MP calls for House of Commons to celebrate Dolly Parton’s ‘I Will Always Love You’
Dolly achieved her iconic look by staying true to herself. (Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)
Anti-LGBTQ+ DUP MP Jim Shannon has called on the House of Commons to recognise the 50th anniversary of Dolly Parton’s iconic hit “I Will Always Love You”.
The Early Day Motion (EDM) was tabled by Jim Shannon, the Democratic Unionist Party MP for Strangford, and has already picked up support from 24 other members of the House.
The motion asks parliament to note the “sentiment behind this song and what it means to so many” – including Shannon’s wife – and to highlight the “contribution this song and [Dolly Parton’s] music” have had on the industry during the course of the past half century.
He adds in the motion that the House should wish “Dolly continued success as she entertains and encourages so many through her music and inspirational character”.
Shannon has consistently voted against same-sex marriage in parliament. In 2019 he said that schools should stop “promoting sexuality to our kids”.
Support for the motion has come from MPs across the political spectrum including Labour’s Nadia Whittome and Olivia Blake, former leader of the Liberal Democrats, Tim Farron, and Kristen Oswald, from the Scottish National Party.
EDMs are motions submitted for debate in the House of Commons which have no set date for discussion, meaning they rarely are actually debated, which will be sad news for Dolly Parton fans.
However, as EDMs are used to put the personal views of MP’s on record they can attract a lot of public and media attention, especially if they are related to a specific event or campaign.
Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” is one of the biggest selling singles of all time.
The country song was recorded on 12 June 1973 as an ode and farewell to Parton’s mentor and business partner Porter Wagoner, as she moved on from their seven-year partnership to pursue a solo career.
The track has been recorded several times since by artists across numerous genres, including a re-recorded version by Parton herself for the The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas soundtrack.
Possibly the most famous rendition of the song was by Whitney Houston for the 1992 romantic film The Bodyguard, for which she won a Grammy.
