Canada's Throne Speech Included A Cameo From The 'Usher Of The Black Rod' & He Looked FANCY
Twitter had some thoughts and opinions.
Parliament is officially in session as of Monday, November 22, and Canada's Usher of the Black Rod had a very important part to play in the ceremony.
If you're wondering what exactly it is that Black Rod does (that's the genuine short version of his name, by the way), he's the person at the beginning of the throne speech who ceremoniously leads the Senate Speaker's parade.
On Tuesday, he was wearing a super-fancy black hat that lowkey looked like it belonged to a pirate and was carrying, of course, his black rod.
Over on Twitter, there were some pretty hilarious takes on Black Rod's job, role, and overall performance.
This person gave a rundown of what Black Rod does.
The Usher of the Black Rod is going to knock on the door of the red chamber (currently in an old train station) to commence the reading of the #thronespeech. Official Canadian political culture is very cool and normal.— Garth Mullins (@Garth Mullins) 1637689760
"Offical Canadian political culture is very cool and normal," they joked.
Another had a hard time explaining the whole thing to their non-Canadian partner, which is understandable.
Trying to explain the Usher of the Black Rod to confused, non-Canadian partner. His take: \u201cThis isn\u2019t a country, it\u2019s Disneyland.\u201d— Stephanie MacLellan (@Stephanie MacLellan) 1637688644
His response of "This isn't a country, it's Disneyland" is also fair.
This person's suggestion is lowkey genius.
And now for our semi-regular reminder that "Usher of the Black Rod" would be an awesome name for a metal band #cdnpoli— Sean Phelan (@Sean Phelan) 1637688166
"And now for our semi-regular reminder that 'Usher of the Black Rod' would be an awesome name for a metal band," they said.
This hot take from The Beaverton is such a mood.
Parliament disappointed after door knock is just Usher of the Black Rod instead of Amazon delivery #cdnpoli— The Beaverton (@The Beaverton) 1637690498
"Parliament disappointed after door knock is just Usher of the Black Rod instead of Amazon delivery," they tweeted.
And this mental visual is simply too much:
Watching the Usher of the Black Rod in his tricorner hat and the Sergeant-at-Arms bearing the Mace of Parliament walk onto the street and catch a bus is actually extremely funny #ThroneSpeech— Andrew Bates (@Andrew Bates) 1637690620
'Til we see you again, Usher of the Black Rod!
It's not the only bizarre tradition that was upheld this week as Justin Trudeau and Erin O'Toole "dragged" Liberal MP Anthony Rota to the speaker's chair. It's one of the zany British customs Canadians have inherited, where the elected speaker gets physically taken to their seat.
"Mister Speaker, congratulations on your re-election! This is a historic moment of change and opportunity for our country, and I know you'll continue to serve Parliamentarians well as you guide us - and the work we do in the House - forward," Trudeau tweeted.