The BBC has rehabilitated Michael Gove from Brexit hysteric into genial radio jock | Catherine Bennett
In handing him his own series, the corporation is relaunching yet another failed politician
No worries if you haven’t felt quite up to it: thanks to BBC Sounds, its recent Michael Gove festival, Surviving Politics, should be available for a year, to prove that no political life, however deeply disenchanting it might look, need now end in failure. Not while the BBC, with its extensive experience in rehabilitating widely detested politicians, is still there to pick up the pieces.
Just a short time after he decided not to stand for re-election (so avoiding displacement by a Lib Dem), this heavily promoted series reinvents Gove as a twinkling fount of political wisdom, a presenter who should now, if you set aside the countless reasons for his unpopularity, be as acceptable to its audience as any other. Be kind: doesn’t the officially “toxic” Gove, the Brexit hysteric, Cummings-patron, proroguing apologist, blob-detectorist, Blackadder botherer, Murdoch protege, elephant-lamp fancier, expert-denigrator and once-prized contact of Michelle Mone – “Judas” to his friends – deserve another chance? This is evidently the opinion of Paul Marshall, the billionaire buyer of the Spectator. In September, he appointed Gove its editor. The current issue features a piece by Nigel Farage. “Donald Trump,” he tells Spectator readers, “is just the most tremendous fun.”
Continue reading...-
Top stories - BBC News
Attacks on ex-wife hurt me most, Michael Gove says
6 days ago -
World - The Guardian
How many more children like Sara Sharif will be killed before smacking is banned? | Catherine Bennett
October 19 -
Top stories - BBC News
BBC Verify analyses footage from Gaza strikes
October 14 -
Business - Financial Times
BBC to cut 155 roles from news operation
October 15 -
Top stories - CBS News
Chef Michael Mina is showcasing foods from his heritage
16 hours ago -
Top stories - BBC News
BBC reports from outside hotel where Liam Payne died
October 17 -
Sports - CBS Sports
Tony Bennett retires: How he guided Virginia from 16-seed loss to winning national championship
October 18 -
Sports - ABC News
Spike Lee's 1st trip, Michael Jordan's welcome to newcomers and more from basketball Hall of Fame
October 14 -
Entertainment - ABC News
Spike Lee's 1st trip, Michael Jordan's welcome to newcomers and more from basketball Hall of Fame
October 14
More from The Guardian
-
World - The Guardian
Middle East crisis live: Iran supreme leader says ‘it would be wrong to say Israeli attack did not matter’
19 minutes ago -
World - The Guardian
Iran-Israel’s shadow war is out in the open and will only escalate unless causes addressed
16 hours ago -
World - The Guardian
Iran mocks Israel’s ‘weak’ attacks as hardliners call for reprisal
19 hours ago -
World - The Guardian
Michelle Obama blasts Trump for ‘gross incompetence’ at Harris’s Michigan rally
9 hours ago -
World - The Guardian
Georgia election: calls for protests as ruling pro-Russia party declared winner
1 hour ago
Latest in World
-
World - ABC News
Lithuanians vote in the final round of parliamentary election
6 minutes ago -
World - ABC News
Israeli strikes on Gaza kill 22, officials say, as truck ramming near Tel Aviv hurts dozens
6 minutes ago -
World - ABC News
A Lebanese family was holding a Sunday gathering when an Israeli strike toppled their building
6 minutes ago -
World - ABC News
Georgia's pro-Western opposition disputes crucial election result that could decide its EU path
6 minutes ago -
World - ABC News
Palestinian officials say Israeli strikes in northern Gaza kill 22
6 minutes ago