The TUV vision for the NI Centenary… – Slugger O’Toole

As linked to in Sarah’s post, I thought Jim Allister’s proposals to mark the anniversary deserved a wider audience. From the document:

Since the centenary marks not just the creation of Northern Ireland but the U.K. as presently constituted, this must be a national celebration;
A visit by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and royal address to the Northern Ireland Assembly and large scale Garden Party;
The flying of the national flag on all public buildings on each key date;
An additional public holiday in or about 3rd May;
A Red Arrows fly past and visit of leading Royal Navy vessels;
A special Royal Mail stamp collection;
A specially minted commemorative coin, with presentation to every schoolchild and centenary specific classroom materials;
A specially commissioned logo to brand and promote all events;
A U.K. Government cabinet meeting in Belfast to mark the centenary with Prime Ministerial promotional visits to key tourist attractions;
An exhibition in the National Portrait Gallery in London of key NI figures in sports, military, arts, politics etc over our first 100 years, which would then tour the rest of the U.K.;
Promotion of Northern Ireland industry, including our food and drink products;
Special honour and remembrance of all security personnel who gave their lives in defence of Northern Ireland, with a particular focus at the 2021 Remembrance Event in the Royal Albert Hall.

Quite a comprehensive list but he left out a few obvious things.

• Belfast City Hall should be lit up red, white and blue for the entire year, even during daylight.
• All black taxis should have Union Jack roofs, even the ones on the Falls.
• Every drink served in every bar must be accompanied with a toast to her majesty the Queen.
• All new iPhones sold during the year must have God Save The Queen as the default ring tone. This will only apply to iPhones as Android users are godless heathens who are beyond redemption.
• A special garden party at Hillsborough Castle where guests are served canapés of buttered Belfast Bap filled with Tayto cheese and onion all washed down with milkman’s orange served in champagne flutes.
• A giant 24/7 year-long parade that goes through every street in Northern Ireland.

What are your suggestions to help us mark this historic year?

“royal wedding cupcakes” by Lola’s Big Adventure! is licensed under CC BY

I help keep the good ship Slugger afloat by managing the business and techy stuff.