The best canvassing story of any election, ever – no, really
Hard to beat this canvassing story from Liberal Democrat Prue Bray in the 2015 general election, which I think fully delivers on my headline:
Is this a first? On the doorstep today a lady told me about some friends of hers who are so keen on me as a councillor that for Christmas the wife made the husband a board game about me, where all the pieces are made out of photos of me cut out of our Focuses. And they play it. Regularly.
No parrots, though.
This is part of a long tradition of Liberal boardgaming – one of the original versions of what is now known as monopoly was launched as a fundraising game by Scottish liberals. That version attacked Tory landlord “monopolies” – a lesson for us today!
does this board with photos on it involve hanging it on the wall and points scoring with darts..?
Not exactly a canvassing story but what the heck..
Somewhere in Dorset:
CALLER: Madam, Do you realise you’ve got dinosaur footprints on your rockery?
OLD LADY: Goodness gracious, I never thought they came so close to my house!
Probably worth updating a bit:
Somewhere in Dorset:
CALLER: Madam, Do you realise you’ve got dinosaur footprints on your rockery?
ALARMED OLD LADY: Good gracious, and I thought the Conservatives were extinct!
CALLER: Madam, Do you realise you’ve got dinosaur footprints on your rockery?
OLD LADY: Goodness gracious, I never thought they came so close to my house!
This happened to me as candidate in the 2001 general election, one hot evening somewhere in rural Surrey. The door was opened by a harrassed-looking lady. I said my usual nice thing explaining who I was and why I was on the doorstep, and she said ‘Don’t talk about them – they’re all the same: lying and cheating xxxx’s.’ Slightly shocked, I said something like, ‘Well, I really don’t think I am one of those,’ and she said, ‘NO, of course not – not you, dear – THEM, ALL OF THEM!’ We parted as friends.