David Maddox: For Foulkes Sake (9) - 30 years on
Not for the first time I've just had a strange telephone conversation with Lord George Foulkes, MSP for the Lothians, Baron of Cumnock, First Lord of the Twittery.
He asked me if I was watching BBC Parliament's replay of the coverage of the 1979 election.
There are several TV sets uned into it in several of the hacks' offices in Holyrood.
The programme is running to mark the 30th anniversary of Margaret Thatcher's historic victory.
But why would Lord George want to relive the election which saw his party out of office for 18 years?
"Well it wasn't so sad for me," he said. "South Ayrshire's result is just coming up and I'm just checking if I won again."
Of course, that was when he was first elected as an MP and from the coverage there are some familiar but much younger looking faces of people well known now in Holyrood, not least Margo MacDonald and George Reid, then both of the SNP, losing their seats after siding with the Tories to force the election.
He asked me if I was watching BBC Parliament's replay of the coverage of the 1979 election.
There are several TV sets uned into it in several of the hacks' offices in Holyrood.
The programme is running to mark the 30th anniversary of Margaret Thatcher's historic victory.
But why would Lord George want to relive the election which saw his party out of office for 18 years?
"Well it wasn't so sad for me," he said. "South Ayrshire's result is just coming up and I'm just checking if I won again."
Of course, that was when he was first elected as an MP and from the coverage there are some familiar but much younger looking faces of people well known now in Holyrood, not least Margo MacDonald and George Reid, then both of the SNP, losing their seats after siding with the Tories to force the election.
As a Westminster career was born others died. and as one of the commenters has just reminded me Lord Foulkes beat former SNP deputy leader Jim Sillars to get his seat.
Labels: 1979 election, David Maddox, George Foulkes, George Reid, Margaret Thatcher, Margo MacDonald
posted by Administrator at
16:57
2 Comments:
It's worth mentioning that when George Foulkes won South Ayrshire in 1979 his defeated opponent was one Jim Sillars, standing under the banner of the breakaway Scottish Labour Party. It was a big result.
David,
Don't annoy our George or you'll need to look for another "senior Labour rent-a-quote".
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