I Am A Very Great Man
- 24 Jan 2010
I spent much of today in front of a camera. Nothing new there, you may think, but you'd be wrong. This time it was to appear in a feature film! Admittedly, it's not exactly a starring role, but the experience was good - and different! - nonetheless. The film, which will be rel...
Modesty Forbids... Almost!
- 24 Jan 2010
As you know, I'm a modest sort of guy. Totally unused to blowing my own trumpet. Can't stand these bloggers who think they're God's gift etc etc... BUT... when your Mum phones you and tells you how proud of you she is after reading about you in the Mail on Sunday... well, I'm ...
Why UKIP Are Wrong to Want to Ban the Burka
- 18 Jan 2010
UKIP keep telling us how libertarian they are - that they are the most libertarian party out there. I've never bought that. Their new policy of banning the burka/niqab is yet another example of their authoritarian, populist, streak. Had they announced it at the time of the Fre...
Iain 1 Yasmin 1
- 17 Jan 2010
I know how you all love it when I mention Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, so here goes. On the BBC News Channel paper review last night she talked about Jenni Russell's article in the Sunday Times on class. Here's how the exchange went... YAB: "We had a funny kind of statement fro...
Posh Nosh
- 14 Jan 2010
I've always wondered why some restaurants become known as the "in" places to go. I don't make a habit of frequenting them generally, but I've eaten at a fair few of them and most tend not to live up to expectations. It seems to me that you go to these restaurants to either be ...
My 2010 General Election Prediction
- 10 Jan 2010
Over the last few days I have been going through every single parliamentary seat with the aim of trying to predict which party will win it at the next election. As you can imagine, it has been quite a task. Why have I done this? For one reason - that I do not believe in nation...
Why I Published Peter Watt's Book
- 9 Jan 2010
Next Left's Sunder Katwala knows a thing about political publishing, albeit of the academic kind. We first met when I was at Politico's and he worked for Macmillan. He's written an article headlined WATT'S THE POINT? on Next Left this afternoon, which I think deserves a full r...
If One School Could Open, Why Couldn't Others?
- 8 Jan 2010
I was talking to my Mum last night and she was ranting on about schools who close at the first whiff of snow. She had seen a report on the TV about a school in Norwich which had remained open, despite all those around it closing. It turns out that on Thursday and Friday thi...
Brown Copies Foot Election Strategy
- 7 Jan 2010
The election strategy being fought by Gordon Brown and his team reminds me of that followed by Michael Foot in 1983. These cosy little household chats which Brown is doing every day are exactly what Foot did in 1983, partly in order to keep him away from the media. Foot did hi...
What Next?
- 7 Jan 2010
Many things remain unclear, but let's stick to what we know. We know that David Cameron has said he believes there should be a "strong governmment in the national interest". We also know that Nick Clegg has said that he would first talk to the party which has most seats and mo...
Book Review: Shirley Williams' Autobiography
- 6 Jan 2010
This is a political autobiography which has had some mixed reviews. Some reviewers thought that Shirley Williams hadn't dished enough dirt. She was even nice about David Owen, wrote one disappointed reviewer. But isn't that the point? An autobiography is supposed to reflect th...
My Top Ten Westminster Novels
- 3 Jan 2010
When it comes to reading political novels I always enjoy a plot which centres around Parliament. I started to write a political novel myself a few years ago (which unbelievably featured Charles Kennedy as Foreign Secretary oin a Tory led coalition!) but only wrote one chapter....
My New Year's Resolutions for 2010
- 1 Jan 2010
It's only natural to re-evaluate a few things at the beginning of a new year. I'm not sure I believe in making new year's resolutions, but I'm going to make a few new year's aspirations. Here goes... 1. To make more of a consistent effort to watch my weight 2. To recogn...
Book Review: Something Sensational to Read In The Train by Gyles Brandreth
- 1 Jan 2010
I've said it before, and I will say it again, Gyles Brandreth's diaries BREAKING THE CODE are the best political book of the last decade. So when I bought his new volume of diaries SOMETHING SENSATIONAL TO READ IN THE TRAIN I was almost salivating. The book covers 1959 to the ...
Will 2010 Be the Year of the Left of Centre Blogs?
- 31 Dec 2009
In a thought provoking article for this week's New Statesman, James Crabtree (Deputy Editor of Prospect Magazine) asserts that the left wing blogosphere will come of age in 2010 and will finally catch up with the success of blogs on the right. I don't buy the argument that ...
Ten Predictions for 2010
- 30 Dec 2009
1. Andy Murray will reach the Wimbledon final 2. The Conservatives will win the election with a majority of between 20 and 50 3. VAT will go up to 20% at some point this year 4. Britain will lose its AAA credit status 5. West Ham will not be relegated 6. Ed Miliband will ...
Ten Blog Headlines You Won't See in 2010
- 30 Dec 2009
Gordon Brown is the Man to Win Us the Election Tom Harris Jack Straw Should Lose His Job Left Foot Forward My Fellow LibDem Bloggers Are Such Nice People Norfolk Blogger LIBDEM COUNCILLOR IN SCANDAL Mark Pack OBAMA WAS RIGHT ON HEALTHCARE Donal Blaney I Pro...
Wild at Heart & Looking Forward
- 26 Dec 2009
You know how it is, you’re looking forward to a quiet night of vegging in front of the TV and then your partner utters the dreadful words, “right, we’re switching over so I can watch a programme I want for a change.” Your heart sinks, knowing that the next hour is to be spent ...
Trumping Lady Trumpington
- 14 Dec 2009
Baroness Trumpington is an institution. Today, while debating the Equality Bill, she made a very good point about House of Lords titles. The wife of a peer becomes known as Lady x, but the husband of a female peer remains plain Mister. You may very think that more serious issu...
In Conversation with Lord Pearson
- 10 Dec 2009
This interview was conducted in December 2009 and appeared in Total Politics magazine. So what on earth made you decide to stand for leadership of UKIP? There was quite a lot of arm twisting from a number of leading people within the party and from several of t...