The Royal Wedding

KIU writer Amanda Hallay travels Great Britain to hear the common man's reaction to last week's Royal Wedding.

Mrs. Doris Green, a 57-year-old landlady of a Blackpool Bed and Breakfast ("Piles," vacancies guaranteed) had this to say about the event of the decade: "Ooo, it were lovely. We had a lovely day here at Piles. All the lodgers came down to the television room and I put on a lovely spread; dripping sandwiches, fondant fancies, and a plate of those posh biscuits from Marks n' Spencer's. I must have made ten pots of tea as we all sat there and watched The Wedding. And didn't she look grand in her lovely frock. And didn't the Queen look smart. Oooo, and didn't Charles look handsome in his uniform. I said to Betty next door, I said, 'Betty, didn't he look handsome in his uniform,' and she said to me, 'Doris,' she said, 'Doris, he was the perfect groom.' That's what she said, the perfect groom. I think they'll be very happy together, what with him being the perfect groom and her looking so lovely in her frock. Many happy years. God bless 'em!"

Students at Kingston Polytechnic viewed the event with mixed reactions. "I suppose it's quite good for the country," said Mark Swan (20), presently studying Economics. "But I think a lot of people were a bit resentful of all the money that went into it. Especially when the country's in such a state with the unemployment crisis." Susan James (21), reading English Lit, was more optimistic: "I think it's great that Charles married a girl he really loved, even if she isn't a 'proper' Royal. It shows a more human side to The Royal Family." Do these youngsters think their future King and Queen will have a happy marriage? "Absolutely," said Matthew Wheeler (19), reading Geography. "She's a tasty bird, and he's loaded. Why wouldn't they be happy?!" with Paula Wilson (22) adding, "They have to be happy, don't they? I mean, it's not as if they'll ever be allowed to get a divorce or anything!"

Young people can be cynical, it's true, but it seems that these students joined in the nation's revelry; there was 80 percent absenteeism at Kingston Poly the following morning.

Reg Watts (62), who runs a fruit and vegetable stall in the East End of London, was delighted: "I ain't seen nuffink lyke it since the Coronation. Money well spent, that's what I say - money well spent. It's all 'bout pageantry. It's yer pageantry innit, that's what it's all about. It's good for tourism. Brings the Yanks over, dunnit. Them Labor and them Communists what say the Royals should be abolished ain't got no sense. We need the Royal Family to get the Yankee money, don't we? The Royal Family will always come fru. Always. Same in the War. They was there for us. And Charles n' Di will be there for us. And they'll always be together and do Britain proud!"

A patriotic time was had in Birmingham, as Mr. Sanjay Patel (47) explained when I interviewed him as he helped clear up the happy remnants of his neighborhood street party.

"Lovely day. Lovely couple. Very British. We had a street party with Union Jack paper plates and hundreds of balloons - a real English street party. Our neighbor, Mr. Deepak, donated thirty boxes of Jaffa Cakes from his corner shop for the happy event, and Mrs. Shah and the other ladies prepared over two hundred onion bhajis. The kind proprietor of our local British restaurant ('Passage to India') lent the tables and chairs, and Mr. Kapoor bought an extension cord for his new television (which has a remote control!) and wheeled it out onto the street so we could watch that lucky chappy Charles marry his English Rose. All the ladies dressed up in saris and had a good gossip; you should have heard the ooh-ing and ah-ing over Diana's dress! When the sun came down we lit up the street with Christmas lights, and everyone did dancing - even old Mrs. Khan shook a leg! It was a very, very much happy wonderful day. It made me proud to be British!"

Syd Smith (19) of Manchester (who sports the Mohawk haircut favored by the so-called punk rockers five years ago and is registered as unemployed) was less favorable. "Bollocks! He's a PRATT! She's a PRATT! Anarchy in the U.K.! BAST-AAARDS!!!!"

People in the West Country seemed nonchalant about the Royal Wedding. I caught up with Seth Smeeth (52), a fisherman from Exeter, whilst he was mending his nets. "Ooo, ar. You're talkin' bout them Royal folk - that Charles and that Doi. No, I 'aven't seen none a' that Royal Weddin'. We don't 'ave a telly. And I 'aven't been followin' it them papers, either; I never learned 'ow to read. Ooo, ar. You're steppin' on me net."

The nation's sentiments were perhaps most eloquently expressed by Mandy Smith, a hairdresser from Dagenham, who had taken the day off work to watch the event at her parent's home.

"It was like a fairy tale: a beautiful new princess and a kind and handsome prince. The whole thing was like a dream. I cried and cried. It made all us single girls believe that some day our prince would come. It made all the boys want to act like proper gentlemen (for a change!). It made us believe that dreams would come true. It made us proud to be British!"

If the word on the street is to be believed, The Royal Wedding was a very special day for commoners as well as royalty, and with the nation behind them, Charles and Diana are sure to enjoy a long and happy married life.

Long live the future King and Queen!