The national flag
The King set about creating his own Kingdom, now known as the Kingdom of Lovely, in the confines of his own flat located in Bow, East London. Lovely is a very small country, especially if you consider the ratio of people to square inch. Check out the Citizens Required Territory Message Board, which will hopefully address this problem.
Key Facts[]
The following facts have been revealed about this proud nation:
- The only fully double-glazed country in the world
- Landlocked on all four sides by its one 'neighbour', England
(others to be listed, when remembered)
The National Identityby those who have sworn allegiance to The King, is a young country, and as such is sadly lacking the identity and character earned by years of progress, trade and entries into either the Olympic Games or the Eurovision Song Contest.[]
However, The King has approached design agency Pentagram in regards to pulling together some sort of whole identity from the myriad of ideas put to them by His Royal Highness.
Let's look at each of the points in turn:
The Name[]
During an official London meetup on the 02nd of September, King Danny announced the country name to be Lovely.
This was however after a long period of thinking of names, asking for ideas and waiting to see how the counrty develops, rather than burden it with an embarassing and unsuitable name, like Chad. Or Colin.
The name was decided through a poll on the website between King Danny's favorite suggestions: Home and Lovely
Other Suggestions for The Country's Name
The National Flag[]
Aswell as giving several name suggestions, Pentagram were able to furnish King Danny with an idea for a flag, with examples of their design process.
This process went from a flag consisting of a hypnotic circle within a circle withing a circle design (symbolising Lovely's not-quite-real nature), to an off-centre cross, to an off-centre and slightly askew cross in red, white, blue and purple, to their final choice, a pixelated version of a small section of the Union Jack (perhaps representing the fact that King Danny's realm is effictively a small box in a larger country).
King Danny looked at this process, and it was good. He took the four printed out images and took them home, to consider. And decided he favoured the simpler red, white, blue and purple design, in part because it would be easy to reproduce by hand. His final decision boiled down to whether to be led, by Pentagram's decision, or to lead, and go with his preference.
As any true king would, King Danny chose to lead, and we are left with a nice simple (but dynamic) flag, not a complex series of (static) boxes. Hoorah!
The name for the national flag is unknown. The 'Union Danny' perhaps?
The National Anthem[]
When it comes to putting together a national anthem, you need to enlist the aid of a professional studio orchestra and composer. Or 'a couple of mates with guitars' - particularly if they've performed at weddings, penned jingles for such delights as Polish Butter, or if one of them has been on tour with Busted. These are just a few of the collective talents of Sir Banks and Sir Wag, and cannot be valued highly enough. Except, perhaps, through a knight-hood.
The anthem is an upbeat little tune that tells of Danny's dissatisfaction with the way of life in London, and has him rallying Citizens to follow him. The anthem, unlike most other (boring) anthems, which involve standing still and looking serious, has its own set of dance moves, although some of those appear dangerously like line-dance moves.
The name for the national anthem is unknown. Until it is settled, I suggest 'Teach The World To Sing (Danny Wallace Is The King).'
The lyrics to the anthem can be found as a PDF download HERE.
The dance-moves can be found as a PDF download HERE.
The anthem itself can be found on the offcial site HEREe.
The National Motto[]
Pentagram came up with Latin term, Die Dulci Freure. Which translates as Have a nice day.
The other motto for the country is: All may enter. None may leave.
And the motto from king to citizens is Be Good
Some Citizens have also come up with ideas for a national motto. A separate page has been set up to show The Big List of National Motto Suggestions. Feel free to have a look, or add your own suggestions.
The National Coat Of Arms[]
A pixelated coat of arms, as now seen on the main site...
The National Animal[]
The UK has a lion. The US has an eagle. Russia has a bear. Australia has kangaroos, koalas and duck-billed platypi. So what should Lovely have?
King Danny's design brief included a picture of a lion rearing up on its hind legs, as seen on many British coats of arms, and coins. However, Danny's version looked more like a bad cartoon version of the cowardly lion from The Wizard of Oz. With a big cheesy grin. And glasses.
Nobody said Kings had to be great artists.
Conceivably we could have two national animals, since many coats of arms have two animals, one either side (such as a lion and a unicorn). Pentagram's suggested coat of arms had both a domestic cat and dog. However, some might consider two national animals greedy.
Some have suggested that the national animal should be something that has roamed free in Danny's Country, and a lion probably hasn't, certainly not whilst The King has lived there. That said, there haven't been any reliable recordings of unicorns in Britain either. At the time of writing.
Many Citizens have come up with their own suggestions for a national animal, from monkeys to wolves to sea otters to 'a man', each with reasons to back them up. A separate page has been set up to show The Big List of National Animal Suggestions. Feel free to have a look, or add your own suggestions.
- Also check out the Citizens Required Animals Message Board
The National Currency[]
Lovely's national currency is the Interdependent Occuptional Unit, or IOU. Unlike other currencies, the IOU does not seem to have a direct exchange rate to others - following on from the saying "Time Is Money", citizens can earn IOUs in exchange for doing work for the country.
One of the programmes in the series is dedicated to the matter of money. However, many Citizens have also put their minds to the task. A separate page has been set up to show The Big List of National Currency Suggestions. Feel free to have a look, or add your own suggestions.
- Also check out the Citizens Required Economy Message Board
The National Dish[]
All good nations specialise in a particular type of food, something unique and perhaps a little exotic. Something that is a recognisable meal that the family can share whilst in cheerful conversation. And then this dish can be discovered by wealthy foreigners and taken back home to be sold in fancy restaurants and less fancy takeaways.
Like the national animal, there is an argument that the national dish should really be something that has been enjoyed in Danny's Country. King Danny has yet to offer a helpful suggestion in this regard. Therefore the national dish for King Danny's Kingdom has not yet been pinned down (though FLOAST is a popular suggestion).
Many Citizens have thought about what might be a good national dish, and so a separate page has been set up to show The Big List of National Dish Suggestions. Feel free to have a look, or add your own suggestions.
- Also check out the Citizens Required Food & Drink Message Board
The National Drink[]
Though perhaps less important than the national dish (unless you've got a thirst on you), the national drink is another topic up for debate. However, tea seems to be a popular suggestion, mainly due to the fact that The King has commented on its virtues during many of his previous exploits.
However, some Citizens still like to consider the 'drink dilemma', and so a separate page has been set up to show The Big List of National Drink Suggestions. Feel free to have a look, or add your own suggestions.
- Also check out the Citizens Required Food & Drink Message Board
The National Sport[]
Although most countries don't have sports that belong solely to them (except the Scottish, who like throwing big logs as far as they can, or those countries that have to claim their own variant of 'football'), it stands to reason that we might be particularly good in certain areas, and would push our sportsmen to achieve excellence in those areas.
Citizens have had a lot to say about sport, and many of these ideas can be found on The Big List of National Sport Suggestions. Feel free to have a look, or add your own suggestions.
- Also check out the Citizens Required Sport Message Board
The National Press[]
Lovely is lucky and particularly in touch with the rest of the world. Most of its Citizens regularly read the press of other lesser countries. This may be due to the lack of good newspapers in King Danny's country. But that is about to change. Lots of Citizens have been working on The Guardian Angel, The Country's first newspaper.
- Also check out the Citizens Required Media, Arts & Culture Message Board
Language[]
This seems to be English, at the moment. Though there is a The Big List of National Language Suggestions to check out, or add your own suggestions to if you think we need an alternative.
- Also check out the Citizens Required Language Message Board
Government[]
The Government of Lovely consists of Danny, Prime Minister elect Psychoticmike and various unelected officials such as * Jon Bond, Minister of Defence
That hasn't stopped other people discussing government roles and positions, and what they should do. Check out the Citizens Required Government Message Board and the Citizens Required Roles Message Board.
Citizens[]
That's you. You get your own section, which after much thought I've called: 'The Citizens'.
(Im)Propaganda[]
Here's a page devoted to 'Citizens Required' flyers, posters and web pictures: (Im)propaganda
International Relations[]
Whilst The King has declared Independence from our one true neighbour, there seem to be less dealings with the rest of the world, aside from numerous trips to the USA for advice.
There is, however, talk of a rebellion from a rebel state set up in Danny's Fridge.
(this international relations section obviously needs a lot of work - so please chip in, if you've got anything)
- Also check out the Citizens Required International Relations Message Board