WHY??! I’ve always thought of Madness as being representatives of the true working class of Britain – those who realise that the Queen and the whole royal family have done nothing for us. Your staunch non-racist stance hardly fits in with Philip’s ‘non PC’ i.e.RACIST comments. PLEASE don’t do it!
dave
Dear Dave
I’ve been meaning to get round to this one for a while, sorry for the delay.
As a small child I was a pupil at Gospel Oak school and every year we were given daffodil bulbs to grow at home. We would grow them and have a flower display where they would be judged. One year the Queen Mother came to our school to see our flowers. It was a hot day and she walked past every pupil saying hello and I was quite impressed at this even then, as there were about 400 of us. During the war Buckingham Palace was bombed while she was there. Not in a concrete bunker in Switzerland, I might add. Which is where I’d be. The same day she visited East and West Ham which had been bombed to bits as she could look the “East End in the face”. The boost to public morale at the time must’ve been fantastic.
Read this:
Verdict = top Monarch.
In 1976 I was working on the council..er..hold on it’s lunchtime – to be continued CB
OK.. where was I? OK, In 1976 I working for Camden Council building the Talacre Skatepark and Sports Centre in Prince of Wales Road, Kentish Town and who came along to see us but Prince Charles. He came down the road we were working in and on one side were all our Foreman, Bosses etc suited and booted awaiting a Royal audience. On the other side is us all dirty and scruffy looking. So Prince Charles like totally ignored them and came up to us and asked what we were doing in that great Prince Charles voice of his. So I said “we’re laying turf” and he asked how we kept it together and I told him we stitched it together [which of course is not true, you glue it together]. I noticed he had a great pair of brogues on and a right tasty suit. I really wanted to ask him where the brogues were from but you don’t think at the time do you? He then went on a skateboard and fell off for the TV cameras. Once the TV cameras were off he did some Kickflips, Ollies and Crooked Grinds and totally impressed us all. Ok that bit is not not true but he had the touch of the common man. He knew how to communicate with the public. After he’d gone, our guvnors came running up to us, asking what he said but we never told them. The Talacre was opened by Princess Anne – more of her later. A few years later in July 1982 I was in Madness, an international rock star, my labouring days are over and Madness did a gig for the Princes Trust which is a great charity [patron Prince Charles] so I got to meet him again.
This time he asked me “what do you do?” in that classic voice. I said “I play the guitar” he said “how many strings does it have?” and I said “six’.
He then quipped “how do you do that with only five fingers?” so I said, “I use a plectrum”. Yes my dear, Oscar Wilde spun in his grave. We had to play the National anthem and we did it on Kazoos I looked up and he was laughing away, he got the joke. Some Monarchs would’ve chucked us in prison. I agree with a lot of his views on Architecture, Medicine etc. He seems a pretty good bloke really to me. I think his sons are heading in the right direction as well good lads. My ex wifes son was in Harrys Regiment and he told me Harrys a top bloke. A couple of years ago we did a gig in the grounds of Princess Annes house and she came and met us afterwards had a chat. She’s very down to earth also does loads for charity. She doesn’t get the publicity. The Queen what can you say really, she is the Queen. I have her picture in my bathroom er..Ok it’s a Jamie Reid one but I like the Queen. Prince Andrew, Prince Edward and Prince Phillip I don’t have the same degree of er..”admiration” for, shall I say but as you can see Madness have had connection with Royalty over the years.
yours CB
PS I got a great letter too from Buckingham Palace asking me to do it, so what can you say really? You will note it is addressed to me not the band and actually they want a special “showtime” for the Queen. I can’t tell the rest of the lads they are not wanted. Ah well that’s life.
