There’s a by-election coming up next week. In Stoke. Up north. Fairly. I’ve only been there twice, both times to see Spurs, would have no reason to go any other time. Its hardly up there with Machu Pichu on anyone’s bucket-list. Certainly not mine. Stoke is like its football team; rough, ready and fairly industrial. And is a Labour ‘stronghold’. Tristram Hunt, who just resigned to go and run the V&A, had a majority of 5000. He pooled 35% of the vote last time as a Labour Candidate. He could stand as a Historian this time, but there’s no mileage in it.

And UKIP want that seat. Ok, having just one member of parliament currently, safe to say, UKIP want any fucking seat they can muster. Even a folding chair in the corner. So they’ve put Paul Nuttall, their leader, as their candidate and, with the ‘Corbyn effect’ (the slow, inexorable ruination of a once fine political party by stupidity, communism and incessant use of the word ‘workers’ every 9 seconds, whether appropriate or not) UKIP have as good a chance as ever to win their second seat in parliament.

The Conservatives, at the last election, in Stoke, polled almost the same as UKIP, but although its the Tories who’ll take us out of Europe, they’re seen, correctly really, as ‘the pro-Europe party’ as Labour have remained equivocal (posh way of saying ‘fucking clueless’) and UKIP… Europe… yeah. Stoke was the highest Brexit vote in the nation. 70% of those fine Stoke-ites wanted out. So becomes a natural fit for UKIP’s xenophobic nonsense and working class racism.

Labour’s candidate, Gareth Snell, is a good one. A good man. Or, rather, a ‘bit of a lad’. Likes tweeting abusive things, particularly about women. Always a good way for any parliamentary candidate to behave. Didn’t do Trump any harm, election-wise. And although I want UKIP to win that by-election, purely as another great big ‘FUCK OFF!!!!’ to the truly hateful Jeremy Corbyn, I don’t want the country slipping ‘to the right’, any more than I want it rolling to the left. I like it in the middle. Dead centre.

Its award season. The time of year when red carpets are rolled out and superstar billionaires make a big fuss about receiving worthless trinkets in the shape of Oscars and Grammies and Baftas. I’d cry if I was nominated and lost. Adele cries because she won. As she does every year. Not only because she’s the best singer and songwriter in the world, but because she’s a Spurs fan. And they need to win something, even if its only a few Grammies, rather than the League. She ‘gave’ her best album Grammy to Beyonce. Who joined in the tears. Everyone was crying.

There’ll be tears in Stoke next week too. But different ones. Working Class ones.

Happy Tuesday

A xxxx