BBC Proms row intensifies as minister says 'lyrics should be sung'
Cabinet minister Alok Sharma has waded in on the row over the playing of Rule Britannia! and Land of Hope and Glory in the Last Night Of The Proms to say the anthems should be played "with the lyrics sung".
The BBC initially faced backlash for reports the songs could face the axe over their perceived association with colonialism and slavery.
But the broadcaster now risks a fresh row after announcing the traditional favourites will be performed without lyrics at the Proms.
Business Secretary Sharma is the latest to give an opinion on the matter.
He told ITV News: "I think personally that we should have the lyrics sung".
The MP added, if only an instrumental is played then: "It's perfectly possible to put subtitles on television screens if people want to join in at home."
Mr Sharma referred to Number 10's statement on the debate saying, "we need to tackle the substance of problems, not the symbols".
But added: "This is an occasion that gives huge amounts of pleasure to millions of people and we want to see those traditions maintained."
The Business Secretary is not the only minister to break from the official government statement on the row.
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said that “confident, forward-looking nations don’t erase their history”.
He wrote on Twitter: “Rule Britannia! and Land of Hope and Glory are highlights of the Last Night of the Proms.
“(I) Share concerns of many about their potential removal and have raised this with (the) BBC. Confident forward-looking nations don’t erase their history, they add to it."
Labour meanwhile issued a statement saying: "The pomp and pageantry of the Last Night of the Proms is a staple of British summer.
"The running order is a matter for the organisers and the BBC, but enjoying patriotic songs does not - and should not - present a barrier to examining our past and learning lessons from it."
Orchestral versions, without vocals, will be performed at the famous concert on September 12, the BBC has confirmed.
The broadcaster said there had been “unjustified personal attacks” on social media on Finnish conductor Dalia Stasevska - who will be at the helm of the Last Night this year - following the controversy.
In a statement the BBC said: "The Proms will reinvent the Last Night in this extraordinary year so that it respects the traditions and spirit of the event whilst adapting to very different circumstances at this moment in time.
"With much reduced musical forces and no live audience, the Proms will curate a concert that includes familiar, patriotic elements such as Jerusalem and the national anthem, and bring in new moments capturing the mood of this unique time, including You’ll Never Walk Alone, presenting a poignant and inclusive event for 2020."
But critics of the move have been vocal nonetheless.
Father Marcus Walker, rector at Great St Bartholomew’s in London, wrote on Twitter: “Hilarious that people are dressing the BBC promising ‘orchestral versions’ of Land Of Hope And Glory and Rule Britannia as a retreat.
“It’s nothing of the sort, it’s gutting the songs of their words – of their meaning. You may think that’s a good thing or not, but it’s no retreat," he wrote.
There will be no live audience to sing along because of coronavirus restrictions.
The national anthem will be sung at the event, which will air on BBC Radio 3 and on BBC One and feature soprano Golda Schultz and the BBC Symphony Orchestra.