‘Rule Britannia’ to be sung as normal at next year’s Proms, BBC says

BBC organisers were reportedly considering removal of classic anthems due to perceived links with colonialism and slavery

The BBC has confirmed that traditional anthems including “Rule! Britannia” and “Land of Hope and Glory” will be sung at the Proms next year.

Controversy erupted after reports that the BBC was considering the removal of the songs from its setlist on Last Night of the Proms, due to their links to slavery and colonialism.

However, the broadcaster later explained that the anthems will not be sung this year due to the lack of a live audience amid the Covid-19 pandemic – but they will be performed by its orchestra.

A spokesman for the BBC said: “For the avoidance of any doubt, these songs will be sung next year.

“We obviously share the disappointment of everyone that the Proms will have to be different but believe this is the best solution in the circumstances and look forward to their traditional return next year.”

The announcement comes after prime minister Boris Johnson called for an end to “self-recrimination and wetness” over British history.

During a visit to Devon this week, Johnson said he wanted to get his thoughts “off my chest”.

“I just want to say... if it is correct, which I cannot believe that it really is, but if it is correct, that the BBC is saying that they will not sing the words of Land Of Hope And Glory or Rule, Britannia! as they traditionally do at the end of The Last Night Of The Proms.

“I think it’s time we stopped our cringing embarrassment about our history, about our traditions, and about our culture, and we stopped this general bout of self-recrimination and wetness,” he said.

Asked whether there had been a discussion about dropping songs because of their association with Britain’s imperial history, outgoing BBC director Lord Hall said: “The whole thing has been discussed by David and his colleagues, of course it has.

The BBC Proms take place at the Royal Albert Hall each year (Getty Images)

“The point is they’ve come to the right conclusion, which is it’s very, very hard in an Albert Hall that takes over 5,000 people to have the atmosphere of the Last Night Of The Proms, where a whole audience normally sing along,” he told the BBC’s media editor Amol Rajan.

“It’s quite hard creatively and artistically to make that work. I think they’ve come to the right conclusion.”

The BBC said there had been “unjustified personal attacks” on social media on Finnish conductor Dalia Stasevska, who will be at the helm of the Last Night this year.

“Decisions about the Proms are made by the BBC, in consultation with all artists involved,” it said.

“The Proms will reinvent the Last Night in this extraordinary year so that it respects the traditions and spirit of the event whilst adapting to very different circumstances at this moment in time,” it said.

“With much reduced musical forces and no live audience, the Proms will curate a concert that includes familiar, patriotic elements such as Jerusalem and the national anthem, and bring in new moments capturing the mood of this unique time, including “You’ll Never Walk Alone”, presenting a poignant and inclusive event for 2020.”

The national anthem and “Jerusalem” will still be sung during the event, which will air on BBC Radio 3 and on BBC One and feature soprano Golda Schultz and the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

Last Night of the Proms takes place on 12 September.

Additional reporting by Press Association