It got progressively better as it went on but it was never going to come close to the Opening Ceremony. Gutted it's all over now though.

Some miserable people around! Tonight was weird, wacky and wonderful all at the same time. Some parts were iffy but in the main it was bloody good, loved Eric Idol - and don't forget Monty Python was big round the world, people know who they are. My only complaint - too much Jessie J, a brief appearance was more than enough. But a great finale with The Who, and the lighting and effects were stunning.

Well done all concerned.

I thought it was ok, but it looked as though it could have done with another full rehearsal or two (I appreciate that the Closing Ceremony team get minimal rehearsal time in the stadium compared to the Opening Ceremony)

Didn't quite get why we had to see Emilie Sande (who I find Ok but not fantastic) twice though, nor did I understand why we had to hear the same songs (Blur, Madness One Direction) while the Athletes entered the stadium, when we had only heard the performances minutes earlier. It was like the DJ left the CD on while he went to the loo!

got better as it went on though, and credit to Gary Barlow for his professionalism in turning up to do his job and not let his bandmates down after such an awful week.

I would think there are tribes in Borneo that haven't heard of Python but I would guess the rest of the world has.

This. Some folk need to chill out and cheer up.

Thoroughly enjoyable if not quite up to the exceptionally high standard of the opening ceremony.

Only real drag was the turd Brand being involved. Otherwise, it was great stuff. Some of the music wasn't to my taste, but that's what diversity is all about.

Alternately brilliant, cheesy, stunning, camp and downright wierd.

All in all, typically British.

The only flat bit is when the Brazilians came on, which sort of shows where we're going in four years time, look past the samba, frilly shirts and dancing like your drunk uncle at a wedding and you're done.

A bit of a faux-pas not having any other music in reserve for the athletes walk-in though, if they'd taken any longer we'd have had Madness for the third time in twenty minutes, other than that, just fine frippary and sufficiently daft to tell the world what our idea of entertainment is all about.

Peter Hitchens hates it. Therefore it was fantastic.

Quote ="JerryChicken"The only flat bit is when the Brazilians came on, which sort of shows where we're going in four years time, look past the samba, frilly shirts and [udancing like your drunk uncle at a wedding[/u and you're done. '" Or Boris even? www.sabotagetimes.com/wp-content ... /bKCUN.gif If you must post a 2meg gif then link to it.

Quote ="JerryChicken"The only flat bit is when the Brazilians came on, which sort of shows where we're going in four years time, look past the samba, frilly shirts and [udancing like your drunk uncle at a wedding[/u and you're done. '" Or Boris even? www.sabotagetimes.com/wp-content ... /bKCUN.gif If you must post a 2meg gif then link to it.

I thought it was cack. I've thoroughly enjoyed the event in general, but the closing ceremony did nowt for me. It's the first time I've watched either a closing or opening ceremony to any games, and it'll probably be the last. Think I'll just stick with the sport.

I've been around 50 years & am pretty sure the Rolling Stones have been fairly significant within British culture during that period. Far more so than Jessie J or Russell Brand. Otherwise it was ok.

It was falling flat until Eric Idle perked it up. The best two acts of the night were Idle and the video of Freddie Mercury - who even in 2D was more charismatic that the the rest the "great" British musical talent on show. The lighting, etc saved the day. In fact, after the two I've mentioned the Spice Girls were probably the next most entertaining act - which sums up how awful most of the others were. After putting Macca on after the cauldron lighting at the opening ceremony you'd have thought they's have learned a lesson - but once again we had the has beens - The Who. I suppose there was some sense in that - the uplifting two weeks were over and I suppose they symbolised the decay and lack of hope in an everday Britain living off past glories.

Loved the games, but decide not to watch the closing ceremony when I heard those two awful words uttered, 'spice girls'. Completely put me off, closing a games full of great talented athletes with a bunch of talentless drips.

What you have failed to take account of is the fact that The Who have been hugely succesful in both the UK and the USA since the mid 60s, they were for instance one of the first acts to be booked at the original Woodstock festival and one of only a few British acts AND the organisers who were on a limited budget (being all for love and peace man and not finance) paid for The Who to fly to the USA for literally a one night stand so that they didn't even bring any instruments with them apart from Keith Moons drumsticks - THAT how important they were in the USA at the time.

How important are they now in the USA ?

Which band provides all of the title, incidental and closing music to one of the most popular, probably definitive, crime drama series in the US in the last ten years ?

I'm sure you know the answer and its that popularity that keeps The Who still relevant today, still touring (even with only 50% remaining) and still earning the sort of income from the USA that most of the other acts on there last night would kill their grannies for.

Rather than symbolising decay and lack of hope they actually symbolise exactly the opposite and I hope that I'm able to work as hard as Roger Daltry when I'm his age (otherwise The Nationwide will be wanting my house keys).

Sat watching them now, I don't know what people where expecting?

What year was Woodstock? The world has moved on.

So what year is the cut-off date for the music that should be played?
I assume you objected to Jerusalem being played in the opening ceremony?


I'm amazed at the amount of negativity on this thread, what was the big problem with it all? It was a big party at the end of the games with a load of top British bands/musicians from past and present, presented in a fantastic venue.

Considering this thread was started a mere 20 minutes in to the ceremony, it just seems like some people were determined to think it was crap even before it had happened.

It was supposed to be a party for the Olympians but they were penned in and unable to even go the toilet, even though many will probably have had a few drinks beforehand. Most of the athletes were similar ages to my kids and will never have heard of The Who, et al. So, presumably, it was all about the middle aged baby boomers who could afford tickets and once again anti-youth (like just about everything in the UK these days).

I also found the bit about "fashion" with mention of Burberry, Victoria Beckham, etc most unseemly and cringeworthy promotion of these brands. They were even official sponsors were they? Breach of own rules?

What a set of miserable fokkers on here. It was a very entertaining closing ceremony, and as the moaners seem to be worried to death, poor things, about the impression it made on the world, please note that the reports across the globe are almost all positive, so you needn't fret.

Anyone who's never heard of The Who hasn't much of an interest in music but putting one of our greatest ever rock bands on stage in a celebration of British music seems pretty fair to me. The millions watching around the globe for whom The Who are towering figures in their life soundtrack will have loved it. Thought putting Jessie J on with Queen was a masterstroke by whoever did it.

Brilliant Olympics, and a fine finish. I loved it all.

Did you read the rest of what I put - they were relevant because they are part of our musical heritage, they are still relevant because they are still part of our massive musical influence that we have on much of the world - did you notice how many of those atheletes, most of whom are 18-30 year olds were singing and dancing to "My Generation", a song that was written in 1965 and means as much to the current days 20 year olds (even if they only hear it first on CSI) as it did to my generation (see what I did there).

My daughter has a very large collection of CDs and she would not know The Who. To most of that generation it's just "ol;f fashioned" music - a bit like Bing Crosby was to The Who's generation of fans (but actually much more remote chronlogically speaking than Bing was to us).

What on earth are you on about? Are you seriously saying that only middle-aged people have heard of The Who? The vast majority of youngsters, even if they weren't quite sure who sung it, have heard of The Who and have heard their best songs. And that's discounting One Direction, Jessie J, Tinie Tempah and Taio Cruz who they most certainly have heard of.

I'll ask it again, what year is the cut-off point? And did you object to Jerusalem being played at the Opening Ceremony?

I can't believe you said that. Did you say that? Kettled Olympians? Can you actually be being serious?

How many athletes who wanted to go to the toilet were forcibly detained, then, and who detained them? How did they do it? Tasers? Dogs? I think we should be told.


It wasn't, it's just that you didn't realise that Tinie Tempah, Taio Cruz, Fatboy Slim, Kaiser Chiefs, Muse, Jessie J, One Direction, Ed Sheeran, Beady Eye and Emeli Sande are actually failry well-known contemporary artists of whom your offspring may indeed have heard however lacking their knowledge of rock legends may be.

The Who may be "rock legends" to you but they are wholly irrelevant to the average young person today. Woodstock was 43 years ago. That's two life times to lots of the Olympians. Assuming you are, say, mid-fifties (which would make you a youg Who fan) can you recall the greats of popular music from 110 years ago - broadly as the 19th century ended? Do you still listen to those legends?