Coronation Chicken

Hello, dear reader!

Some weeks, it’s a chore to find something to write about.

I mean, my life isn’t all that interesting, and I’m not sure everyone wants to know about the new coffee I’ve treated myself to. A lot of weeks, that would be the only thing going on right now that might (might) be worth blogging about.

But not this week.

No, this week the topic of discussion is undeniable. There is, you see, a rather big event going down this coming weekend. One of those ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ deals. Because, this week, a new king is being crowned.

Unnecessary Expanse
Not that I’m planning on spending much, if any, of this weekend glued to the box while the pomp & circumstance is rehearsed, re-rehearsed, and finally enacted. I might pop my head round the corner, just to say I did, but, really, I think it’s all just a little bit unnecessary.

I know this will be a sentiment not shared by everyone. I know there’s plenty of folk out there (possibly some who, up to a few seconds ago, were reading along), who enjoy the spectacle and the history, and if that’s your bag, then good on you. I really do hope you enjoy.

The Taste Test
Personally, in this time of increasing expenditure and shrinking incomes, even the thought of one of Britain’s richest men riding down The Mall in a gold carriage, with liveried guards flanking him, and a couple of manhunt’s worth of police lining the streets, all so a senior cleric can put a jewel encrusted crown on his head is a bit much.

If said very wealthy man was paying for all of this out of his own vast wealth, that might be a different matter, but the price of the coronation is coming from the public purse, which means, at the end of the day, from you and me.

It feels wrong. It feels like it could have been handled better. I mean, with a finger on the pulse of the nation, a quick press release, a public statement, ownership of at least some of the payment, and perhaps a bit of pulling it back, might have made a better impression. As is, I (and I can only speak for myself) get a distinct flavour of ‘us-and-them’. Even a donation to foodbank charities or some such might have gone some way to muting the taste.

Subjects Matter
I’m sure there’s some out there shocked at my lack of national pride, some who might even think of me as unpatriotic for holding this point of view, but what is a country if not its values? What are we waving the flag for if not for the people, all the people, who live on this sceptered isle? People whose lives have just got that little bit harder (apart from the very wealthy). Isn’t that patriotism?

At heart, I’m not a died-in-the-wool anti-royalist. I don’t actively wish for the abolition of the royal family. In fact, as long as they’re bringing in more money to the country than they’re costing us, I say live and let live. I’m happy to leave them as long as they leave me alone, and, let’s face it, we all have bigger fish to fry.

King & Country
A display of wealth and privilege at a time of growing disparity between the haves and the have-nots, without some form of recognition of said disparity leaves me cold, though, because, once the bunting is put away, the cucumber sandwiches scoffed, and the last of the Pimm's quaffed, we will all have to go back to ‘normal’, or whatever passes for it. Yes history will have been witnessed, but was it the right kind of history? And could history have truly been made by a king who understands and wishes to ease his subject’s woes? Could he at least have tried?

 I guess, there’s still a lot of unknowns about the big day, and it’s possible that some of my wishes might come true. It doesn’t feel likely though, and for that reason, I think, after a cursory glance, I’m more likely to seek my bread and circuses with a drink and the footy.

God save The King!

…Oh, and I’m an atheist.

Until next time…

Hey, there! If you enjoyed reading any of the above, why not take a look at some of my published work? Below you’ll find  links to a number of short stories I’m lucky enough to have included in anthologies. I’d love to know what you think

New Tales Of Old: Volume 2

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B09TMVTX9H/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Death Ship

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/9198684140/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_TWEMTA3KWK7T89QEZPF6?fbclid=IwAR322Fx5nfgVUQAA62ZZ6CUsNnBm8pbSxPanzz6Qkjg3vAv4ESipq7iKKhs

https://www.waterstones.com/book/death-ship/david-green/s-o-green/9789198684148?fbclid=IwAR2gP4CXHSG7wTccO39wOqXFtI81k0259Ep8DUM48Ki6kTUdlKoF3yafojA

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/9198684140/ref=ewc_pr_img_1?smid=A2XZ7JICGUQ1CX&psc=1&fbclid=IwAR2Wa6sGxb82_VCsC7l1CGXwHjsSwTheqba6jDX_G8EDsywZoGpC93nXr2w

Reaperman

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Reaperman-Drabbles-3-Legends-Night-ebook/dp/B099NNPTQ1A

Pestilence

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pestilence-Revelations-Black-Ink-Fiction/dp/B09MDLZGHY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2VP38WZDWJVAF&keywords=black+ink+fiction&qid=1654090896&sprefix=black+ink+fiction%2Caps%2C218&sr=8-1

The Musketeers Vs Cthulhu

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Musketeers-Cthulhu-Court-King-Louis-ebook/dp/B09YQKQQB7/ref=sr_1_18?crid=2VP38WZDWJVAF&keywords=black+ink+fiction&qid=1654091002&sprefix=black+ink+fiction%2Caps%2C218&sr=8-18