Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike
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The campaign to draft James Delingpole into Parliament, revealed here yesterday, is gathering pace. Delingpole himself has broken cover to declare that he was already moving to Northamptonshire – the scene of the upcoming by-election. ‘I’m torn, I must say… though I can’t claim to have taken quite as many drugs as Louise Mensch apparently
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Word reaches me that the St. Stephen’s Club in Westminster is set to close at the end of the year due to falling membership and lack of revenue. This fine old Tory Club was formed by Benjamin Disraeli in 1870 and was originally housed where Portcullis House now stands, before moving to its current location
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It’s an open secret in Eurosceptic circles that Nigel Farage has asked James Delingpole to consider standing for UKIP at the 2014 European elections. The prospect of Delingpole sitting on EU environmental committees is enough to chill the spine of even the most devoted pen pusher in Brussels. However, could we see his foray into
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It has been a bad week for men of letters, with the loss of Gore Vidal a few days ago and Robert Hughes today. Gore was famous for his feuds, but Hughes, a Spectator contributor, had a softer side, unless your art was phony: ‘The greater the artist, the greater the doubt. Perfect confidence is
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Now that everyone has stopped moaning about a lack of Olympic gold, focus has returned to another burning issue issue – why is Team GB’s kit so terrible? Designed by Stella McCartney, critics have pointed out the blue-and-white stripes look more like a Saltire than a Union flag. Don’t even get me started on the
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After tying the knot with her toyboy lover Aaron Johnson, 22, in June, it seems the artist-turned-movie director Sam Taylor Wood, 45, is doing little to dispel the dominant old woman image. The cast list for the upcoming adaptation Anna Karenina with Keira Knightley has a new name on it: ‘Aaron Taylor Johnson’. It seems
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Yesterday Mr Steerpike brought you news that rapper Snoop Dogg had taken his ban from the country of Norway remarkably well. Perhaps I spoke too soon. The Artist Formally Known as Snoop Dogg told hacks in the Big Apple yesterday: ‘I want to bury Snoop Dogg, and become Snoop Lion’. Righty- ho. ‘I didn’t know
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In what has to be one of the better put-downs ever delivered to the people of Norway, rapper Snoop Dogg has taken his two-year ban from the country well and truly on the chin. After hitting the multi-millionaire with a paltry 52,000kr fine after he was busted with eight grams of marijuana, a judge also
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While the ladies’ beach volleyball is exciting Boris ‘glistening otters’ Johnson and the peeking Prime Minister, another event could be about to get very political. President Putin is set to arrive in town on Thursday: yes there will be bilateral meetings, but he’s really here for the judo. At a time when UK/Russian relations are
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News reaches No. 22 that rising star of the right Milo Yiannopoulos, of Catholic Herald and tech-world fame, is to be nominated for Stonewall’s ‘Homophobe of the Year’. The news has come as a surprise to the flamboyant Yiannopoulos, who, despite arguing forcefully against gay marriage on Channel 4’s risible 10 O’Clock Live, has never
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The Red Fort in Soho went multi-coloured last night as politcos from across the spectrum gathered to celebrate Keith Vaz’s 25th year in Parliament. Top of the a-list was Tony Blair, fresh from lunch at Downing Street with the Queen. No sign of his wife, again, but his son Euan was pressing the flesh. If
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Westminster’s favourite shaggy-haired do-gooder Andrew Mitchell has been spilling his heart out to Total Politics about Maggie: ‘To me, she was a goddess. When she walked down the corridors, I used to stand stiffly to attention and hope she would pass by.’ Far too much information from the International Development Secretary, who is known to
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With the South Africans slaughtering England at the Oval this weekend, Mr Steerpike was more intrigued by the goings-on off the pitch. Catching up with a super-skinny and immaculately preened Shane Warne, it would seem that the former Aussie spin-king is still very paranoid about being photographed smoking in public. Every time a small child
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If the new Labour HQ was meant to reflect a reinvigorated party then the blank white walls made for an obvious joke. With hacks and hackettes assembling for Ed Miliband’s summer drinks Labour command and control was going strong – red wine was banned, lest some spill it on the pristine new grey carpet. Expertly
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When City AM editor Allister Heath was leaving the BBC’s Westminster studios on Friday, the last thing he would have expected was to be ‘arrested’. Out popped an overexcited viewer of the Daily Politics who I hear accosted Heath declaring: ‘I’ve got a warrant for your arrest’. The white envelope was quickly discarded. but a
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What’s the best way to deal with a full onslaught against your industry? A damn good party of course. ‘Despite the dismal financial outlook, Square Mile magazine held their annual Summer Party on Friday 13th for 1,000 City bankers,’ proclaims one of the most gloriously offensive press releases that Mr Steerpike has seen in long
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Bryan Ferry CBE was on form last night, for his only UK appearance this year, at Guildford’s terribly middle-class Guilfest — the only festival I have ever seen that had a Pizza Express on site. The sixty six year old rocker still has it, even if he did have to ruin the look with a
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A touch of glamour at the High Court this morning as N-Dubz singer turned X-Factor judge Tulisa won an apology from her ex-boyfriend for leaking a rather intimate tape of the pair. Revealing a newly dyed blonde mop for her day, presumably in homage to Legally Blonde, she told the waiting pack that her leaky
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Mr Steerpike does like to hear news of the great Lady. And it seems that she has still got it. Word reaches me that when told of the Deputy Prime Minister’s plan to abolish the House of Lords she simply replied: ‘Why?’ ‘Because he’s a Liberal, Baroness Thatcher.’ ‘Ah, Liberals. We should abolish of few
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Where better for rebellious Tory MPs to hide from the domineering whips than behind a giant ice sculpture of a fighter jet? Defence spending is on ice in Whitehall, and Saab Technologies took this literally at their 75th birthday bash at County Hall last night. With Saab looking to open new factories in Britain, plenty
