edinburgh.
May one of the UK and British Commonwealth's greatest stateman since Second World War rest in peace for remainder of eternity.

His Royal Highness's funeral has been arranged for 3pm on Saturday.
I wonder if out of respect the EFL change the times of games to perhaps a lunchtime kick off?
I suspect many fans [although not all] will want to watch their team play but also watch the funeral service.
And there being no fans at any game, the logistics of moving starting times is not a mega problem.

 

[Laker]

It’s on bbc that they’re going to move them all: Matches moved for Prince Philip funeral

 

[Chris FGR]

HRH the DoE served this country brilliantly both in the navy and then as a cornerstone of the royal family and massive support to his wife. Was involved in a lot of good causes and sports as well.

The UK is lucky to have such a great institution representing it around the world, most countries envy it and makes you proud to be British. All games should be off next Saturday I reckon.

 

[Si Robin]

I'm not necessarily a republican, but why should I be bothered by some bloke's funeral that has nothing to do with me?

Friday was overkill on the main TV channels, and they're still reporting on it. He's hardly going to get more dead is he?

 

[Railway Blue]

HRH the DoE served this country brilliantly both in the navy and then as a cornerstone of the royal family and massive support to his wife. Was involved in a lot of good causes and sports as well.

The UK is lucky to have such a great institution representing it around the world, most countries envy it and makes you proud to be British. All games should be off next Saturday I reckon.

I agree, but don't see it continuing when Her Majesty passes.

 

[Monkey Tennis]

Have I missed the joke?

 

[Chris FGR]

I'm not necessarily a republican, but why should I be bothered by some bloke's funeral that has nothing to do with me?

Friday was overkill on the main TV channels, and they're still reporting on it. He's hardly going to get more dead is he?

Because it isn’t just ‘some bloke’s funeral’?

I don’t understand how some people don’t get the importance of the Royal family, both in terms of the way they give us our identity as a nation and represent us globally. Prince Philip has been a massive part of that for 70 years.

 

[Laker]

Because it isn’t just ‘some bloke’s funeral’?

I don’t understand how some people don’t get the importance of the Royal family, both in terms of the way they give us our identity as a nation and represent us globally. Prince Philip has been a massive part of that for 70 years.

I don’t have any more or less feeling for him than I do for any 99 year old passing away. It’s sad for them and their family and of course I don’t speak ill of them but I don’t see the royals as more important than anyone else.

If they want to have a state funeral and stop football at 3pm on a Saturday then I’m not going to argue. But I doubt I’ll watch the funeral. If anyone else wants to then that’s their choice and I won’t feel any negativity towards them. I do however feel the same should be reciprocated the other way.

 

[shoddycollins]

Condolences to his family... seemed a nice enough guy but I didn't know him so I'm not likely to watch his funeral. He was important enough to plenty of people who would like to watch his funeral as well as their team so moving games to a different time is a sensible compromise, I don't think games should be cancelled. Seems like there are plenty of people about who think we should all be forced to watch and I have a problem with them... not Prince Phillip's fault though.

 

[Chris FGR]

No one should be forced to watch anything, just not sure how anyone can argue that the royals are no more important to this country then anyone else. Like it or not they are a massive part of our identity as a nation.

The Queen is one of the most famous and respected people on Earth. That has to be good for our country surely?

 

[Si Robin]

I honestly couldn't care less.

As my uncle used to say when I said they were good for tourism. We can always say, "Here's where they used to live".

Like Laker, I'm not speaking ill of them, I'm sure the family miss him and they have every right to grieve. It's the constant fawning I don't get. I don't get how people can be upset about someone who, likely, had no real bearing on their life. I didn't get it with Diana, when I was only 13 years old, and I especially don't get it about a 99 year old passing. At least with Diana there was the shock factor. The full removal of the basic TV schedule on Friday afternoon and night, including the closing of BBC4 (meaning I couldn't watch TOTP - which was the straw that broke the camel's back for me), was just weird. As I read elsewhere, it's almost been a trial run for when the old bean leaves this mortal coil.

I have no qualms with games being moved, I get that completely. But there are a few people (not accusing you here Chris by the way) that think you should watch his funeral, and you should make your family watch as well.

 

[BarraMatt]

I've been looking forward to this topic.

 

[valefan16]

I’m upset about his passing, I do think the royals are a massive part of our identity as a nation and do not want to see us become a republic.

Generates so much money through tourism, the Americans for example absolutely idolise them!

I think it’s right the games are moved, no one should be forced to watch it or care but those that do should be allowed.

I expect 12:30 kick off times Saturday with a couple of clubs possibly going for Friday night to be preferred.

 

[Greenacres]

HRH the DoE served this country brilliantly both in the navy and then as a cornerstone of the royal family and massive support to his wife. Was involved in a lot of good causes and sports as well.

The UK is lucky to have such a great institution representing it around the world, most countries envy it and makes you proud to be British. All games should be off next Saturday I reckon.

I know the Royal Family tends to be a bit binary, like Brexit, people are generally either for or against and there isn't much of a middle ground. In my own family there are one or two who are anti but the vast majority are pro-Royal.

I agree with much of what Chris posted, the DofE was ahead of time when it came to green issues and conservation, epitomised by his work with the WWF. The scheme he launched, that carries his name, has inspired generations of young people to step out of their comfort zone and undertake activities that are beneficial not just to themselves but society as a whole. He gave up a promising career in the Royal Navy to marry the woman he loved, who then became Queen, and devoted most of his life to supporting her in her role...this was at a time when the boot was often on the other foot and a woman was expected to give up her career on marriage to raise a family. So, I think you could say that he was ahead of his time again in that respect as many men now take paternity leave or a far more active role in raising a family.

I will be watching the funeral on the telly, partly out of respect but also because I see it as a national event, but in no way do I think that anyone should be forced to watch it against their will.

 

[Monkey Tennis]

Is Nailsworth some kind of hotbed of rampant royalism? Bizarre.

 

[Greenacres]

Is Nailsworth some kind of hotbed of rampant royalism? Bizarre.

Not that I'm aware of, I'm sure plenty of residents are anti-Royal, it is just that the two who have chosen to comment on this matter are in the pro-Royal camp...certainly nothing bizarre.

 

[Monkey Tennis]

Not that I'm aware of, I'm sure plenty of residents are anti-Royal, it is just that the two who have chosen to comment on this matter are in the pro-Royal camp...certainly nothing bizarre.

It's three - 100% of FGR fans on here. It certainly is bizarre that grown adults care more about the husband of one pensioner over any other, just because she has a magic hat.

 

[Chris FGR]

Most people I know are in favour of the royals, not fanatical royalists or whatever but most agree they do a lot of good for this country.

To suggest they are nothing special is bizarre. The UK wouldn't be the UK without them.

 

[That Fat Centre Half]

It makes sense to move the games probably, clashing with a massive national event probably not a good idea and it’s simply a bad look to have footbal being played during the funeral! Like it or not he’s been a massive part of public life and in many ways the face of the nation to the outside world alongside the Queen so in that sense the respect of moving the games to avoid a clash is deserved.

Some of the other coverage of it has been massively ott, the bbc cancelling planned programming to play literally the same stuff across all channels or in some cases absolutely nothing at all out of signs of forced “respect”, the pictures in public places including along motorways and the like is the stuff you’d expect from the USSR when stalin died rather than a modern society.

 

[Essex2Wessex]

I had never thought of the FGR fanbase as being particular Royalist (although we are certainly not the "woke hipster vegan provincial counterpart of Dulwich Hamlet or Whitehawk" that a friend in London seems to imagine us as either...lol. For example we are actively refusing to take the knee now, even when our opponents do..), but, yeah me too.

The DofE was such a force of good for our country and people - from his military career and WW2 action, to the way he has served as consort to the Queen, herself arguably the most respected head of state on earth, and deservedly so, for nearly three quarters of a century, through his charity work, setting up of the DoE Awards, his ahead-of-his-time environmentalism, and his ready, sharp, but kind-hearted, wit. Definitely passed the "he'd be fun, and informative, to have a drink with" test.

So yeah he is really is an enormous loss to the country imo. Living deep in the countryside (not actually in Nailsworth but in somewhere of a similar size) I've not seen the billboards or display screens on motorways or in big cities (must live a good 20 miles from the nearest advertising billboard), but the (Lib Dem) town council here have gone full out, putting up a union flag (in place of the habitual Wessex banner) at half mask on one of the flagpoles in the market place, and adding black ribbons to each of the 40 or so Union and Wessex flags that are arrayed in shops all over the town centre all summer long, every year. And this seems entirely appropriate in this context. (The response to Diana though left me cold and glad I was abroad at the time...) It's not typically British to make this sort of fuss, and I'm glad that's the case, but this occasion seems an appropriate one to pull out the stops.

Not sure that moving the game to midday will help us beat Scunthorpe though, but Adams and Bailey at least had a kind of return to form yesterday so maybe, just maybe....

 

[Robshep]

Most people I know are in favour of the royals, not fanatical royalists or whatever but most agree they do a lot of good for this country.

To suggest they are nothing special is bizarre. The UK wouldn't be the UK without them.

That is probably the most obvious thing ever posted on here. The United Kingdom wouldnt be the United Kingdom without the monarchy. The USA would not be the USA without American states that were united. The UAE wouldnt be the UAE if it didn't have united emirates who were Arabic.
The land and people on it would not vanish if the monarchy ceased to exist. It would simply have another name.
If you think the nation is and should be defined by one family you might as well call yourself a serf. I prefer to be a citizen of a nation. NOT a subject of one person.

 

[wessy]

I an not against the royal family or doffing my cap to them, however i recognise that he is an important part of our monarchy, I feel sad for the queen and family as i would for any family, however the coverage on Friday was IMO over the top the same feature was on both BBC channels at the same time. After 8 hours of constant TV they announced and now a tribute to HRH Prince Phillip really. For me they have the power to stage his funeral at any time on any day of the week, to pick 3pm on a saturday is taking the piss, every sporting occosion in the middle of a pandemic now needs to move to another date, totally unnecessary.

 

[oakroader]

Still getting over the loss of Caroline Aherne....

 

[denzel ecfc]

Cant believe the over reaction on here.
Moving the games a couple of hours either way isnt going to kill anyone is it? And not being able to watch TV on a Friday night is not the end of the World.
I'm sure a logical time will be agreed and we can all move on and moan about crap football instead.

 

[FGR Stroud]

Is Nailsworth some kind of hotbed of rampant royalism? Bizarre.

The Princess Royal lives in next village to Nailsworth and Prince Charles lives in Tetbury which is also very close by.

 

[Monkey Tennis]

The Princess Royal lives in next village to Nailsworth and Prince Charles lives in Tetbury which is also very close by.

I used to live near the town where they filmed Last of the Summer Wine - doesn't mean I watched it though.

 

[PuB]

Bbc one and bbc two mirroring each other and cancelling all programmes was a poor decision. Especially when you consider they already have a news channel. That’s 3 channels showing the same thing. Bbc four cancelled programming (including a friendly between England ladies and France) and ran a banner telling people to watch Bbc one, bizarrely CBBC did the same, telling children to watch the news.

Whilst I have huge respect for the royal family I found it distasteful, especially in a year where we’re lost over 125,000 people.

I don’t really mind the fixtures being moved around a bit, pretty much been used to it this season anyway.

 

[Gladders]

I used to live near the town where they filmed Last of the Summer Wine - doesn't mean I watched it though.

Then you missed out on a decent programme

 

[Robshep]

I used to live near the town where they filmed Last of the Summer Wine - doesn't mean I watched it though.

I live near the novelist Ramsey Campbell but i do not feel the need to read all of his books.

 

[Back in the DHSS]

I liked Prince Phillip, he showed that Royalty have a sense of humour.
The Queen has been and is a force for good. Other members of the household not so.