No, Allegra has not chickened out of her new daunting role as the PM’s Press Secretary for television briefings. She has, as can’t be seen in this archive footage, donned the chicken suit. As all fans of the West Wing and former Guido employees will know, at some point in your political / media career you have to don the chicken suit. Allegra confirmed to Guido that it was her “boiling” in the chicken suit as a young Brillo danced along to “Amarillo”. She says of her avian experience, “No regrets, no regrets”…
Another unseen supporting actress to Brillo in the Panto horse outfit was Rachel Jupp, now the editor of Panorama. It is clear that to get ahead in politics donning a chicken suit or similar is an advantage. Lee Cain, Allegra’s boss and Boris’s spinmeister often wore the chicken suit during his days at The Mirror. Stick with Guido for all your historical political pantomime news…
It was cringe-making at times, it was devastating at times, it was much loved by political obsessives and it was a ratings success. That was This Week that was. Andrew Neil long complained about the late night scheduling, which gave it a slightly alcohol glazed tinge for many viewers. All part of the charm…
As Guido readers are well aware, the new set of EU leaders thrust upon us following days of secret backroom Brussels horse-trading aren’t exactly the most illustrious bunch – from the Karen Bradley of German politics to the deeply unpleasant Spanish Foreign Minister convicted of insider trading just last year. Safe to say Andrew Neil is not impressed. The poor pro-EU journalist doesn’t stand a chance…
“I knew Andrew Marr when he was a Trotskyite selling Trotskyite newspapers to bewildered railywaymen” says George Galloway in a critique of modern television interviewing and Marr’s ill judged attempt at a Farage “gotcha” interview last Sunday. Worth watching in full for his appraisal of the state of the game in the week Brian Walden passed…
The Liberal Democrats’ candidate in the Newport West by-election last night was nowhere to be seen at the count. Ryan Jones, a local businessman couldn’t make it to the count due to a mysterious “longstanding commitment” at ten past one in the morning. Welsh Liberal Democrat President William Powell wouldn’t let on. What was he up to..?
Last night on Andrew Neil entirely seriously informed the This Week audience that that he and the show’s guests will be participating in a ‘Brexit Danceathon’ – not stopping until Britain has left the EU. Guido fears that they may be dancing long after This Week has ended as a show…
