Boris - he only needs one name...

It is often said that the height of fame is when you’re known by just one name. You can say the name and immediately everybody will know who you’re referring to, even if it’s not actually unique to that person.

Think Rhianna. Think Beyonce. Think Adele. Or think of Pele (and think what would have happened if he didn’t use that name as his real name is actually Edson Arantes do Nascimento – and imagine that written on the back of his shirt.

The Material Girl - she only needs one name  

Of course you may argue that it’s easy to adopt such a monicker if you’re in sport or entertainment but surely nobody in public or civic life would be so well known that just one name (particularly if it’s a Christian name) is enough to identify them.

But you’d be wrong. For last week while most of the country went to the polls to vote for relatively anonymous figures Londoners were able to choose their favourite from the exciting ‘Boris v Ken’ show.

For yes, the battle to become London Mayor pitted the blonde haired bumbling Boris Johnson against the hardbitten genial Ken Livingstone in a battle that seemed to have far more glamour and personality than any of the equally important political battles in, say, Rotherham or Romford.

What's in a name?

The fact that Boris won the vote – which went against the tide of Conservative failures elsewhere – is because he has managed to cross the divide of party politics and actually engage people who just have an opinion of him rather than what he believes in. I mentioned his name casually to a die-hard Labour supporter relative on Monday for instance and he burst into laughter and said how much he liked Boris. It’s the first time I’ve ever heard him say he liked anybody from the Conservative Party and that’s because Boris has done that rare thing that all politicians dream of – he has become a bigger figure than the party he represents.

Of course politics is a serious business and the defeated Ken said, ruefully, that the vote wasn’t about who would be the best presenter for Have I Got News For You (which even he agreed Boris would be) but for a serious political office. But what Ken and others must realise is that in a political landscape where only 30 per cent of people even bothered to get out to vote in those aforementioned elections, the desperate lack of personality amongst most politicians is something which is a turn off to people who live in the sort of entertainment and celebrity-led world inhabited by some of the other one-name-only folk such as Cher, Bono and Sting.

Of course not everybody who can get away with just one name uses their Christian one. They may be as far apart musically as it’s possible to be but both Liberace and Morrissey both presumably have Christian names but you’d have to be in a musical section of a quiz to be able to find out what they may be.

So, clearly the way to get yourself noticed and to get your ‘name’ out there is to make that name as short as possible. So this is Sam signing off. Or should that be Holliday. Or should that even be James (which is my real name but that’s a totally different story. . .)

Liberace - and his first name is???

Why you should vote on election day

This lengthy election day plea to vote appeared in the Bath Chronicle on, well,

General Election Day - May 6, 2010

So, at last, the waiting is over.

Today, after weeks of official campaigning - and seemingly years of build-up - voters will be given the chance to place their precious cross alongside the name of the party and the candidate they want to represent them in Parliament from tomorrow.

And in this column we want to try to encourage every single reader who sees this article today (May 6) to exercise their democratic right and get out to vote.

The reasons why we are encouraging everybody to do their bit are manifold.

There are so many instances around the world where people have died fighting for the right to vote (and tragically some are still dying for this basic freedom today) that for us not to even bother to walk a couple of hundreds yards to a local polling station seems like an insult to those who dream of democracy.

Of course, there will be many who may say that they would like to vote but just can't find a party that completely represents all their views. That is a very reasonable argument but the truth is there is no such thing as a 'perfect political party' that will represent every single thing someone believes in. Political parties are by their nature broad churches of opinion so you are best just to try to find the one that most closely represents your aspirations and ambitions.

And of course, if you just can't get excited by any of the parties then do look at the individuals who you have a chance to vote for today. Don't forget we are not just voting for a Government; we are voting for a man or a woman to represent us in Westminster during the course of the next five years. Yes, political parties are important but the quality of our candidates has a role to play too so if you can't find a party that ticks all the boxes you would like, then judge the individuals over what you have seen over the last few weeks to see if there is somebody that comes closest to deserving of your vote.

Still struggling? Well, it is not a crime to actually vote for the 'least worst option'.

That may sound like a negative point of view but it is actually a positive one. It is showing that despite any doubts you may have you are making a positive decision to honour democracy and vote for the option that worries you least. That is entirely credible.

The most important thing of all to remember is that if you cast your vote then you have every right to have a say in what happens in the future. You sometimes get the impression that some people prefer the holier-than-thou approach of not voting for anyone so no blame can befall them if their party or their candidate does not live up to expectations. This is just a huge cop out.
We should ALL have an investment in an election and even if we vote for a candidate or a party that doesn't win, at least we can say if things then don't go as we would have liked, that we took part and we tried to make a difference.

All of the above would be applicable in any election but this year there seems to be an extra reason to believe that we should take every opportunity to exercise our democratic right and vote. IF the polls are to be believed (note the word if has been capitalsied!) then anything is possible in today' s election so every single vote could indeed count.

Your single vote for a bigger party for instance could count in swinging a seat which may be won by a tiny margin. Or, if you back a smaller party or independent candidate and enough others do, then the bigger parties may have to think seriously about whether the current electoral system of first-past-the-post can truly be a democratic way going forward.

This may, indeed, be the first election where there is no such thing as a 'wasted vote'.

So, as we enter the final hours of a truly exciting election campaign locally and nationally, can we ask all our readers who see this on May 6 and are over 18 to get out and vote? Your vote matters. Your vote counts. And this is your chance to prove that our democracy, though not without flaws, is still worth supporting and fighting for.