# Olympic Opening Ceremony - Ask me {spoilers} **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 26, 2012, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434 "2012-07-26T09:50:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![illuminati](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e47774/32.png) [@illuminati](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/illuminati)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/1 "2012-07-26T09:50:05Z")
Hello I was lucky enough to go to the dress rehersal of the opening ceremony last night Any questions I will be happy to answer There were some things ‘kept secret’, for example we didnt see the Olympic flame being lit or even the positioning in the stadium. Obviously spoilers from this point on ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/2 "2012-07-26T10:16:03Z")
Okay - did you like it? Given the spectacle of the Beijing ceremonies, does London try to do it at that level or are they going for something different? ---
**Author:** ![illuminati](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e47774/32.png) [@illuminati](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/illuminati)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/3 "2012-07-26T10:56:24Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Okay - did you like it? Given the spectacle of the Beijing ceremonies, does London try to do it at that level or are they going for something different? I enjoyed it! The park was wonderful and the atmophere was electric Does it compare to Beijing? No, but its going for a completely different feel. In my opinion the opening 30 mins were fantastic Its a history of Britain, changing from green a plesant land (cricket on the green, farm animals etc) to a industrial revolution with a thumping beat. All leading to the formation of the Olympic rings, amazing The house party/music history of Britain was a bit bland And the dance piece that followed missed me completely but the group next to me were in tears! ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/4 "2012-07-26T11:09:39Z")
Will Black Sabbath be performing? (One can dream.) ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/5 "2012-07-26T11:11:18Z")
The news this morning says you were all sworn to secrecy. Did they make you sign something or just all raise your right hand or do pinky swears with the people sitting next to you? ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/6 "2012-07-26T11:14:55Z")
> [@illuminati](#): > > Its a history of Britain, changing from green a plesant land (cricket on the green, farm animals etc) to a industrial revolution with a thumping beat. > All leading to the formation of the Olympic rings, amazing Hmm… wasn’t there some sort of Empire there, too? ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/7 "2012-07-26T11:18:28Z")
Weren’t attendees asked to #savethesurprise? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/8 "2012-07-26T11:37:18Z")
Did it involve a 5,000 member synchronized High Tea? Did 4 battalions of the Queen’s Guards stand perfectly still for 3 hours while marching bands, flame-throwers and jugglers attempt to get them to react? ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/9 "2012-07-26T12:13:32Z")
Given that most of the ceremony comes from the 1936 Nazi Olympics, why do we still have it? All that stuff about lighting the torch and passing it sounds so “third reich-ish”-can’t we come up with ceremonies that have less unpleasant associations? How about an “Olympic Tea Party”? That would be much nicer. ---
**Author:** ![illuminati](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e47774/32.png) [@illuminati](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/illuminati)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/10 "2012-07-26T12:21:55Z")
> [@Ximenean](#): > > Weren’t attendees asked to #savethesurprise? Yes, but everything I have told so far is readily available on the web. You can even see clips on youtube. If you dont want spoilers, dont enter the thread There was no ‘swearing or vowing to keep the suprise’ and believe me my description doesnt do it justice. The artists I saw were either complete unknowns or very small ‘stars’ Dizzy, and Rizzle Kicks (?) Im assuming the big names are being kept a secret. There were periods of silence and blank screens which were to keep the secret Kennith Branagh does a rousing speech, shakespearian I think ---
**Author:** ![flodnak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/838e76/32.png) [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/11 "2012-07-26T12:26:31Z")
Are there really going to be live sheep? Seriously? ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/12 "2012-07-26T12:53:40Z")
Perhaps I missed an earlier thread or something (and if so, my apologies and feel free to direct me there), but how did you come by this opportunity for involvement, **illuminati**? Does this have something to do with your profession or were you part of a cattle-call audition or what? ---
**Author:** ![illuminati](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e47774/32.png) [@illuminati](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/illuminati)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/13 "2012-07-26T16:02:28Z")
> [@freckafree](#): > > Perhaps I missed an earlier thread or something (and if so, my apologies and feel free to direct me there), but how did you come by this opportunity for involvement, **illuminati**? Does this have something to do with your profession or were you part of a cattle-call audition or what? A friend of mine is one of the thousands of performers There are live horses, sheep, geese, goats cant remember any others but may have missed them ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/14 "2012-07-26T16:22:46Z")
> [@illuminati](#): > > A friend of mine is one of the thousands of performers > > There are live horses, sheep, geese, goats cant remember any others but may have missed them Farm animals, flashing lights and roaring crowds? No way in hell am I missing _this_ one. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Righteous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Dr.Righteous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Righteous)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/15 "2012-07-26T20:20:18Z")
Is [this article](http://gawker.com/5928651/mary-poppins-will-fight-voldemort-at-the-olympics-as-organizers-struggle-to-include-more-random-british-things-in-the-ceremony) accurate, what with the 30 Mary Poppinses fighting He Who Shall Not Be Named? ---
**Author:** ![illuminati](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e47774/32.png) [@illuminati](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/illuminati)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/16 "2012-07-26T20:30:59Z")
> [@Dr.Righteous](#): > > Is [this article](http://gawker.com/5928651/mary-poppins-will-fight-voldemort-at-the-olympics-as-organizers-struggle-to-include-more-random-british-things-in-the-ceremony) accurate, what with the 30 Mary Poppinses fighting He Who Shall Not Be Named? Yes, big set piece involving the staff of great Oenone street hospital fighting literary characters, including captain hook, queen of hearts and voldermort. Mary poppins is on the kids side, as is Harry Potter himself ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/17 "2012-07-26T20:35:54Z")
Did they employ the use of a stand-in “bum double” for the lovely Pippa? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Righteous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Dr.Righteous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Righteous)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/18 "2012-07-26T20:36:05Z")
Thanks for the confirmation… I’m looking forward to seeing this! ---
**Author:** ![Svejk\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@Svejk\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Svejk_1)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/19 "2012-07-26T21:07:06Z")
Was Keith Moon there? ---
**Author:** ![the\_diego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@the\_diego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_diego)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434/20 "2012-07-26T23:30:25Z")
If they do a stylized version of “ascot gavotte” and “consider yourself” I’ll satisfied. Will Harry Potter figure in it? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-opening-ceremony-ask-me-spoilers/629434.md?page=2)