Telling Stories on the Thames
A barge trip on the Thames provokes reflections on identity, history and England in the wake of Brexit.
Sunday
“Who was more influential, Churchill or the Duchess of Windsor?” says Stephanie, and roars with laughter.
We are at The Stafford in London, the starting point of a six-day barge cruise along the Thames. From here, the small group of eight guests will be driven to the Magna Carta, a 1930s barge that was once used to transport gravel but has now been converted into a boutique hotel for tourists. American tourists, mostly. They love this shit. I’m the only Brit here, and the only one, apparently, who has no idea who the Duchess of Windsor is.
For me, all this — talk of the royals over scones and clotted cream at a five star hotel — is foreign to my experience of London. It’s a surface impression, one that ignores the many other scenes and nuances that make up this city. Places that are alive and contemporary, not this out-of-date, stuffy, old idea of England that persists.
The Americans are loud and boisterous — two couples, all friends, with Southern drawls. Probably racist. Probably Trump supporters. Definitely conservative. Then there is another couple from Jacksonville, Florida. They are quieter. Probably…
