Closing Ceremony--Always Look on the Bright Side of Life

[DrJay]

They just did it!! Almost, they did leave out the crucifixes, but I'm sure a good bit of the crowd already had their own pint, AND they had Eric Idle singing!! And I think I just heard him use the word "shit"! Woohoo!

viewtopic.php?f=8&t=39061&p=631852&hilit=always+look+on+the+bright+side+of+life#p631852

(sixth post down!)

[gh]

I had a freebie ticket, but blew it off (when you have an 04:05 airport pickup, your priorities change)... watched a little bit in the restaurant, but when I went into full-tears mode at Imagine, I knew my time was up....

[JRM]

They just did it!! Almost, they did leave out the crucifixes, but I'm sure a good bit of the crowd already had their own pint, AND they had Eric Idle singing!!

Awesome! I can't wait to watch. I made a Monty Python reference to my students last semester ("And now for something completely different..."), and one out of 60 got it. Alas.

PS: The crucifixes wouldn't have seemed that out of place, what with the nurses dancing on hospital beds in the Opening Ceremonies...

I had a freebie ticket, but blew it off (when you have an 04:05 airport pickup, your priorities change)... watched a little bit in the restaurant, but when I went into full-tears mode at Imagine, I knew my time was up....

Did the restaurant, by chance, offer a Beer School for Punks? (i.e. who took the photo on the Facebook page?)

[CookyMonzta]

"A happy and glorious Games", so says Jacques Rogge.

That just about leads me to believe that this guy is going to be much harder to impress or please than Antonio Samaranch or Lord Killanin. I thought these were the best Olympics since he took over.

[DrJay]

Always sad to see the flame go out.

I see they took Daltry and Townshend out of storage. They acquitted themselves well. Funny, could you imagine sending someone back to 1964, to one of the garage or club gigs I've seen B&W footage of The Who playing in their formative years, and telling them, "right, you'll be playing (well, two of you will) the final spot at the Olympic Games Closing Ceremony in London in 2012, 48 years from now, and over one billion people around the globe will be watching you, many on computers in their homes? Just thought you'd like to know."

[DrJay]

I feel like the guy in "Forrest Gump" who asks, after Forrest decides he's tired of running and starts walking home:

"Now what are we supposed to do?"

[JRM]

I feel like the guy in "Forrest Gump" who asks, after Forrest decides he's tired of running and starts walking home:

"Now what are we supposed to do?"

Two words: Diamond League! There are five meets left.

Otherwise, we have another (long) off-season to discuss Jamaica vs. USA....

[Vault-emort]

So will NBC bleep the naughty word out when it gets broadcast in a few hours?

[DrJay]

So will NBC bleep the naughty word out when it gets broadcast in a few hours?

No doubt, otherwise it would lead to the downfall of Western Civilization as we know it.

[CookyMonzta]

"A happy and glorious Games", so says Jacques Rogge.

That just about leads me to believe that this guy is going to be much harder to impress or please than Antonio Samaranch or Lord Killanin. I thought these were the best Olympics since he took over.

My bad. I didn't know Jacques Rogge was retiring next year. He could have given London a parting gift, if he thought these games exceeded expectations enough to be called "the best games ever", or, at the very least, "the best games he has ever seen".

I'm pretty sure someone will say, or has already said, something about this, because U.S. commentators were up in arms when Saramanch called Atlanta 1996 "an exceptional games". We deserved to be broadsided like that, because it was far more about the corporate logo than it was about the 5 rings, the athletes, the sports or the medals.

[JRM]

He could have given London a parting gift, if he thought these games exceeded expectations enough to be called "the best games ever", or, at the very least, "the best games he has ever seen".

I suspect he already considered that.

[CookyMonzta]

He could have given London a parting gift, if he thought these games exceeded expectations enough to be called "the best games ever", or, at the very least, "the best games he has ever seen".

I suspect he already considered that.

So, what could have possibly prompted him not to consider it for any of his 3 Olympics (Athens, Beijing, London)? And who will take over when he retires?

[Dutra5]

So will NBC bleep the naughty word out when it gets broadcast in a few hours?

They did.

BTW....to me this was the highlight of the Ceremony

[Marlow]

To this Ami observer, Brit 'humor' has always been a little . . . off . . . and this whole Closing Ceremony was waaaay 'off'. That said, ya gotta love it!

[lonewolf]

I watched that whole thing, hoping something would happen that I could make sense of..didn't happen
Ok, I was impressed by a million dollars worth of Rolls convertibles lined up abreast..

[DrJay]

lonewolf, Have you watched any Monty Python? ("Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" is from their movie "Life of Brian", a parody on the life of Christ.) If not, check out youtube for the following skits: The Dead Parrot skit, the Spam skit, the Upperclass Twit of the Year skit, and the Funniest Joke in the World skit. Among their best.

BTW, a couple of years ago I emailed my Bright Side of Life idea linked in the first post here, to the London Organizing Committee. No idea if they were headed that way already, but maybe I'll take a little credit.

[DrJay]

Can someone explain to me how London can host the Games and not include Elton John in the Opening or Closing Ceremony?

[JRM]

Can someone explain to me how London can host the Games and not include Elton John in the Opening or Closing Ceremony?

Just watching the ceremonies now, but I thought the foregone conclusion was Elton John would bring the house down tonight?

My guess is the conversation went something like this: "Let's see, we have £10 million to spend on local performers. Sir Paul McCartney's asking price is £8 million. Sir Elton's is £6 million. What should we do?..."

[Vault-emort]

My guess is the conversation went something like this: "Let's see, we have £10 million to spend on local performers. Sir Paul McCartney's asking price is £8 million. Sir Elton's is £6 million. What should we do?..."

The appearance fee for star performers (in the closing ceremony at least) was £1 (the lowest amount allowed to validate the contracts signed).

[JRM]

My guess is the conversation went something like this: "Let's see, we have £10 million to spend on local performers. Sir Paul McCartney's asking price is £8 million. Sir Elton's is £6 million. What should we do?..."

The appearance fee for star performers (in the closing ceremony at least) was £1 (the lowest amount allowed to validate the contracts signed).

OK, then the conversation went: "We have £1 to offer all performers. Sir McCartney said 'All-riight! I love money.' Sir Elton said 'Kiss off, I don't need this to define myself.'"

Or if the £1 was just for the closing ceremonies, it was: "Sir Elton would like us to explain why we think he's in the same boat as the Pet Shop Boys, the Spice Girls, Oasis, etc..."

Sounds more plausible?

[JRM]

So will NBC bleep the naughty word out when it gets broadcast in a few hours?

No doubt, otherwise it would lead to the downfall of Western Civilization as we know it.

As mentioned, NBC was pretty quick to bleep it (a rather protracted bleep, too). But the damage was done in the stadium: I mean, he swore in front of the PRINCE!

What I found most amusing was you could hear the audience start singing along before Idle started. No hostile crowd there!

[shivfan]

I loved the opening ceremony, but if I'd received tickets for the closing ceremony, I would be asking for my money back....

Yes, Eric Idle was good, but the sad part is that he sang better than most of the 'younger' performers, such as Take That, and even one of my favourite groups, Madness. It seems that aside from Idle, the only performers who could cope with the outdoor conditions were George Michael and the Pet Shop Boys. The lesser-known Emilie Sande was excellent, I thought, and outperformed the others - her rendition of Lennon's 'Imagine' reminded me of Randy Crawford's wonderful cover version.

And Jessie J doing Freddie Mercury....puh-leez!

[donley2]

And Jessie J doing Freddie Mercury....puh-leez!

Overall I found the ceremony a lot of fun, but when they brought Jessie J back out to sing "We Will Rock You" I was SOOOOOOOOOOO glad I was watching it via DVR and could fast forward that bit.

[EPelle]

I generally liked the live show. However, I was surprised by the number of lorries, taxi cabs, scooters and motorised bikes circling around the stadium next to the athletes. Sixteen days of sweat and glory, and a smoggy send-off as a farewell. No thanks.

[Rog]

I loved the opening ceremony, but when I read that the centrepiece of the closing ceremony would be a celebration of British pop music, I didn't bother watching. I'll maybe have a go at it on the BBC site but I imagine I'll be skipping huge parts of it. The Spice Girls miming, Take That... no thanks.

Have to say as well that as a Monty Python fan, and having just watched all of Fawlty Towers again of late (and been hugely impressed), I have heard that Bright Side of Life song a couple of hundred times too often already.

[Pego]

My recurring thought during the show was "I just don't understand culture."

[Daisy]

My recurring thought during the show was "I just don't understand culture."

For you, they had all those words. "To be, or not to be" etc.

Did any of those performers do it live? I'd hope that some did.

[mump boy]

I loved the opening ceremony, but if I'd received tickets for the closing ceremony, I would be asking for my money back....

Yes, Eric Idle was good, but the sad part is that he sang better than most of the 'younger' performers, such as Take That, and even one of my favourite groups, Madness. It seems that aside from Idle, the only performers who could cope with the outdoor conditions were George Michael and the Pet Shop Boys. The lesser-known Emilie Sande was excellent, I thought, and outperformed the others - her rendition of Lennon's 'Imagine' reminded me of Randy Crawford's wonderful cover version.

And Jessie J doing Freddie Mercury....puh-leez!

I was there and every single bit of it was AWESOME

that's all

[jazzcyclist]

Question for our British posters: Who emerged as Britain's biggest star of the Olympics? I know Jessica Ennis was the biggest star going into the Olympics but has that changed? Also, who dominated the front pages of the newspapers on the morning of August 5?

[jeremyp]

I think the Union Jack on the Nun's knickers was the highlight for me.

[Flumpy]

Question for our British posters: Who emerged as Britain's biggest star of the Olympics? I know Jessica Ennis was the biggest star going into the Olympics but has that changed? Also, who dominated the front pages of the newspapers on the morning of August 5?

It's REALLY hard to say at the moment. We did so ridiculously well that no 1 person has completely dominated the post games publicity.

Hard to look past Wiggins, Ennis, Farah and Hoy though.

Cyclist Laura Trott and especially boxer Nicola Adams are going to be huge stars as well.

Feel a bit sorry for the gold medallists in the more obscure sports. One woman got 2 gold medals in horsey things but has been almost completely ignored.

It seems the trick was to win early on. By the 2nd week the novelty had worn off a bit and the attentions was not as all encompassing.

[jazzcyclist]

Question for our British posters: Who emerged as Britain's biggest star of the Olympics? I know Jessica Ennis was the biggest star going into the Olympics but has that changed? Also, who dominated the front pages of the newspapers on the morning of August 5?

It's REALLY hard to say at the moment. We did so ridiculously well that no 1 person has completely dominated the post games publicity.

Hard to look past Wiggins, Ennis, Farah and Hoy though.

Cyclist Laura Trott and especially boxer Nicola Adams are going to be huge stars as well.

Feel a bit sorry for the gold medallists in the more obscure sports. One woman got 2 gold medals in horsey things but has been almost completely ignored.

It seems the trick was to win early on. By the 2nd week the novelty had worn off a bit and the attentions was not as all encompassing.

I guess that makes sense since both cycling and athletics are popular sports in Europe.

What about the front pages on August 5, Ennis or Farah?

[j-a-m]

One woman got 2 gold medals in horsey things but has been almost completely ignored.

And rightfully so, given that the horse did the work.

[marknhj]

After getting back from London last night and being up since 3am with jet lag, I decided to watch the Closing Ceremony this morning before coming to work. It was a marvelous representation of modern English culture, bordering on creative genius in my opinion, and I loved NBC having to bleep Eric idle! I thought I'd had a DVR malfunction though, but just discovered NBC edited out: Ray Davies, Kate Bush, The Who and Muse. WTF? they really are pathetic.

[CookyMonzta]

After getting back from London last night and being up since 3am with jet lag, I decided to watch the Closing Ceremony this morning before coming to work. It was a marvelous representation of modern English culture, bordering on creative genius in my opinion, and I loved NBC having to bleep Eric idle! I thought I'd had a DVR malfunction though, but just discovered NBC edited out: Ray Davies, Kate Bush, The Who and Muse. WTF? they really are pathetic.

Bet the farm that someone on YouTube will post the unedited, uncensored, full-length version of the Closing Ceremonies. And if it does get posted, grab it before NBC screams bloody murder and blows the whistle on them to take it down.