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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Ian Black

From a Thatcher nutcracker to a Trump toilet brush: my curious collection of political memorabilia

United States Donald Trump Vladimir Putin London Muammar Gaddafi Brussels Franklin D Roosevelt Benito Mussolini bin Laden Boris Johnson
A composite photograph of items from Ian Black’s collection of political memorabilia
All photographs Liz McBurney/The Guardian Composite: The Guardian

‘Emmanuel Macron? No, we have nothing at all. People were happy for a day or two after he was elected, but now they all hate him.” It was a disappointing response from a souvenir shop owner in the heart of Paris between the Boulevard St Germain and Notre-Dame. Figurines of Marianne, models of the Eiffel Tower and tricolore-draped bric-a-brac were ranged on shelves looking out over the Seine on my visit in 2018. But there was not a hint of the newish man in the Élysée. Not a single bust, figurine, badge or plate. Rien.

A ceramic cup featuring a globe design with ships and planes crossing the Atlantic, held by figures of Franklin D Roosevelt and Winston Churchill, with the inscription ‘Let’s drink to victory’, made to celebrate the 1941 Lend-Lease agreement to provide support for the allies before the US entered the war
Franklin D Roosevelt and Winston Churchill globe cup celebrating the 1941 Lend-Lease agreement to provide support for the allies before the US entered the war. The inscription is: ‘Let’s drink to victory. Let’s drink to peace.’ Bought in Portobello Road, London, 2012 Photograph: Liz McBurney/The Guardian
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