Did you watch the final of Wimbledon the other day? I thought it was fantastic. There were points in the game where I was so nervous and excited that I could barely bring myself to look at the screen. What Andy Murray has achieved is outstanding. I’m a big fan. My mum is a super fan. She has been following every step of Andy Murray’s career for the last ten years. Long before any of the mainstream media were talking about Andy Murray, my mum was staying up late, following his tennis matches as he played the various tournaments around the world.
Yesterday’s final was indeed spectacular and I’d even go so far as to say it transcended sport. Watching Andy Murray chasing down every single ball was inspiring and it taught all of us valuable lessons that we can apply to other areas of our lives. Unlike many pundits I don’t find myself getting concerned with the “is he Scottish or is he British?” thing. For what it’s worth, I’m pretty sure that Andy Murray’s achievements have little to do with the Scottish or the UK governments. All credit for Andy Murray’s success goes to his family, his coach, his inner circle and – of course – Andy Murray himself! I think that people who live in my part of the world can draw inspiration from Murray’s achievements. Here is a guy who came from the middle of nowhere. A town called Dunblane. A place which has only ever been on the news for one thing, and the less said about that the better. Andy Murray wasn’t born with a silver spoon in his mouth. He is a guy who got to where he is by talent, hard work and tenacity. I think it’s reasonable for us to draw inspiration from that. But as for pride? Well, I’m not so sure.
You see, being proud of living in the same country as the guy who won Wimbledon is a bit like being proud of being tall. We’re talking about an accident of birth. A circumstance which has nothing to do with any decisions we’ve made or any particular actions that we’ve taken. I believe that you should be proud of things that you do. The moment we start being proud of being from a particular tribe or country is the moment when we racism and snobbery start knocking on our door.
So, that’s why I would say that I’m inspired by Andy Murray but I’m not proud of him. I have no right to be proud of him. I wasn’t involved in him winning Wimbledon. It wasn’t me. It was him!
What bothers me is the thought that there’s a big side show coming to town and this side show is going to ruin the whole vibe.
The side show I’m speaking about is the increasingly vocal “let’s make him ‘Sir Andy'” mantra that we’re hearing all over the BBC and also from the likes of prime minister, David Cameron. Well, don’t get me wrong, if any sportsman deserves to be knighted (made into a ‘Sir’) then I can think of no better example than Andy Murray. But you see, I’m sorry to spoil the party and I’m sorry to be the fly in the ointment – an annoying turd in the punch bowl – but I hope Andy Murray doesn’t get knighted. Why? Because, if that event happens then all it means is that once again, the elite ruling classes are going to step in and take center stage, YET AGAIN.
Last summer I watched the London Olympics get hijacked by the Royal Family. They were all over it. Every single British gold medal was presented to ‘God Save the Queen’ and then there was, of course, the opening ceremony which was dominated by Royalty. At times I felt as though the Olympics were a tribute to the Queen, dressed up as a sporting event. Now it’s about to happen again and this time it’s with Andy Murray. So, the lead story is no more about how some guy worked hard and overcame adversity to achieve a fantastic goal – now the headline is going to be that the Queen has been gracious enough to give him a reward. So, we’re all going to be talking about what the Queen was wearing, what she said and how Andy bent down on one knee to humbly receive his honour. Another great British sporting event hijacked by the Royal Family.
Now, I would like to worship the Queen and all the rest of them. On a personal level I have nothing against the Royal family. As a matter of fact, there’s a couple of them who I think I like, as people. The trouble is, my glorious brain forbids me from worshipping anyone because of the family that they happen to have been born into by the sheerest of flukes. You see, I’m one of those crazy people who believes that all human beings are created equally. To me, this is not just some line from a book. It’s not something that I’m saying to sound like a Miss World contestant. It’s not some sound byte that I can take or leave. It is one of my core beliefs and it’s unshakable.
Every single person who accepts a knighthood from the Queen or who worships any member of the Royal family in any way whatsoever – no matter how big or how small, is making the declaration that all people are NOT born equally and all people are NOT of equal value. To eagerly worship the Queen is to accept the proposition that a person’s place on the planet Earth is decided not by what they do, but by where they are born. That’s not fair, it’s out of date and out of touch with the global community in which we live.
I would like to think that Andy Murray would decline any invitation to be knighted. It wouldn’t be the first time that a high profile person has refused an award from the Queen. David Bowie declined the opportunity to be honoured by the Queen a few years ago and it seems to have done his career no harm. Unfortunately however, I fear I’m backing a losing team here. My prediction is that Andy Murray will be knighted and very soon we’ll all be talking about Sir Andy. We’ll also be talking about the glory of ‘her majesty’ and we’ll all be eagerly kissing the asses of the ruling classes yet again. We are a nation of willing and obedient slaves. A legion of under achievers who spend many hours of our week stuck in traffic jams. More people in the UK care about who wins the X-Factor than who gets elected as prime minister. So long as there is a Royal family and a House of Lords then the UK will never have any kind of real democracy.
Not many people are talking like me right now but I think time in on my side. Some day in the future I hope that people may read these words and say ‘David was right’. Some day in the future people will look back and wonder why we choose to live in such a blatantly unfair and absurd society. I don’t hate the Royal Family as people but I do detest what they stand for. So, I hope they leave Andy Murray alone and I hope that for once, the Queen elects not to hijack a great British sporting occasion.
Remember. We are all equal. We are all equal. WE ARE ALL EQUAL.
David Connelly's Blog 