Classic sneering Guardian editorial this morning

“Royal rituals are contrived affairs meant to generate popular attachment to a privileged institution and to serve as reminders of a glorious past. Monarchy’s power rests upon a central myth; that traditions and ceremonies have remained unchanged over 1,000 years of family drama. In reality the parades and commemoration services have been invented, and reinvented, to preserve the monarchy’s relevance. However, they are also essentially ephemeral, devoid of anything more powerful than that which is sentimental and evocative. How much Britain will be changed once this moment floats past the country is as yet unknown.”

Of course that didn’t stop the Guardian’s editor Kath Viner accepting a ticket to the funeral from the “privileged institution” herself. Maybe she’s sentimental…