You're Banned!
Kemi Badenoch's innovative approach to the electorate
In his heyday as editor of The Sun, Kelvin Mackenzie once picked up the phone to hear a reader complaining about a story. His response was to tell them they were banned from reading the paper. Kemi Badenoch, it turns out, takes a similar approach to supporters of the Conservative Party.
It was a Wednesday morning, but Prime Minister’s Questions had been cancelled because Keir Starmer was flying to China. Deprived of her weekly opportunity for parliamentary limelight, Badenoch had summoned us to a speech to accuse other people of wanting attention. This is one of those irregular verbs: He is a narcissist; You have an inflated opinion of yourself; I am the only person who can save the Conservatives and I can only achieve this if I’m never off the television.
Apologies for the lateness of this. I was on a tour of Westminster Abbey, which I’ve never entered in 20 years working next door. I can reveal that it’s beautiful.
There’s a roll of honour just inside the door for civilians killed in the war. As it happens, it was open on the page that deals with Richmond, where my father lives. These entries relate to the Catterick Bridge Explosion.
Tomorrow’s edition of War Movie Theatre deals with the Seven Years War, as we watch The Last Of The Mohicans.





Last of the Mohicans, the DDL, Michael Mann version, is one of my absolute favourite movies. That bit under the waterfall.... ❤️