I have to admit to being a great fan of Noel Coward and love his comic songs especially ‘Mrs Worthington’ and ‘Imagine The Duchess’ Feelings’ but I am also a great admirer of the work that Coward produced during the war, which includes his film ‘In Which We Serve’ and this song ‘London Pride’.
The first time I heard the song was when I was a teenager and Mick Lowe who ran the Western Park Youth Theatre of which I was a member included it as a song in one of the ‘Old Time Musical Hall’ shows that we did around the Working Men’s Clubs and Care Homes in the early 80s. In these shows the kids (like myself and the other younger members of the troupe) worked alongside the adults form the ‘Knighton Park Players’ to produce some truly great evenings of variety. I remember Jean Burdett singing this song (as it was her ‘party piece’) with us joining in for the chorus.
I particularly love the melody and the sentiment in this song as it reminds us that sometimes (especially in war or when we are all ‘up against it’) we must ALL stand together and carry on as best we can and even though I have never personally experienced the effects of a war when nightly bombing raids destroyed the East End and Coventry and killed so many of our people it is easy to understand how songs like this might have helped some people think about what we were all fighting against.
Having lived in London for many years I can also appreciate the pride that we do take in our great city…
Now listen to the song….
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