We have been denied crowd and audience participation for so long, and absence makes the heart grow fonder
I’m not usually good at things that could be considered slightly cringeworthy. There are certain displays of collective emotion, jubilation or despair that I find too earnest to bear. But the first day of this year’s Wimbledon – my enjoyment of which I wrote about recently – reminded me of how much I can get down with a standing ovation.
As a pre-match announcement was made that Dame Sarah Gilbert and her team, who developed the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, and some NHS staff, were seated in one of the boxes, a deafening ripple of seemingly endless applause filled the court. Then, perhaps realising this wasn’t sufficient praise and appreciation, the crowd rose to their feet. A closeup of Gilbert’s face saw her quite dumbstruck and overwhelmed, tears dancing in her eyes. It was partly thanks to Gilbert that the crowd were able to be there at all. It was extremely moving.
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