THE Proclaimers have been removed from the King's coronation playlist after they criticised the lack of Republican voices in the media in an interview with The National.
Craig and Charlie Reid's iconic hit I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) was initially included in the UK Government's playlist put together by the Department of Digital, Media, Culture and Sport (DCMS).
It features other prominent UK artists including Queen, The Beatles, Tom Jones and fellow Scot Emeli Sande.
However, it emerged that the band had been removed from the DCMS playlist following comments they made in an interview with The National, where they criticised the lack of Republican perspective in coverage of the Queen's death and subsequent funeral.
"The playlist has been created to celebrate British and Commonwealth artists ahead of the upcoming coronation," a spokesperson for DCMS said.
Charlie Reed was scathing in his assessment of the Royal Family during his interview with The National.
“The way they've acted you'd think the story was that it's just about people's grief and people respecting her but the real story is that in 2022 an unelected head of state has died,” he said.
“Her son, similarly unelected, has taken over and the media has encouraged no debate on that. They’re unquestioning.
"The way they report that everyone in Britain feels the same way, they don’t. This is just simply untrue.
“On the proclamation of King Charles in Oxford, I think one guy was lifted for shouting ‘who elected him?’ and I thought that guy spoke for me, and he speaks for loads of other people. Not just in Scotland, but right around the UK.”
Reid also said there were millions of people across the Union, including “a high percentage, perhaps a majority” in Scotland who are not having their voices heard.
“Loads of people are like me, they had personal respect for the woman but they do not support the monarchy."
In Recognition, a song from The Proclaimer's 2007 album Life With You, was described by the brothers as a representation of "our overwhelming contempt for people on the left in this country who snipe against the royal family and then end up taking honours".
The Proclaimers management team have been contacted for comment.
The King's coronation will take place on 6 May at Westminster Abbey in London.
