Stephen Fry 'boycotts Labour bash due to Gambaccini snub'
One-time Labour luvvie backs out of gala dinner at protest over treatment of BBC DJ
What would General Melchett say? Stephen Fry, famous for his role as the blustering general in the Blackadder series, has apparently fired a salvo at Labour for upsetting one of his friends.
The Independent reports that Fry was due to be one of the VIPs at a Labour Party election gala dinner at the Roundhouse where tables for ten are being offered at £15,000. (If that's beyond your wallet, it's £500 for an individual ticket or a mere £100 to attend the after party.)
Buying a table will enable donors to rub shoulders with members of the shadow cabinet and perhaps bend their ears about what they want to see in Labour’s manifesto.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
While some Blairite Labour MPs have been complaining that Ed Miliband and Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls are seen as “anti-business", the dinner is likely to attract businessmen keen to influence the direction of the next Labour government over such issues as the NHS budget for pharmaceutical drugs.
Fry, previously a Labour luvvie, was expected to join Labour leader Ed Miliband at the Roundhouse event on 9 July. However, he's said to be boycotting it in protest at Paul Gambaccini being left off the guest list for a previous fund-raiser.
The BBC radio DJ, who is 65, was arrested in October as part of Operation Yewtree on suspicion of historical sexual offences. The fact that he was later released on bail and has never been charged with any offence has received a lot less publicity than the original arrest.
Gambaccini, a long-standing Labour sympathiser, had been expecting an invitation – but when it arrived it was for his partner Christopher Sherwood only.
The DJ is said to have been upset by this clear snub and Fry sympathised. According to the Independent, “Labour’s hopes of getting the comic and national treasure to their 9 July event are fading, though Alastair Campbell is trying to mend fences.”
Whether Campbell is the best man for that job is a moot point. Fry was once an active Labour supporter and appeared in a party political broadcast with Hugh Laurie, one of his Blackadder co-stars, in 1993. But he did not vote in 2005 in protest at Blair’s support for the Iraq war - which Campbell famously backed to the hilt.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Are 'judge shopping' rules a blow to Republicans?
Today's Big Question How the abortion pill case got to the Supreme Court
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Climate change is driving Indian women to choose sterilization
under the radar Faced with losing their jobs, they are making a life-altering decision
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
'A great culture will be lost if the EV brigade gets its way'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Will Aukus pact survive a second Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question US, UK and Australia seek to expand 'game-changer' defence partnership ahead of Republican's possible return to White House
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Britain's biggest political donors
The Explainer With the 2024 general election set to be the highest-spending contest ever we look at who is giving to which party and why
By The Week UK Published
-
It's the economy, Sunak: has 'Rishession' halted Tory fightback?
Today's Big Question PM's pledge to deliver economic growth is 'in tatters' as stagnation and falling living standards threaten Tory election wipeout
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
What will £28bn green investment U-turn cost Labour?
Today's Big Question Dropping flagship pledge 'will confirm workers' scepticism of the endless promises of jam tomorrow', said union leader
By The Week UK Published
-
Why your local council may be going bust
The Explainer Across England, local councils are suffering from grave financial problems
By The Week UK Published
-
Rishi Sunak and the right-wing press: heading for divorce?
Talking Point The Telegraph launches 'assault' on PM just as many Tory MPs are contemplating losing their seats
By Keumars Afifi-Sabet, The Week UK Published
-
How many seats do Labour and the Tories need to win?
In depth Changes to constituency boundaries mean Labour needs even bigger swing at next election to form a majority
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published