As I understand it, the good folk of Shropshire can claim Jeremy Corbyn as one of their own. He moved to the county aged seven, attended Adams’ Grammar School in Newport, and even worked for a short time as a journalist on the Newport and Market Drayton Advertiser. Formative years. Shaped by Shropshire.
I’ve mentioned before how local media manage to shoe-horn local associations into every news story – for example “Michael Jackson, who once visited the Bull Ring Shopping Centre, has died.” Or “Philip Larkin, who worked at Wellington Library, also lived in Hull for a while.” You get the idea.
Plus, since I’ve lived up here, it’s obligatory for a Salopian, every time anyone mentions Shrewsbury School to follow it with – “Michael Palin went there you know.”
Now, I can’t help feeling if, let’s say, Boris Johnson, had attended school at Adams’ Grammar, the Shropshire Star would find a reason to put a photo of him into the paper every single day, and he’d be on the cover of those county lifestyle magazines every month. Crikey, were he to become Prime Minister, Newport would be re-named after him, (Port Pfeffel, possibly). Even now, they’d commission a statue, just in case.
But of Jeremy, not a mention. I didn’t even realise his association with Shropshire until I was looking up something on his Wikipedia page for an entirely different reason. No-one talks of him. No one remembers him. Media silence. A total blackout. Were he to become Prime Minister the entire county might collapse in on itself from shame.
I’ve mentioned before how local media manage to shoe-horn local associations into every news story – for example “Michael Jackson, who once visited the Bull Ring Shopping Centre, has died.” Or “Philip Larkin, who worked at Wellington Library, also lived in Hull for a while.” You get the idea.
Plus, since I’ve lived up here, it’s obligatory for a Salopian, every time anyone mentions Shrewsbury School to follow it with – “Michael Palin went there you know.”
Now, I can’t help feeling if, let’s say, Boris Johnson, had attended school at Adams’ Grammar, the Shropshire Star would find a reason to put a photo of him into the paper every single day, and he’d be on the cover of those county lifestyle magazines every month. Crikey, were he to become Prime Minister, Newport would be re-named after him, (Port Pfeffel, possibly). Even now, they’d commission a statue, just in case.
But of Jeremy, not a mention. I didn’t even realise his association with Shropshire until I was looking up something on his Wikipedia page for an entirely different reason. No-one talks of him. No one remembers him. Media silence. A total blackout. Were he to become Prime Minister the entire county might collapse in on itself from shame.
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