Brand Rishi suffered a misfire over the weekend, as the PM’s team deleted a glossy promotional video after an hour. On Friday evening, Downing Street posted a cringe highlights “rewind” on social media which boasted about the PM’s work in May. Rapper Yvng $way supplied a backing track. Highlights included the Coronation and meeting President Zelensky of Ukraine.
The video had at least one error: boasting about securing £18m in business from Japan, when the figure was actually £18 billion. It also didn’t mention the Tories losing 1,000 council seats. Number 10 wouldn’t tell us what happened to the video.
Amazingly that video Sunak and No.10 considered such a great idea that they paid our money to make, so brilliant as to commit to it being a monthly thing, and an hour later so embarrassing as to delete, was still in my phone cache…
— Alex Andreou (@sturdyAlex) June 2, 2023
Let’s make sure this piece of art goes viral. https://t.co/NyNzjgb6En pic.twitter.com/BC6TTU8oy2
Sunak’s comms team, led by Cass Horowitz, helped build Sunak’s profile during Covid. “Crazy month. That was the rewind,” drawled the voiceover, “see you in the next one”. Or perhaps not.
No more nudity at the ponds
Uproar at Hampstead Heath Men’s Bathing Ponds changing rooms, where lying in the sun naked has been banned. “Nude sunbathing is not permitted,” says a new sign. The City of London, who manage the site, took down a “vanity” barrier during Covid, and hasn’t decided whether to replace it after renovations. Regulars tell the Camden New Journal they’re doing a “slow strip” in protest.
Stormzy’s dream: to be an 80 year old publisher
Stormzy was at the Hay book festival yesterday bigging up his publishing house, Merky. “My actual dream is being 80 years old, no one cares about Stormzy any more, he’s just chilling with his dogs,” the rapper said, imagining that the book label will outlive his career as a musician. “I see someone and they say ‘Yo, I’m a published author, I sold so many books on Merky’,” he said.
Matty Healy shares the love
Matty Healy has been sharing the love recently. The 1975 frontman and rumoured new squeeze of Taylor Swift is a regular at the Electric in Notting Hill, and recently sorted gig tickets for one of the bar staff. The barman came up to thank Healy for the favour while he was chatting to The New Yorker. “Did I do that? Guess I must have,” he pondered. At a gig in Belgium on Friday, Healy kissed a security guard.
Last night in town
Film rock gods turned out to mark director Dexter Fletcher’s 50 years in showbiz at the BFI last night. Taron Egerton, who played Elton John in his Rocketman, and Rami Malek, who starred as Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody, embraced him. Also there was non-film star Jamie Oliver and actress Charlotte Spencer. Former Batman Michael Keaton was also in town for his new film The Flash.
