Jonathan Pie for PM?

The Ukrainian presidential election will have given hope to comedians everywhere. Volodymyr Zelenskiy, with no political experience apart from playing an accidental president in a TV series is another example of the electorate giving two fingers to the establishment (whilst probably at the same time letting a different establishment take over behind their new front man). But Zelenskiy sets no precedent. From B-film star Ronald Reagan to TV Apprentice buffoon Trump, from (on a much smaller scale) a Hartlepool football mascot to (quite possibly) Boris Johnson, the perception that a political ‘outsider’ could somehow do a better job running things has gained appeal. The old saying ‘you’re all the same’ has found a new expression, which is to say experience is no longer important because for all that experience politicians still make a hash of it. Why not take a punt on an outsider? This could of course work to Jeremy Corbyn’s advantage, he is the archetypal outsider, almost to the extent of finding himself in a position he’s not sure he really wanted. For those in the right wing media who have so far failed to destroy him, perhaps their best tack now would be to portray him as just another wannabe insider. Perhaps we saw something of that new approach in what has generally been received as a ludicrous book by Tom Bower (which I have no intention of reading) serialised in the fascist press. It is a pity that voters who support ‘outsiders’ rarely seem to spend time looking behind the image. In Corbyn’s case it would be hard not to see what lies behind his ambition, since his 30 years or more as an MP lays bare his politics and who his backers are. It couldn’t be more obvious. But what about Johnson? What about Farage? Both treat politics as a bit of a joke, and like Trump probably don’t feel too encumbered with notions of accountability or transparency. All they care about is their entertainment value, keeping up their name recognition scores on social media.