Theresa May has unveiled a plan for a Festival of Brexit Britain to “showcase what makes our country great”.
Soon after details emerged of the proposal, #FestivalOfBrexitBritain began trending on Twitter, but not for the reasons May would hope as most posted tweets and memes mocking the idea.
The prime minister said she was inspired by the famous 1951 Festival of Britain, which was itself was held on the 100th anniversary of the Great Exhibition.
She said: “Almost 70 years ago the Festival of Britain stood as a symbol of change. Britain once again stands on the cusp of a new future as an outward facing global trading nation.
She said: “We want to capture that spirit for a new generation, celebrate our nation’s diversity and talent, and mark this moment of national renewal with a once-in-a-generation celebration.”
The festival, which she proposes would take place in early 2022, will cost £120million and will have an Olympic-style “delivery body”.
May hopes the festival will help bring in billions of pounds of investment to post-Brexit Britain.
Many people predicted the festival would be bleak given the fears of food shortages and civil unrest when the UK finally leaves the European Union.
Here are some of the tongue-in-cheek responses on Twitter:
Not everyone was amused, however.