What will the Conservative Party look like after the election? Only around a fifth of its candidates selected so far are women, according to election-watcher Michael Crick. Currently, a quarter of Conservative MPs are women, the lowest proportion among the four largest parties. With the Tories’ share of seats likely to be thinned at the next election, that could fall further. The Tories have had three female leaders — Margaret Thatcher, Theresa May and Liz Truss, all of whom served as prime minister. Labour has never elected a woman as leader, but Margaret Beckett and Harriet Harman served as interim leaders in 1994 and 2010 respectively.
Labour is also pressing on with its candidate selections. It recently opened applications in 94 safe Tory seats that it thinks are winnable. Some Left-wingers have grumbled about the number of Oxford-educated men selected.
Tennant’s ticked off theatre bosses
Society of London Theatre (SOLT), which represents many West End theatres, has hit back at claims by actor David Tennant, left, that London theatre ticket prices are “ludicrous”. SOLT’s co-chief executive Claire Walker said in response to Tennant yesterday that when inflation is taken into account tickets prices have not really risen from pre-pandemic levels. The average price for a West End ticket last year was £54.38, according to box office data analysed by SOLT. “Theatres are grappling with costs, and there has never been a more financially uncertain time to put on a show. Despite these challenges, there are a variety of ticket prices on offer,” Walker said. Tennant told the Radio Times podcast: “When I’m in a show in the West End, I’m aware there are tickets selling for ludicrous amounts of money.” He also said there is a danger of “strangling the next generation of audiences coming through.”
Dame Judi Dench and Phoebe Waller-Bridge enjoy Edinburgh
Dame Judi Dench was in conversation with broadcaster Gyles Brandreth at the Edinburgh Playhouse this week. Fans laughed at their anecdotes and enjoyed Shakespeare recited by Dame Judi. Phoebe Waller-Bridge watched Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story by Linus Karp, an invented version of Lady Di’s private life. David Baddiel, pictured with Scottish stand-up Des Clarke, is having a fun time. “Edinburgh feels healthily non-digital,” he wrote in The Spectator, “except for microphones and lighting.”
