As most of you will know, I live in the UK and this is probably the only time in a lifetime that a big event such as this, takes place. The start of the Olympics always begin with some sort of opening ceremony to start it off. Some are good, some are bad, some are confusing but as long as everyone likes it, then that's OK. Does this live up to people's expectations? Let's find out:
Segment 1: River Thames film
Not the picture I wanted, but oh well. The ceremony starts off with a 2 minute film of going through the River Thames (the longest river in England by the way) which shows the British life that I'm used to. It then goes into an Eastender's type overhead view of the river and ends with the stadium having children with countdown balloons being popped during an audience controlled countdown. A good start to the ceremony in my opinion. 8/10
Segment 2: Pre Industrial Times
We then continue the ceremony with a look at what was the pre industrial times of the UK with a model village (which I can see resembling middle earth in some way) that resembles Glastonbury in those times and people enjoying themselves. Young choirs across the country then sing their well known tunes in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (all sang in English) preceded by horse carriages entering the stadium with people in Victorian dress.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel (played by Sir Kenneth Branagh who played Gilderoy Lockhart in the 2nd Harry Potter film) then appears as the leader of the Victorian men surveying the land and begins reading the "Be Not Afraid" speech from The Tempest (a play by Shakespeare). This was a pretty good segment with many British cultures used. 9/10
Segment 3: The Industrial Revolution
Chimneys then begin to come out from under the village as the whole stage removes the grass to reflect the Industrial Revolution where everyone is working and the 5 rings that represent the official Olympics logo are being put together by the workers. This also shows what everyone suffered with during WW1 and WW2 (and any other wars following after) and many famous historical figures (such as the SGT Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band and the real life Chelsea Pensioners) then appear in the stadium. Welcoming the Olympics in this segment was great and definitely memorable for a long time. 10/10
Segment 4: Happy and Glorious
The Queen then makes her appearance in the stadium with the current James Bond (played by Daniel Craig) in this funny and unusual film, soon followed by the arrival of The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh and the national anthem sang by the Kaos Signing Choir for Deaf and Hearing Children. This part shows the royalty and humour that this country have loved for a very long time. 9/10
Segment 5: Tribute to the NHS and Great Ormond Street Hospital
As a tribute to the great work that doctors and nurses do, various employees and patients arrive to perform a segment celebrating all the hard work that they do with some appearances from childhood villains (including Cruella De Vile and Lord Voldemort) and a reading from Robin Hood by J.K. Rowling (the creator of Harry Potter) followed by an army of Mary Poppins saving them. This was good in that they show how hard the doctors and nurses work in the NHS and GOSH so I'm glad they put this in. 10/10
Segment 6: Chariots of Fire (with Mr. Bean)
The London Symphony Orchestra arrive to do a very fitting song "Chariots of Fire" with Mr. Bean (played by the legendary Rowan Atkinson) doing the one key piano part in a funny manner which involves a dream sequence of him in the film of the same name, doing anything necessary to win the running race with comedy throughout. A great honour for him and also one of the best parts of the ceremony (in my opinion). 9/10
Segment 7: British Popular Culture
This part was another great part. It shows off the many radio, TV programs and music that are loved nationwide, the social interaction involved now and mostly the culture seen over each decade from the 60s all the way up to now (with an appearance from Dizzee Rascal and the man who created the World Wide Web, Sir Tim Berners-Lee). This was probably the most awesome and spectacular part of the show. 10/10
Segment 8: David Beckham with the torch and a tribute to the London Bombings
This was good in that it allows David Beckham to have some part in the ceremony and also a tribute to the bombings after London was awarded with the Olympics for 2012 was great (with music from Emeli Sandé). 9/10
Segment 9: The Parade of Nations
Nothing too new or interesting here, just the parade of 204 countries (with Greece first and Great Britain last, by tradition) with the nation's flags and children carrying bronze petals (which will have some involvement later on). Music from Arctic Monkeys soon follows with some bikers with wings coming in, followed by speeches from Lord Coe and Count Rogge. The Queen then opens the games and the Olympic flag is then carried by eight people chosen from around the world as symbols of the Olympic values. A ninth person touches the flag (for medical reasons, he couldn't carry the flag) before the flag is handed over to representatives of the Royal Navy (and similar services) to be put up alongside the Union Jack flag. The Olympic anthem is then heard. Mostly boring but got better towards the end. 7/10
Segment 10: The Lighting of the Cauldron
The torch was then handed to Sir Steve Redgrave (six time Olympic medallist in rowing) who then distributed it to seven young athletes hand picked by various famous British Olympians who then light the petals that then begin to rise up, thus creating the cauldron. This was then followed by music from Alex Trimble (Lead singer of the Northern Irish indie rock band , Two Door Cinema Club), a fireworks display and then the ceremony closed with Sir Paul McCartney performing the last verse of "The End" and then a stadium-like finale version of "Hey Jude" which closed the ceremony on an all time high so good work, everyone. 9/10
Overall, this was by far, the best opening ceremony that I have ever seen so well done to everyone involved. 10/10
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