Irish Twitter's Hilariously Morbid Reaction To The Queen Has The World Watching
When Queen Elizabeth II died on September 8, 2022, the world reacted, and heads of state oceans away sent their regards. Of course, regular people across the globe who aren't heads of state or otherwise people of importance also had the chance to react to her death and share their views with the world, thanks to the prevalence of the internet and social media (which, of course, were not things the last time a British monarch died). Perhaps not unexpectedly, the general public's reaction has been all over the place. While many were genuinely saddened, others had little emotional energy to spare for a figurehead monarch whom they'd never met.
And then there was outright hostility, and much of it came from Ireland. The reasons for the conflict between the U.K. and Ireland (and the role Northern Ireland plays in it all) don't need to be rehashed here — you'd need a lengthy tome on British history to fully understand it. Suffice it to say that this particular corner of the British Isles wasn't exactly sad to see her go, nor were they particularly enthused about the ascension of King Charles.
'Lizzy's In A Box!'
Across the Realm, groups of people broke into impromptu renditions of "God Save the King," the U.K.'s updated national anthem, which includes the masculine pronouns of King Charles III. Across the Irish Sea, at Dublin's Tallaght Stadium, the crowd clapped and sang "Lizzy's in a box!" The crowd's gleeful response to the death of an elderly and beloved woman prompted one American to respond in horror, calling it "barbaric." Another called it "disgusting content" while also adding, "Shared, liked and followed."
Another Twitter user reported on the events in Northern Ireland. "[My] sister lives in North Ireland & just texted saying the neighborhood has started lighting fireworks lmaoooooo," they wrote, before clarifying that they meant "Northern Ireland." Elsewhere, a user pointed out what may have been the lowest moment in British-Irish history and the role the British played in it. "I'm shocked by how many people think the Potato Famine was due to crop failure and don't know the English EXPORTED food from Ireland to England during that time — enough food to feed all the Irish who died," they wrote. Queen Elizabeth was, of course, a century from being born at the time, but another user pointed out that she was the queen during Bloody Sunday when British troops opened fire on unarmed civilians.