A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of bumping into Zack Polanski on Hampstead Heath while enjoying a Saturday afternoon stroll. He was just as friendly as he comes across online but what surprised me was his glowing skin—no eye bags just the radiant face of a well-rested man. Politicians are judged for having weary faces (think back to the media pile-on after an exhausted-looking Rachel Reeves shed tears in the Commons last year), with Zelensky taking top spot—his poor face having aged decades since the Ukraine war began.
Well hopefully Zack’s face won’t become too broken or bruised after stepping into the boxing ring in May to fight it out in the local elections. Carys Afoko has been following the Greens and Reform UK across the country to see how they are getting into shape. She describes Reform’s production as slick and glossy whereas the Greens are more make-shift and welcoming. In comparing the two leaders, Afoko sums it up well: “Farage is a multimillionaire; Polanski is still renting his home.”
Following the success for the Greens in Gorton and Denton, Polanski will be hoping to convince a lot more Labour voters elsewhere. Afoko wrote last year on Labour ignoring the threat from its left and focusing too strongly on “pandering” to the right. Reform will undoubtedly try to pinch some of Labour’s voters too, but if Ofcom ever finally get round to reading Alan Rusbridger’s investigation into whether GB News has turned into Reform TV, Farage might not have the media support he once had.
In today’s lovely Lives column, Sarah Collins opens up about how debilitating it can be living with OCD, often funneling your attention away from reality and towards random and distracting thoughts—like, in Sarah’s instance, whether you have forgotten how to speak. I can vouch that Sarah is indeed a certified chatterbox (in the best way possible), so I concur when she says, “rendering me mute was quite groundbreaking work, even for my very persistent and creative OCD”.
Keep an eye out for a Prospect interview with Polanski coming out in our new issue next week—but spoiler alert, I forgot to ask him to drop his skincare routine. Send your thoughts on today’s news to kathryn.schoon@prospectmagazine.co.uk
Kathryn Schoon
Assistant audience editor
New online
Are Reform and the Greens battle ready?
Mindful life: How OCD made me forget how to speak
While it felt deeply alarming, I learnt losing my voice was far from unusual
From the archive
