Popular classics, patriotism, and of course, Pomp and Circumstance — the enduring appeal of the Last Night of the Proms is almost synonymous with English music as a whole.

Originally conceived in the days of Empire when Britannia ruled the waves, these days the Last Night is a more international letting-down of the musical hair, and the Brits don’t have it all their own way.

The thumping choruses can be Italian, the orchestral showpieces French, and even Beethoven gets to go all steak-and-kidney for this one special night. But even if it’s not the beloved institution itself, the night still belongs to the seafaring English, and all those who wish they were.