Opinion: In the right place at the right time for key moments


You don’t want to miss those moments of drama which usually involve the downfall of a well known politician when the tide is threatening to overwhelm their party.
Equally you want to get instant reaction from the big beasts in the political world. But resources are not infinite, so you can’t cover every count with a camera.
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Hide AdIn 1997 it was clear from opinion polls that 18 years of Conservative rule were coming to an end. I went to cover the count at the Conservative stronghold of Rushcliffe near Nottingham. Not because we thought Labour could win there but because it was the seat being defended by long term Tory cabinet Minister, Ken Clarke.
And sure enough in those hours between the votes being counted and the results being declared he gave us what we wanted.
He was asked what the Conservative’s chances were.
After all the bluster from everyone in the campaigning came a straightforward honest answer, “We don’t stand a snowballs chance in Hades”.
Now Hades is seen as a state between heaven and hell which the dead enter until the Last Judgement. So quite hot then, and not a good place for a snowball…or a political party to be in.
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Hide AdSo it proved in the end with 1997’s Labour landslide.And there’s that ‘Judgement’ word again.
Misjudgements in the campaign will cost you seats in Parliament.
The Prime Minister’s decision to come home early from D-Day commemorations is the biggest misstep of many, so far, in the campaign.
When people come to make their individual judgments in the voting booth that might well be something they cannot forget.