It’s “Celebration Day” on bank holiday Monday and it’s making me feel a bit … funny. Dreamed up in 2022, this “civilian Remembrance Day”, or British Día de los Muertos, is intended “to honour those we have loved and lost, as well as those whose lives have inspired us”, according to the website. Perfectly laudable, but something about the idea of being urged to celebrate our dead by Stephen Fry and Prue Leith, to buy a star-shaped badge in WH Smith and share memories on social media with the hashtag #shareyourstar makes me feel cringey.
When I get an instinctive negative reaction to something (except maggots and Nigel Farage), I wonder if I’m being unreasonable. So, am I? Well, yes – no one is forcing me to join in or buy a badge (though they benefit really good charities, including Mind, Hospice UK and the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity). Plus, Mel Giedroyc is involved, and she can do no wrong in my eyes. On top of this, could Celebration Day be meeting a real need?
