It was unique and quite appealing. Typical British, some may say, but it was supposed to be. Try to make a better show before you accuse, critisize, and abuse.
So if Paris was hosting they would have a theme of 100 greatest military defeats? Or Qatar, based on the fact that Arab countries can never agree on anything. Just 100 men in a field waving their arms and shouting at each other.
So how does representing multi culutral history with dancing industrialists in top hats help? Either do history or don't do it, but distorting it, no thanks
Yes, It was very British. Some outsiders may have had a hard time relating. It showed the history, the pageantry but most importantly the barmy nature of the country.
Haha! Yeah I was thinking that whilst falling asleep last night! If we owned the world again that bit would have been a lot quicker.
Very dissapointed with our efforts in the cycling this afternoon. Seeing as the winner was from Kazakhstan, I wonder which national anthem they will play when he steps on the podium?!
Actually macro I don't think they did. They showed multi cultural Britain the end result of early imperialism.
Actually the ceremony would have been better and a lot shorter if they allowed them to put the empire back together for one day and they marched under the British flag. Would have got it down to a cozy 100 nations instead of 204......
well it is definitely different from beijing. it's more of their history from an agricultural country to the industrial revolution, which is a very major contribution of theirs to the world. and then came their contribution to popular culture, in terms of music, literature, movies, etc. i didn't get the nurses thing though. the first part was making me fall asleep, until mr. bean came! ^___^
i heard jk rowling was there, but i think that was the time i drifted off to sleep.
saving grace:
1. sex pistols video clip and them dancing to pretty vacant. if they are proud that punk music is their contribution to the world then i appreciate them brits very much for it. rock music in general actually. i think i also saw/heard the clash, the rolling stones, david bowie, queen, etc
2. arctic monkeys performing!♥
3. loved the olympic cauldron "come together" concept. if there is one thing that would make you remember this event this is it
i missed jimmy page though. he was there in the closing ceremonies of beijing. how come only david beckham can get to appear more than once?
I guess for the Britishers it shows off their creativity and imagination, things that are stifled in countries like china and Qatar, where some subjects are not to be mentioned and hence everyone is very careful with what they say.
(and I don't use that word in it's watered down modern usage) the forging of the rings as they rose above the stadium amongst the chimmnies was stunning.
The musical score was fantastic.
Not one for overt displays of patriotism however, I would say that it show-cased what the uk leads the world at, namely, the Arts. I guess there are those that are not culturally sophisticated enough to comprehend.
The only part I didn't get was the "Indian/European" fusion dancing they did, for the moment of rememberance, which was choreographed by Akram Something....
Other than that, I loved the whole show, the music was awesome... I just wish someone would not hold out such high hopes for early finishes and be more realistic about the time it takes to troll out all the countries... event was timed from 22h45 - 2h00 - it finished just before 3h00.
China is going to be hard to beat ever. Their opening ceremony enjoyed the benefit of the largest budget to date (and maybe ever) plus human resources that also may never be equaled (unless North Korea ever get the Olympics).
It was going to be a challenge for any country to match up to China, and I knew Britain was going to have to rely on something other than Chinas two main advantages to impress. I was so looking forward to our opening ceremony to see how we have managed to use quirkiness and modern culture to balance out money and people power.
It started off ok, and I kept thinking "this is going to build into something spectacular". I have to tell you now it did not :( a few good moments of humour, and that's it.
Anyway it is done and out of the way. I'm sure the sporting events will now be sensational, and we can look forward to another art piece at the end of it all with another quirky British closing ceremony.
Oh I did like the flame, that is different in a way that works. But mostly I wish I had not put up the fight that I did to stay awake. :(
I thought it was a pathetic farce - they were trying to remind people that UK was a big green field with buxom wenches, sheeps and goats. They could hardly represent the existing status - that of a country over run with foreigners, rioting, thieving politicians and thugs.
Didn't ya like that witch on the drums huh? sheesh... I was so shocked at the whole thing... but on reflection... probably typical pommmy show... sorry but true. You know, kind of namby pamby stuff with stiff upper lip sorta thing - but then how on earth do you explain all that jigging about for almost an hour??? what in the heck was THAT? I am still smiling at that memory.... sooo bad.
Yes my husband and I were watching it and he just went to bed in disgust - well us Aussies love to take the mickey out of the poms at the best of times.. but this was ridiculous and incredulous! LOL How embarrassing!
But obviously from some comments above, it was LURVED so good on them... I am glad they enjoyed it.
Shame that it was meant to be a spectacle that the whole world should have enjoyed.. love to see what the headlines in the UK papers say in the morning..
Yeah... what about those bloomin' chimneys?? what were they thinking? oh so ugly... LOL
Helen: I was in my living room, watching the opening ceremony on a 40 inch HD plasma screen with my Mom. And we both look at one and other thinking "We're both seeing this... Right?" O_o! So what defines Britain is the countryside, Dizzie Rascal and the chemical brothers... and that gaint ugly Witch! I almost got freaking mortified!
wtf....even Qatar's Asian games were better than this...such pathetic and boring show.... Wonder what happened to the Queen and her usual Royal look?..she looked as if she got up from bed and came running....perhaps her hair dresser called in sick??
MarcoNandoz said "Is anyone else stil watching this train wreck?"
Couldn't agree more Marco - sad, very sad! haha!
I thought it was way below par... boring in fact.
And yes displaying the history was probably appropriate and enjoyable for all the UK people... but what about the rest of the world? Do you think they could care? We all wanted to be entertained with something extraordinary but it was really mediocre!
And those kids bouncing up and down on the beds with silly people dancing all around... to name but one unmentionable... what was THAT all about??.. if I wasn't so bored I might have laughed...
And many of my Facebook UK friends were commenting and also disappointed/disillusioned so that must say something I guess???
Oh well.. on with the show as they say!
and thank goodness that is over for me! LOL
Just my own personal opinion... sorry to those that thought it was wonderful.
China just screams that badass, honourable, warrior spirit attitude, and it's about time other countries admitt that they " The chinese" are a hard act to follow.
The Beijing one was just fancy all that money can buy with no history or pride. As I said, there were bits that non Brits would not have got, but who cares, its our turn and we have enjoyed it.
Yes the flag procession dragged on a bit but that happens every time. Maybe if we ruled half the world again that bit would be a lot quicker.
I figured out what this reminds me of, a bad high school themed dance. must say the Beijing ceremony was epic, heroic, and represented the Olympic spirit so well. This one represented only the Queen.
Is anyone else stil watching this train wreck? What is going on? Maybe the Beijing organizers should just do every opening ceremony from here on out.
I feel like this is a bad dream, being turned into a movie that flops opening weekend.
Can someone at least explain the metaphorical intentions behind these " artistic" pieces. I got the hospital since it was spelled out for me, but geez the rest is an lsd trip
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I knew his brother Basildon. He had letters after his name ..
His name is Bond- James Bond. I like it.
Moza, they'd have the Crazy Horse and the Moulin Rouge! Looking forward?
It was unique and quite appealing. Typical British, some may say, but it was supposed to be. Try to make a better show before you accuse, critisize, and abuse.
So if Paris was hosting they would have a theme of 100 greatest military defeats? Or Qatar, based on the fact that Arab countries can never agree on anything. Just 100 men in a field waving their arms and shouting at each other.
All history is distorted from someone's point of view.
It was a merely an opening night extravaganza. To be enjoyed, but not taken too seriously.
So how does representing multi culutral history with dancing industrialists in top hats help? Either do history or don't do it, but distorting it, no thanks
Yes, It was very British. Some outsiders may have had a hard time relating. It showed the history, the pageantry but most importantly the barmy nature of the country.
Haha! Yeah I was thinking that whilst falling asleep last night! If we owned the world again that bit would have been a lot quicker.
Very dissapointed with our efforts in the cycling this afternoon. Seeing as the winner was from Kazakhstan, I wonder which national anthem they will play when he steps on the podium?!
Actually macro I don't think they did. They showed multi cultural Britain the end result of early imperialism.
Actually the ceremony would have been better and a lot shorter if they allowed them to put the empire back together for one day and they marched under the British flag. Would have got it down to a cozy 100 nations instead of 204......
Well, I guess the whole thing was...hmmm...British.
well it is definitely different from beijing. it's more of their history from an agricultural country to the industrial revolution, which is a very major contribution of theirs to the world. and then came their contribution to popular culture, in terms of music, literature, movies, etc. i didn't get the nurses thing though. the first part was making me fall asleep, until mr. bean came! ^___^
i heard jk rowling was there, but i think that was the time i drifted off to sleep.
saving grace:
1. sex pistols video clip and them dancing to pretty vacant. if they are proud that punk music is their contribution to the world then i appreciate them brits very much for it. rock music in general actually. i think i also saw/heard the clash, the rolling stones, david bowie, queen, etc
2. arctic monkeys performing!♥
3. loved the olympic cauldron "come together" concept. if there is one thing that would make you remember this event this is it
i missed jimmy page though. he was there in the closing ceremonies of beijing. how come only david beckham can get to appear more than once?
hahaha! good point. perhaps they're actually ashamed of it?
wirehead : funny how the show skipped the whole imperialistic part in Britain's history
I guess for the Britishers it shows off their creativity and imagination, things that are stifled in countries like china and Qatar, where some subjects are not to be mentioned and hence everyone is very careful with what they say.
so it was aptly named
:D
lol at culurally sophisticated !!!!
Its getting good write ups back in the UK, also good write ups by the New York Times, Al Jazeera and the Sydney Morning Herald.
The music was defiantly the best bit, played some classic stuff and actually missed out quite a bit as well!
Lets just see how the event goes now!
Today's road race is expected to see the biggest ever Olympic crowd ever.
Anyone who knows the history of the UK, knows what "Pandamonium" (Name of the Show) was all about.
I recall that Qatar did a similar thing during the Asian games. "Sands of Time" or something like that...
There are bound to be those who want to be negative..No matter what was put on they would find fault with it..It was great,very tongue in cheek!.
(and I don't use that word in it's watered down modern usage) the forging of the rings as they rose above the stadium amongst the chimmnies was stunning.
The musical score was fantastic.
Not one for overt displays of patriotism however, I would say that it show-cased what the uk leads the world at, namely, the Arts. I guess there are those that are not culturally sophisticated enough to comprehend.
Not everyone. Xena and I thought it was good.
really was it that bad?? everyone's been saying the same thing! :O
what a total waste of time, ! Ugh....
Well they did show what they got! :)
much to entertain me.... I loved it
The only part I didn't get was the "Indian/European" fusion dancing they did, for the moment of rememberance, which was choreographed by Akram Something....
Other than that, I loved the whole show, the music was awesome... I just wish someone would not hold out such high hopes for early finishes and be more realistic about the time it takes to troll out all the countries... event was timed from 22h45 - 2h00 - it finished just before 3h00.
The flame cauldron was a genius idea.
the only good part is Rowan Atkinson. . . the rest are nonsense . .
At least it had Sir Tim Berners Lee the reason we are all here.
The best bit was James Bondand the Queen, followed by Mr. Bean. Had to get my sick bag whe I saw David Beckham :O(
I enjoyed watching it last night. Mr. Bean was there.
It was different and probably better in these times that the non democratic govts that just throw money at it and hope some sticks.
I found it great in patches. Probably hard for non-Brits to follow.
It's over and time to focus on the sports :O)
China is going to be hard to beat ever. Their opening ceremony enjoyed the benefit of the largest budget to date (and maybe ever) plus human resources that also may never be equaled (unless North Korea ever get the Olympics).
It was going to be a challenge for any country to match up to China, and I knew Britain was going to have to rely on something other than Chinas two main advantages to impress. I was so looking forward to our opening ceremony to see how we have managed to use quirkiness and modern culture to balance out money and people power.
It started off ok, and I kept thinking "this is going to build into something spectacular". I have to tell you now it did not :( a few good moments of humour, and that's it.
Anyway it is done and out of the way. I'm sure the sporting events will now be sensational, and we can look forward to another art piece at the end of it all with another quirky British closing ceremony.
Oh I did like the flame, that is different in a way that works. But mostly I wish I had not put up the fight that I did to stay awake. :(
I hope you enjoy my picture of you National Team - baaaaaaaaa!
I agree - it was rather like watching a Bollywood movie.
I thought it was a pathetic farce - they were trying to remind people that UK was a big green field with buxom wenches, sheeps and goats. They could hardly represent the existing status - that of a country over run with foreigners, rioting, thieving politicians and thugs.
Its just the opening ceremonies for the olympics. I've never watched them and I don't know anybody that ever has...until now
They have no significance
Of all the things to get upset about?
Marco: UNEFFINGBELIEVABLE ROTFL!!!!!!!!!
Didn't ya like that witch on the drums huh? sheesh... I was so shocked at the whole thing... but on reflection... probably typical pommmy show... sorry but true. You know, kind of namby pamby stuff with stiff upper lip sorta thing - but then how on earth do you explain all that jigging about for almost an hour??? what in the heck was THAT? I am still smiling at that memory.... sooo bad.
Yes my husband and I were watching it and he just went to bed in disgust - well us Aussies love to take the mickey out of the poms at the best of times.. but this was ridiculous and incredulous! LOL How embarrassing!
But obviously from some comments above, it was LURVED so good on them... I am glad they enjoyed it.
Shame that it was meant to be a spectacle that the whole world should have enjoyed.. love to see what the headlines in the UK papers say in the morning..
Yeah... what about those bloomin' chimneys?? what were they thinking? oh so ugly... LOL
Helen: I was in my living room, watching the opening ceremony on a 40 inch HD plasma screen with my Mom. And we both look at one and other thinking "We're both seeing this... Right?" O_o! So what defines Britain is the countryside, Dizzie Rascal and the chemical brothers... and that gaint ugly Witch! I almost got freaking mortified!
I never started
Im watching the New York Yankees vs the Boston Red Sox
wtf....even Qatar's Asian games were better than this...such pathetic and boring show.... Wonder what happened to the Queen and her usual Royal look?..she looked as if she got up from bed and came running....perhaps her hair dresser called in sick??
MarcoNandoz said "Is anyone else stil watching this train wreck?"
Couldn't agree more Marco - sad, very sad! haha!
I thought it was way below par... boring in fact.
And yes displaying the history was probably appropriate and enjoyable for all the UK people... but what about the rest of the world? Do you think they could care? We all wanted to be entertained with something extraordinary but it was really mediocre!
And those kids bouncing up and down on the beds with silly people dancing all around... to name but one unmentionable... what was THAT all about??.. if I wasn't so bored I might have laughed...
And many of my Facebook UK friends were commenting and also disappointed/disillusioned so that must say something I guess???
Oh well.. on with the show as they say!
and thank goodness that is over for me! LOL
Just my own personal opinion... sorry to those that thought it was wonderful.
this is not another Beijing, this is a James Bond movie.
As the great Michael Johnson just said, this is not another Beijing, this is London.
Looking forward to Mark Cavandish smashing the cycling road race tomorrow afternoon and our first of many medals.
China just screams that badass, honourable, warrior spirit attitude, and it's about time other countries admitt that they " The chinese" are a hard act to follow.
A bit OTT to say the least. But that's what happens when showbiz takes over sports. Now the real fun begins.
The Beijing one was just fancy all that money can buy with no history or pride. As I said, there were bits that non Brits would not have got, but who cares, its our turn and we have enjoyed it.
Yes the flag procession dragged on a bit but that happens every time. Maybe if we ruled half the world again that bit would be a lot quicker.
I figured out what this reminds me of, a bad high school themed dance. must say the Beijing ceremony was epic, heroic, and represented the Olympic spirit so well. This one represented only the Queen.
Was amazing, and I imagine there were lots of bits that non Brits did not get! The music bit was the best, something that nobody can beat us at!
Is anyone else stil watching this train wreck? What is going on? Maybe the Beijing organizers should just do every opening ceremony from here on out.
I feel like this is a bad dream, being turned into a movie that flops opening weekend.
Can someone at least explain the metaphorical intentions behind these " artistic" pieces. I got the hospital since it was spelled out for me, but geez the rest is an lsd trip