Thursday 23 December 2010

Political Entertainment With Farage

It's at about this time of evening that I usually crack my knuckles and write something witty turgid and incisive clunky, but with all the seasonal gubbins going on, I have things to do. Presents don't wrap themselves, you know.

Well, actually Mrs P wraps them, but she can't wrap her own (that would be far too mysogynistic for a 'new man' like me), so it's time for that annual knee-crippling task of cutting wonky 'straight' lines in wrapping paper, having sellotape curl up on itself just at the moment when the fold has been wrestled into place, and then having to bodge it all again after realising the prices hadn't been peeled off.

After such a palaver, the only thing I'll be able to contemplate tackling with any seriousness will be a large G&T and, since they've been few and far between on TV this year, a Scrooge film from the DVD shelf (Patrick Stewart appeals at the moment).

In the meantime, I can heartily recommend the video below for anyone who couldn't make it to the IEA's end of year event in London last week. I attended and it was good-natured, down-to-earth, political entertainment.

IEA Director General, Mark Littlewood, questioned Nigel Farage on a number of issues (lifestyle choices included around 31:00) in an interview that was revelatory as well as being amusing - and sometimes very funny - throughout.

Peppered amongst more serious comment, Farage gives a personal account of the Van Rompuy 'damp rag' incident, as well as the subsequent 'disciplinary' with Jerzy Buzek; talks of UKIP's controversial burqa ban; and answers the question of what he would do the day after his being elected as Prime Minister!

The format worked well and the film is definitely worth watching after pouring yourself a favourite beverage.

Speaking to Mark afterwards, he was keen to hold further one on one interviews such as this, but wondered if there are any other politicians entertaining enough for such an informal approach. Any suggestions?




1 comment:

Unknown said...

Thank you Dave Atherton for bring up the subject of the bansterbators. Refreshing to hear a politician saying he'd reverse things.