The Day In London Town
So before I start on the day's events I am not a big lover of politics and I don't support any party, So will I will try to keep this about the march and this will be an honest account from someone who was there.
Lads travelled from all corners of Norfolk via Liverpool Street and some via Cambridge as they were meeting the Kings Lynn contingent on the way, I myself opted to drive with my daughter and 2 friends. We parked at Stratford hopped on the central line to Oxford Circus.
The meeting point was to be a Pub just off Oxford Street the original Pub didn't open until 10.30am but the pub opposite was open so we used this as a base, Bonds off Dering Street is a decent bar and the pizzas are top draw. craft-pubs.co.uk.
It was good to catch up with a few old mates and pose for a team photo outside the bar, so this is where the first piece of fake reporting comes in from the evening standard we didn't sing any anti IRA songs. https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/football-lads-association-march-thousands-gather-in-central-london-in-antiextremism-protest-a3652981.html
Anyway the time of the march was fast approaching it was strange walking to Park Lane walking through streets, our numbers growing at every street corner and cross roads. You got the feeling this was going to be big and the buzz in the air was amazing. Cab drivers leaning out of there cab windows saying 'good luck lads', members of the public looking on in amazement.
By the time we got to Park Lane I would say there was at least 100 people, then the most surreal thing happened, as we turned the corned into Park Lane we bumped into 12 to 15 Ipswich fans... awkward or what! Someone came out with 'we need a picture of this' I myself just couldn't bring myself to be in the picture and I could see a few others avoiding it.
So, pictures done, we carried on down park lane. By this time id say at least 200 to 300 people, all teams as one. There were was Norwich, Ipswich, Colchester and Middlesborough to name just a few. As we walked down Park Lane we could see a large crowd at the bottom of the road, there was an old type double decker bus parked across the road, this was to be used as a platform for the speakers. Now, this was my only moan of the whole day, I felt the speeches did drag on a bit, though the crowd was very responsive to the speakers, especially when the football chants of 'who are yer, who are yer' where directed at Dianne Abbott.
Now I have been pulled up on twitter as apparently the speakers did not denounce all types of terror, I have personally listened back to the speeches numerous times and I believe all aspects where covered. Hopefully my next blog post Left Right and Centre will cover this subject in more detail.
Back to the march. With the speeches done it was time for the march to move off, how this was going to pan out I had no idea, with this amount of people it could have gone wrong but the march moved off wreaths and organisers at the front. We where stood on park lane the opposite side of the bus to Hyde Park Corner, we moved off and negotiated the bus at this point I think a became aware of the numbers involved, to see that many men, women and children marching was truly amazing.
Turning left on to Piccadilly as people spread out across the road it was hard to keep together with my mates (and with the speed can daughter walks it was hard to keep up with her) so we decided to walk just the two of us taking in this special day and some of the clobber on show was just a bit special.
The march continued up Piccadilly this was the point where you got to see the numbers involved, as the road undulates at various points you could look all the way to the top of Piccadilly and all the way back to Hyde Park Corner, it also seemed at every road junction people where adding to the numbers, as lads where walking you could hear the sounds of mates meeting up, I met up with a couple of lads I know from England trips away who I hadn't seen for years.
Half way up Piccadilly I could see a group of lads and a camera with what looked like someone carrying out a interview as I drew level I could see it was Tommy Robinson, now you will hear people saying he was on the march but I can tell you he was working with RebelMedia, I don't feel the march should be belittled just because he was covering it as it was not the Tommy Robinson march.
As you get to the top of Piccadilly we made a right turn into St James Street and down the hill heading to Pall Mall, all along the route you could see tourists watching I had a few ask me what it was all about, and was more than happy to explain and the feedback was positive.
Turning left on to Piccadilly as people spread out across the road it was hard to keep together with my mates (and with the speed can daughter walks it was hard to keep up with her) so we decided to walk just the two of us taking in this special day and some of the clobber on show was just a bit special.
The march continued up Piccadilly this was the point where you got to see the numbers involved, as the road undulates at various points you could look all the way to the top of Piccadilly and all the way back to Hyde Park Corner, it also seemed at every road junction people where adding to the numbers, as lads where walking you could hear the sounds of mates meeting up, I met up with a couple of lads I know from England trips away who I hadn't seen for years.
Half way up Piccadilly I could see a group of lads and a camera with what looked like someone carrying out a interview as I drew level I could see it was Tommy Robinson, now you will hear people saying he was on the march but I can tell you he was working with RebelMedia, I don't feel the march should be belittled just because he was covering it as it was not the Tommy Robinson march.
As you get to the top of Piccadilly we made a right turn into St James Street and down the hill heading to Pall Mall, all along the route you could see tourists watching I had a few ask me what it was all about, and was more than happy to explain and the feedback was positive.
So along Pall Mall and on to Trafalgar Square this was a poignant moment for myself and any one else from the county of Norfolk one of our most famous sons watching down on us, also at this point of the march it would be where we met up with the Proud Gurkhas, know this was getting very emotional and we still had the cenotaph to come.
Before I go on to the march past the cenotaph with all the history and respect this place deserves, it beggars belief that a counter-demonstration could be positioned at this point on the march, it shows a total lack of respect from those involved and whoever organised it.
So I walked past the cenotaph and bowed my head in respect to all those brave souls, its a pity this point could not have been the most silent part of the march but it wasn't to be, I felt I had behaved in the correct manner befitting this place, so on to parliament square and the seat of this great democracy freedom of speech all that comes with it.
After passing Big Ben the march was to finish on Westminster Bridge with the sounding of the last post and the laying of the wreaths from all the different teams in attendance, the sounding of the last post by a lone bugler being performed faultlessly.
So the march was complete and people started to drift off, it was then that I met up with the lads who I had travelled down with and again saw more old friends from far and wide of which we've shared many a great day and we all agreed it was a very special day and one which will live long in our memories.
