Michael Foot’s Harrods jacket

future MP Andy Burnham’s The decision to donate one of his coats to the People’s History Museum in Manchester (it is not yet on display) has sparked comparisons with Michael Foot’s famous ‘donkey jacket’ which the then Labor leader wore to the Cenotaph to commemorate the war dead in 1981 and which already hangs there. Foot never recovered from accusations that he was disrespectful. Yet the often overlooked truth is Harrods label is clearly visible on the smart “car coat” (as they were then called). It was purchased especially for Remembrance Sunday by Foot’s wife, Jill Craigie. Nothing was too good for the workers then.

Stanley’s defection

Amid rumors that former Conservative leader Boris Johnson – who I interviewed on GB News last week – is considering a return to politics, I hear his father Stanley has started voting Liberal Democrat. Stanley is a member of the Exmoor Conservative Association, but he voted in May’s local elections near his London home, northwest London. He told me: “I am pleased to say that the tactical voting in my particular ward, Queens Park, was very effective, with three Lib Dem candidates elected to replace three Labor candidates. I will leave it to you to determine which way I voted in the Brent Council elections, as it is not for me to reveal the secret of the ballot box. Suffice it to say that I am extremely happy with the result, as I believe many others are, including local Conservatives.” Boris can’t come back soon enough!

Stand up straight!

TV Personality Gyles Brandreth Says former Labor Prime Minister Tony Blair keeps a little note in his wallet saying: “Stay up.” Blair apparently received it from his security team when he became Prime Minister “to make himself visible so they could rescue him if he was caught in an attack of any kind. He kept it because he had observed that if you stand, the storm usually ends up blowing over you so you don’t go to bed. And of course he managed 10 years as Prime Minister.” Sir Keir Starmer I could have given the same advice.

Mary’s tolerance

Novelist Jeffrey Archer, 86, told me The spectatorAt this week’s summer party, he was looking forward to celebrating his 60th wedding anniversary with his wife Mary at a party next weekend. Former Cabinet Secretary Robin Butler says grace, and former Tory leaders Michael Howard and Iain Duncan Smith as well as Joanna Lumley are among the guests. Archer – whose latest novel Adam and Eve comes out this fall – has already thought about what he was going to say in his speech, telling me: “Barry Humphries saw Mary one day and said to her, ‘Mary, I have one word that sums you up and sums you up: tolerance.’

Mervyn’s target

Everything must pass. Mervyn King, former governor of the Bank of England, 78 years old, no longer the most prominent “Mervyn King”” which appears in a Google search, according to the American economic journalist Neil Irwin, it is rather Mervyn King, the 60-year-old English professional darts player. At least both are good with numbers. Sic transit gloria mundi, Mervyn?

Improving Yvette’s house

Yvette Cooper, the Minister of Foreign Affairsis involved in a neighborhood dispute, I can reveal. Residents near his pile of grace and favor in Chevening, Kent, are angry over the renovation of his garden, which involves building huge mounds of earth to block the house’s view of the M25. Villagers are fed up with trucks loaded with dirt passing their homes, and the local parish council has asked them to take photos of the trucks to look for any breaches of planning rules, according to minutes of their meetings. Perhaps it’s time to deploy diplomatic charm a little closer to home?

Carnarvon’s Ascot snobbery

The Countess of Carnarvon, the chatelaine of Highclere Castle where Downton Abbey has been fixed, says she was snubbed at Royal Ascot this year because of her gender. She said: “I want to be seen standing on my own two feet. My husband is an integral part of Highclere and we are side by side.” But she says to If you film it, they will come Podcast: “At Royal Ascot it happened again, and you’re aware that as a woman… you’re completely ignored because you’re just ‘the woman’. I actually took a step back and thought, ‘How boring. How depressing. I’m going to leave.’ You still encounter them.

Lady Carnarvon, 63, refuses to name names. It’s all the more unfortunate.

Peterboroughpublished every Friday at 7 p.m., is edited by Christopher Hope. You can reach him at [email protected]

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