Waiting to do a radio interview, I heard an ABC reporter in the slot before me say, “When you’re here in London with all the history and all the international connections, it really feels like it’s the centre of the world.” And, at least for the next few weeks, so it is.
July 27 began for me on the roof of the High Commission in Canberra, raising the Olympic flag. After a three hour drive to Sydney, there was more climbing when we mounted the 170 spiral steps of the bell tower at St Mary’s Cathedral, Sydney. The friendly bell-ringers were delighted to be joining with others all around the world for the “All the bells” celebration to mark the Olympics. St Mary’s bells were cast in the Whitechapel foundry in East London, just like the Olympic bell. Elsewhere in Australia, they were ringing bells at the National Carillon in Canberra, and the Swan Bell Tower in Perth, whose historic bells – a gift to the people of Australia for the bicentennial – originally graced St Martin in the Fields in Trafalgar Square.
By the time we came to watch the opening ceremony, along with a couple of hundred members of the Australia Britain Chamber of Commerce, it was 6.00am Saturday morning. They were a discerning audience, many recalling the spectacular opening ceremony for Sydney 2000. But all were wowed by the fantastic spectacle in London. As the Sydney Morning Herald described it, “Ironic, wry, nostalgic: it could only be Britain.”
It was definitely a moment to feel very proud to be British. The portrayal of the Industrial Revolution and the UK’s contribution to so many aspects of popular culture, struck a chord with many in the room. It was a history they could share. The genuine commitment to the values of sport and inclusion also shone through. But for me, the defining British moments were the humorous ones, particularly the suggestion of the Queen leaping out of the helicopter with James Bond, which reduced everyone around me to helpless laughter.
So the Games have begun. Millions of Australians will be staying up late to watch over the next 17 days.