The following article was originally published in Challenge Magazine, the official organ of the Young Communist League of Britain (UCL), under the title "Seventy years of hurt", on the occasion of Queen Elizabeth II's 70th anniversary since her ascension to the throne.
By James Meechan*
Armed constables amass in Westminster; police drones and helicopters flutter in the skies; Her Majesty’s homeless subjects are cleared from the streets. Tom Cruise takes a moment out of promoting Top Gun: Maverick to gurn through a televised royal circus show. The bunting flies resplendently above emaciated high streets. ‘Midst the worst immiseration in 40 years, there’s momentous pomp, procession, and pageantry — the platinum motherfucking jubilee.
