LABOUR sang from the same hymn sheet at a karaoke party at their Liverpool conference last night. Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting sang Robbie Williams’ Angels with new words: “Keir won’t forsake me / I’m loving Starmer instead”. Deputy Angela Rayner did Don’t Stop Believing while Lisa Nandy led Living on a Prayer.
Streeting said they were “putting the social back into socialism”. The party was paid for by the Betting and Gaming council. Leader Keir Starmer walked through with a grin following his speech, and escaped the crush through a back door. Ex-leader Ed Miliband told us he would not sing as “it would be bad for the Labour voting intention” if he did. The night ended with a rousing Things Can Only Get Better, almost bringing the Nineties back.
Wes Streeting does Robbie Williams.
— Adam Bienkov (@AdamBienkov) September 27, 2022
"I'm loving Starmer instead." pic.twitter.com/lTFqOX51eL
The bashes were crowded: shadow minister Alison McGovern was peeved to be blocked from bringing colleagues to one on Monday. And last night’s Mirror party had a long queue outside. We saw MPs and journalists including C4’s Cathy Newman ask people in the smoking area to lick entry stamps and transfer them onto their hands. Holly and Phil would be proud.
Margot takes art to her heart
ACTOR Margot Robbie really got into character while preparing to play a nurse who makes grisly art in in a new film. When the production of Amsterdam was delayed by lockdown, Robbie started “making a lot of art” of her own. This was not to everyone’s liking. Her husband walked in when she was working with X-rays, “bits of metal and fake blood” and a Super-8 camera. She also had a mask on. “He said ‘you need to calm down’,” Robbie says.
Sir Ian’s memories of Alec Guinness at film celebration
SIR IAN McKellen paid tribute to 25 years of film Bent at the BFI last night. Sir Ian, right, was also in the play, which he says “educated the world” on gay issues — he recalled a sad episode where Alec Guinness once advised him not to campaign for gay charities. “He said ‘Please don’t get involved, it will ruin your career’,” Sir Ian said. Since his death, Guinness’s bisexuality has been revealed. Some things do get better.
WizKid fans catch the eye
MODEL Naomi Campbell went to see WizKid with her ex, Skepta, at the Camden Roundhouse last night. The pair split in 2018 but are on good terms. There too were models Winnie Harlow and Leomie Anderson, and friend Joy Elleen.
In Fitzrovia, painter Anouska Beckwith held a private view, welcoming pal Eve Holness. Beckwith’s art loving mum, Tamara, who owns a gallery, was recently censored by Instagram for a nude picture of a woman, and Anouska told us of her dislike of “patriarchal” tech companies. “I’m very pro Free the Nipple,” she said.
No flower of Scotland for Labour
DOES Labour really want to win back Scotland? In an interview this morning, leader Sir Keir Starmer said that as he is in Liverpool for the conference, he would be giving the city “the nudge” over Glasgow as the two battle it out to host Eurovision. At a party last night Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham backed Liverpool too. Anas Sarwar, the leader of Scottish Labour, might be biting his tongue.
