★★★★★
Most former politicians go on the speaking circuit to flog a memoir or raise their profile for nefarious lobbying purposes. Not Mhairi Black, her hour is more an act of service, and as she says ‘public therapy’. Her revealing and personal hour peppers a dark and outrageous style of comedy with razor-sharp insights of the political process. Black’s story of being the youngest MP ever returned to parliament, and a career in a spotlight often at odds with the public and her own party is a fascinating one. There are many laugh out loud moments, as Black shares photos from her childhood, her relationship with her wind-up merchant older brother, and some the more unpleasant behind-the-scenes in ‘The Mother of All Parliaments’.
The show never feels like naval gazing, but a genuine attempt to explain the toxicity of our political process. I found the revelation of the bullying behaviour of some of her colleagues, especially when she was signed off work for stress, and was diagnosed with ADHD, particularly shocking. As always, the people who should be in politics, aren’t. And Mhairi turning her back on the Westminster system feels like a huge loss. But I applaud her for being so open about it, especially in the current climate, where any personal disclosure is met with hostility. Perhaps Westminster’s loss is a gain for our public discourse. Our media landscape is littered with rent-a-gob provocateurs with no personality, I hope Black finds a career taking some of these gobshites to task and giving working-class queer neurodivergent people a voice. She’s an advocate we’re lucky to have.
Mhairi Black: Politics Isn’t For Me is on at Gilded Balloon at the Museum till August 25th
