Why I am looking forward to the summer of Count Binface
It turns out Andy Burnham v Sir Keir Starmer is not the showdown of the summer - it is Nigel Farage v a giant bin.
We all thought we were going to spend the summer watching Andy Burnham being inevitably crowned as the new Prime Minister.
But not to be outdone, Nigel Farage steps forward and dramatically announces he is resigning as the MP for Clacton so he can (checks notes) … stand to be the MP for Clacton.
Understandably, most of the main political parties are ignoring this rather expensive farce. This means that, at the moment at least, his only opposition is Count Binface.
Count Binface has been a staple of British elections for the past decade, tending to stand against high profile candidates such as Theresa May and Rishi Sunak. Just last month he stood against Mr Burnham in the Makerfield by-election.
We are yet to hear his specific Clacton manifesto, but when the BBC asked him what he brings to the table, Count Binface just said: “I’m not Nigel Farage.”
Comic characters standing for election have been a mainstay of British elections since the 1970s, yet are not so common north of the border here in Scotland.
Some of the most famous joke characters over the years have been Howling Laud Hope and Screaming Lord Sutch from the Monster Raving Loony Party, and Lord Buckethead who stood in four general elections.
Other characters have dressed up as Elmo, or as a tin of beans.
Mr Farage himself is no stranger to having to stand against joke candidates - comedian Al Murray the Pub Landlord stood against him at the 2015 general election.
Often, these comic characters only pick up a handful of votes and lose their £500 deposit. However, that does not mean defeating Count Binface is a foregone conclusion - back in 2022 H’Angus the Monkey, the mascot for Hartlepool FC, was elected as Hartlepool mayor and then went on to serve three terms.
These characters are a deliberate attempt to satirise the political elites like Mr Farage, and in their own way do provide some fun commentary, however trivial or otherwise, on how well the British political system functions.
Count Binface’s policies, while gathering a few titters, do raise questions on the state of society right now. One of his most famous policies is throwing Thames Water bosses into the river to “see how they like it”. Sounds hilarious, but it does raise a good point - water quality in the UK is pretty yucky right now.
Comic candidates are something we are not so familiar with in Scotland.
We did have Robert Pownall dressed as a giant gannet standing against former government minister Angus Robertson in Edinburgh Central at May’s election.
It was perhaps fitting to see the change in the pecking order in Edinburgh Central from the SNP to the Greens while they stood next to a man in a giant bird costume.
Whether it is all just a bit of a laugh or whether it does raise some valid political points, I really enjoy the comic relief they provide in an election. I want to see more of it in Scotland, and I am looking forward to a summer of watching Mr Farage scream at a bin.
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