Or: Fodbold! Football with London's Danish fans!
I went to London's Danish Church near Regents Park yesterday to watch Denmark -v- Cameroon.
Small Danish flags dotted the building, with the fans gathered in the church's adjoining hall donning t-shirts, flags, and hats.
10 minutes in, though, Cameroon scored. "Oh Jesus Christ!", one woman exclaimed. Well, it was a church, after all.
Feeling the need to defend his nation, a Danish man said to his Italian friends, "We came fourth in Eurovision this year! Where were you?" Good point. He also tried to get them to chant "We are red, we are white, we are Danish dynamite", but they weren't playing ball.
Happily, the Danish team were and soon equalised to the roars and cheers of all present. One man donned a Viking helmet. Hurrah!
Half time coincided with the Dane's celebration of midsummer, which meant hotdogs, a bonfire, a man giving a speech and a sing-song. Sadly no sign of Tommy Seebach or Birthe Kjær, but the speech did seem to link X Factor and radical politics. Impressive.
More cheers and merriment followed when the Dane's took the lead, with the remaining half of the match a tense and exciting affair. I'm sure they were all saying their prayers after the final whistle, thankful for a very good result for Denmark. I was too, especially for a much more interesting time than my last foray with the Danes.
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