Liz Truss’s requests during trips abroad were so exacting they rivalled the outlandish demands of rock star riders on tour, according to a new biography of the former prime minister.
When she was foreign secretary, orders were sent to embassies around the world of what Truss would expect to be served, excerpts of the book Out of the Blue: the Inside Story of the Unexpected Rise and Rapid Fall of Liz Truss have claimed.
She was particularly picky about coffee, according to the authors, Harry Cole and James Heale.
Truss would expect double espressos served in a flat-white-sized takeaway cup, and the coffee had to be sourced from independent stores, a serialisation of the book printed in the Sunday Times says. Truss placed a ban on big-brand coffee except when she was in the UK, when she would accept coffee from Pret a Manger.
Truss’s favourite espresso machine was moved from department to department every time she changed jobs in cabinet reshuffles, the book claims.
She also demanded food and other drinks, the book says. Sandwiches had to be freshly prepared as Truss would reject any plastic-packed premade varieties.
For lunch she insisted on bagels or sushi, Cole and Heale write, but there was to be “absolutely no mayonnaise on anything, ever”, and a former staffer told them she would not accept fruit for breakfast.
For overnight stays, a bottle of sauvignon blanc had to be provided in the fridge, the book claims.
A former staffer is quoted as saying: “Sometimes she could be demanding and borderline rude to people.”
Kirsty Buchanan, a former aide, is quoted as saying: “She drinks about 42,000 espressos a day or she used to when I worked for her … She would sit there with a massive meatball sub or eat three croissants for breakfast. She would carb up; frankly, no woman in her 40s should be eating that much and getting away with it.”
Former aides recalled how Truss would prioritise her social media posts over briefings during foreign trips. The book also details the lengths Truss would go to set up photo shoots, including one at the Shibuya pedestrian crossing in Tokyo.
A witness is quoted as saying: “It was so dangerous. There was traffic everywhere and she just kept bowling through it, take after take, even when the traffic was still coming.”
Rock star riders: M&Ms, saplings and ‘square melons’
Liz Truss’s demands prompted the book to compare them with rock stars’ riders. Here are some of the more outlandish examples:
Van Halen insisted they be served M&Ms with the brown ones taken out. The band later claimed this was a test to see whether venues were reading their exacting technical sound specifications.
A rider from Guns N’ Roses demanded only shop-bought cookies to prevent fans providing the home-baked variety.
On a 2012 tour Axl Rose asked for a square melon.
Morrissey demanded a “young sapling no less than four feet but no higher than six feet” be placed in his dressing room at each show. He also canceled a gig in Iceland over the venue’s refusal to go vegetarian.
Lady Gaga’s rider specifies piping hot roast chicken as she steps off stage.
Adele has a strict “no American beer” rule.
Lily Allen asks for 12 packs of Monster Munch.
The Foo Fighters demand Cup O Noodles, “but only on Wednesday”.
Katy Perry insists that her drivers do not speak to her and specifies how fast they should drive and what lane they should stay in.
Nina Simone requested “champagne, some cocaine and some sausages”, according to the musician and composer Warren Ellis.
