Ridden with cliches but at least It didn’t feature Jessie J playing air guitar to Queen....oh wait...
Possibly the Greatest Games ever came to a close last night with a medley of British musicians that mostly left the audience cold and ultimately missed the point.
It became obvious that Danny Boyle’s opening masterpiece was in no danger of being overshadowed when Russell Brand entered the stadium wearing a top hat singing the Willy Wonka song.
After Brand had finished his two ‘zany’ songs he introduced someone who could actually hold a claim to a performance slot at the ceremony in DJ Fatboy Slim,- who naturally rose up through a giant inflatable octopus - before Jessie J, Taio Cruz and Tinnie Tempah performed their respective hits.
The entire musical line up appeared to be taken straight from a Heart Fm playlist and camera operators were noticeably struggling to find athletes to focus on that weren’t looking bored out of their finely tuned brains.
The event organisers also seemed completely unaware of the ceremony’s succession of cliche’s including a man shot out a cannon, The less talented half of Oasis performing Wonderwall and Brian May performing yet another ‘Once in a lifetime’ performance, with Jessie J more than happy to replace the irreplaceable Freddie Mercury on vocals.
There were good parts including a delightfully cheesy Spice Girls reunion and a moving rendition of John Lennon’s imagine, but these were spoilt by the dearth of corporate performers that appeared ignorant of the Games’ significance to so many people.
Few Britons will ever forget the impact that London 2012 had on them or how it gave us all so many moments of national pride. The closing ceremony may not be remembered in the same way but not to worry as a less flashy version, probably featuring most of the same artists, will take place next year. Only it will be called Radio 1’s Big Weekend.
