Tuesday 14 August 2012

Golden lights


Be not afeard; the isle is full of noises, Sounds, and sweet airs that give delight and hurt not - Caliban, from Shakespeare's The Tempest

A ginger man, a mixed race woman and a Somalia refugee walk into a pub...and everybody buys them a drink

With the 30th Olympiad drawn to a close, home grown commentators everywhere, buoyed by 16 euphoric days of competition and their relief at the event's universal acclaim, are quick to suggest a moment of marked change has occurred in the very fabric of British society.

Perhaps it was defined by a single day of London 2012, on a glorious Saturday evening in the Olympic Stadium, when three British athletes, reflecting the multi-cultural make up of our society, claimed gold within the space of a few hours.

Rutherford, Ennis and Farah, although but a few of the numerous British medal winners to have graced us with their remarkable talent, represent a particular narrative evident at these games - one of diversity (religious, racial and cultural) as something to be encouraged and cultivated rather than questioned and vilified.

In fact the seeds of this ideal were planted (and watered plentifully) some 8 days prior, Danny Boyle's opening ceremony resplendent in encapsulating so much of common British life, that which is too often overlooked during our more traditional times of pageantry.

The more I reflect on Boyle's opening ceremony, the more I believe it a masterpiece, not only symbolising the true cosmopolitan nature of modern Britain with intelligence, style and wit, but emphatically claiming our country for everyone.

Nowhere was this more evident than in the celebration of the NHS and Tim Berniers-Lee - defining this desire for inclusivity and defying anyone to suggest our eccentric and enigmatic melting pot of a nation was anything but the better for it.

Throughout the Games, that other great British public institution, the BBC, once again proved itself to be a cherished jewel, garnering praise far and wide for its unmatched coverage and proving the perennial naysayers irrelevant. From Michael Johnson, Claire Balding and Denise Lewis to the double act of Foster and Cram, the integrity and passion (if not impartiality) of the analysis and commentary was perfectly weighted.


Anyone attempting to deny only appeared ridiculous: Conservative MP Aiden Burley initially with his rightly condemned comments on twitter, David Cameron's ill-judged 'Indian dancing' sound bite and then, inevitably, the Daily Mail and Daily Telegraph with their attempts to undermine that which they saw as the uprising of 'Plastic Brits, the sound of 80,000 cheering Mo Farah to double gold rendering such sentiments immediately obsolete.

Others have claimed a 'blustering jingoistic' undercurrent to the mass adulation of this most decorated British team but they too are missing a fundamental point. In Britain sporting success is no longer demanded to portray superiority (as still the case for the superpowers of USA or China). We are beyond that it seems. Instead, achievement is celebrated on its own merits, embraced all the more when unexpected.

Indeed writers are exclaiming how Britain has now learned to love itself as a nation, has become comfortable in its own skin, finally understanding and accepting its post-imperialistic place in the world.

There's no doubt that the sight of us Brits, usually so skeptical and cynical by nature (especially of anything purporting to 'inspire a generation'), celebrating the sporting excellence of all nations in a joyous spirit of togetherness has been nothing short of wondrous.

Yet, as the flames of the Olympic cauldron were extinguished, it was impossible not to fear that all which had gone before was but a mirage flickering in the heat haze. A halcyon oasis admist a harsh reality.

The Olympics alone could never metamorphose Britain so quickly and completely. The feel good factor will disappear as quickly as the red and purple shirts of the volunteers who have personified the human face of London 2012.

We are still in difficult economic times, the riots of last year are no less likely to reignite in this age of cuts and austerity and the cruelty of middle England will return burgeoned by its messengers in the right wing press and the Houses of Parliament...at least in the short term.

What the Olympics has shown us is a wonderful ideal. A picture of ourselves that those in fearful Middle England may well remember. Although seemingly too good to be true, it gives us something we might still strive for.

As we return to reality, we have to hope that the seeds of another way may just have taken root in one or two back waters, that the message of these Olympics might yet live on in the subconscious of the population, ready to be awoken some time in the not too distant future.