I am normally a deeply unpatriotic person. Bitching about Great Britain is a favourite pastime of mine, and there’s so much good material.
The trains are always late and expensive. Housing is a mouldering joke, particularly here in London. The politicians are at best embarrassing and at worst evil. The people can be rude and cruel, if the vocal minority screaming about immigrants and queer people are anything to go by. And, it’s not a popular opinion but, to the rest of the world, historically we have very much been the baddie.
But of late I’ve felt the stirrings of — whisper it — pride in my home nation, and it’s all thanks to Hiroshi Suzuki, the new Ambassador of Japan to the United Kingdom. If you haven’t stumbled across his internet presence, I exhort you to do so at once. He is a pure delight, and his enthusiasm about all aspects of the British Isles has genuinely made me see the best in what I and my fellow leftists tend to mockingly describe as Normal Island.
Enjoying pub🍺😄!!! pic.twitter.com/YHtaVAXSje
— Hiroshi Suzuki (@AmbJapanUK) March 29, 2025
Ambassador Suzuki first came across my timeline on X (yes, I’m still on Elon Musk’s hateful place because I am a committed hater) as he documented his efforts to learn the Welsh national anthem. Clutching both a Wales flag and a Japan flag — plus a cute little red dragon soft toy — he gamely belted out Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau. I doubt you could find a British politician outside of Wales who would be able to nail it like the Japanese Ambassador. It certainly made me question why I never learned it in one of those many school assemblies.
Since then, he’s been making shamrock-themed matcha for St Patrick’s Day, taken Paddington Bear for a jaunt back to Japan, enjoyed a pint at a pub (the Churchill Arms aka London’s most Instagrammable pub) and even braved the crowds of influencers to pose in front of the cherry blossoms in Battersea Park. I’m fully obsessed; when I met him at a lunch for the National Ballet of Japan I was practically fangirling over His Excellency. Dressed in one of his signature suits with the well-coiffed hair, he gave a note-perfect speech heralding the National Ballet of Japan's London debut this summer. And yes, I confirmed with his aides that he personally approves all of his social media posts
Beautiful cherry blossoms at Battersea Park !!! 🌸🌸🌸 pic.twitter.com/T8YmQ6PJuR
— Hiroshi Suzuki (@AmbJapanUK) March 30, 2025
It helps that Ambassador Suzuki is a winsome man and a natty dresser, yet his unabashed enthusiasm for the UK is infectious. It’s made me see my own country through fresh eyes, and there are actually some nice bits amongst the glaring socio-political issues. It’s not going to stop me being furious about the homeless children living in shipping containers, or the swingeing cuts to our once-proud socially democratic welfare system. But I’ve certainly got a raging case of cognitive dissonance about it.
By being curious and open about the customs and practices of the countries that make up the UK — and taking us along for the ride — Ambassador Suzuki is playing a diplomatic blinder. It’s a genius soft power move, something Japan has always been very adept at. Not many people are thinking about historic Japanese war crimes when the country gave the world sushi, ramen, Anime, Manga, Pokémon, Nintendo, Studio Ghibli, and truly incredible stationery.
In comparison, we are seriously off our game. What are the current UK cultural exports that get decent government investment? Why do we pick ambassadors that are rude and don’t stay on message? See. It’s so easy to slip back into hating on not-so-Great Britain. But I’m going to take a leaf out of Ambassador Suzuki’s playbook and fight to see the good here, because there is still a fight to make this country a better place for everyone.
India Block is a London Standard columnist
