It’s ‘The King and Irish’ as the occupation goes emerald green

England’s King Charles and Queen Camilla were welcomed by Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill in the Irish language for an official visit to the British-ruled north of Ireland on Wednesday.

According to a Palace statement, the King greeted the First Minister in Irish at Hillsborough Castle, saying: ‘Tráthnóna maith, a Chéad Aire.’ [Good afternoon, first minister.]

Ms O’Neill replied: ‘Tráthnóna maith duitse fosta. Cad é mar atá tú?’ [Good afternoon to you too. How are you?]

The British royals also met the DUP Deputy First Minister Emma-Little Pengelly, while Sinn Féin MP John Finucane was among those who later welcomed them to Belfast’s Commercial Court in his north Belfast constituency.

Charles’ use of the Irish language is the latest example of a sudden ‘greening’ of the British establishment and its forces of occupation.

St Patrick’s Day saw a shamrocked Princess Kate Middleton drinking Guinness while surrounded by members of a British Army regiment which has taken part in Operation Banner, the murderous military occupation of the north of Ireland.

It also emerged that British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, the man most responsible for maintaining the conflict in the north of Ireland, organised a first-ever St Patrick’s Day event at Downing Street, complete with Irish dancers and green merchandise.

A new British shamelessness was also evidenced in the ongoing royal tour as King Charles went from speaking Irish to a ‘morale-boosting’ visit with the leadership of the hated colonial police force, the PSNI (formerly the RUC). He presented them with an award and told them they were “owed a great debt of gratitude”.

In a coincidence, his visit came as the head from a ‘beheaded’ statue of England’s former King George V turned up on stage during a recent concert by Kneecap, the anarchic rap group credited by many with the current revival of the Irish language.

The hip-hop group from west Belfast shared an image on social media of member ‘Mo Chara’ on stage alongside the solid bronze head during their concert in Melbourne, Australia, last week.

The post read: “Allegedly his head was cut off last year in the city… anyways he was put on stage for a few tunes and then whisked away… remember every colony can fall.”

Urgent Appeal