A bronze head of King George V, which was cut from its statue in Melbourne last year, has resurfaced at a concert by Kneecap, an Irish Republican hip hop trio.
Video footage captures the head of the former monarch, who ruled from 1910 to 1936, displayed on stage during the Belfast group’s performance. The statue in Kings Domain, Melbourne, was vandalised in June last year, with the head sawn off and missing until now.
“Some madman dropped off a huge King George head so he could hear a few tunes at our last Melbourne show,” Kneecap wrote on Instagram. “Allegedly, his head was cut off last year. He hit the stage for a bit, then vanished. Remember, every colony can fall.” The final remark nods to the slogan “the colony will fall,” often seen on vandalised colonial statues in Australia amid Aboriginal land rights protests.
The name of the band originates from the practice known as “knee-capping,” in which paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland’s republican and loyalist communities shoot individuals in the legs as punishment for alleged involvement in crime or anti-social behavior. The group’s music and branding heavily revolves around themes of republicanism; in 2022 they unveiled a mural that depicted a police van in flames, whilst one of their best-known tracks is called “Get Your Brits Out”.
Despite this — or, indeed, because of it — the group has been celebrated by the cultural establishment. For all their rebellious pretensions, they have received endless glowing profiles and reviews. A film about the group, starring Michael Fassbender, has recently won a BAFTA. Last year, Kneecap successfully sued the Government after Kemi Badenoch, then culture secretary, decided to block a £15k grant on the grounds they shouldn’t offer grants “to people that oppose the United Kingdom itself.”
Kneecap’s most recent attention-seeking stunt is highly on-brand for the group — but given that they are known primarily for their anti-British statements, it is indeed peculiar that they are indulged so much by our institutions.
Peculiar — but also predictable. As we have seen from the recent “decolonisation” of Shakespeare’s birthplace after “white supremacy” fears, warnings that artwork by Constable may lead to “nationalist feeling” and countless other examples, anti-Britishness is now ensconced as a value within many of our institutions. The activists within them, and their funding streams, weaponise the organs of British culture and civil society in the service of oikophobic causes; Kneecap’s anti-British message fits in squarely with the way these activists want to reframe our history.
It is important to be clear that this kind of “art” is more pathetic than it is shocking
Kneecap also provide an attractive combination of an edgy appearance without genuine transgression. The group have the air of the counter-cultural, but given they conveniently hold every other modish left-wing opinion, they seem to be stuck in a time warp. Kneecap often post images of Margaret Thatcher, including a doctored one of her being run down by a mounted riot policeman. This is hardly innovative, with Iron Maiden issuing a single depicting their mascot, Eddie, wielding a knife while crouching over her corpse nearly 45 years ago. In 1980 that might have been original and daring, and considering the advancing age of those who run our institutions it may still hold some appeal to those who hold the purse strings — but given the members of Kneecap were all born before that single was issued, it strikes one as more performative than dangerous. Morrissey has faced a lot more backlash for his anti-Islam opinions than he ever did for 1988’s “Margaret on the Guillotine”.
Last month, meanwhile, Kneecap posted a photo of one of their members reading The Statements of Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. It is hard to know what an Irish Republican might have seen in the words of the leader of a terrorist group that targets civilians.
It is important to be clear that this kind of “art” is more pathetic than it is shocking. Witness also the Lambrini Girls, who have reportedly received taxpayer cash to promote songs like “God’s Country”. Sample lyrics: “Daily Mail bacon baps/Racist uncles want their country back/Flag Shaggers/Maggie Thatcher/Oh Britannia.” Who wouldn’t want to support such poetry?
Given that counter-cultural movements have to exist in opposition to the dominant culture, the genuine counter-cultural force in the world is on the right. Astroturfing a group recycling Wolfe Tones material for a millennial audience via rap, a musical genre increasingly unpopular with post-millennial generations, through try-hard stunts and faux-transgressive sloganeering is simply an attempt to suppress a rising rightward turn amongst the young. Given that Kneecap are so deeply unfunny, it will not work. Ireland summons her children to be cringe.
