It was another of those invitations that you tend not to refuse, a charity evening for the Macmillan Cancer Care charity, held in the Abbey Gardens at Westminster. Naturally, a number of Parliamentarians were there, taking the opportunity to enjoy some fine hospitality, although it wasn't just about the wine and canapes. No, we were there for serious business.
Every year, there is a tug of war contest between the House of Lords and the House of Commons, and this is where it takes place. In recent years, it has become rather one-sided, as MPs have got younger and the loss of the hereditary peers has robbed the Lords of a number of young, comparatively fit, contenders. Ros and I were clearly there to cheer on our 'boys' though, and took front row seats for the joust to come.
The sport was more than just one contest though, with teams from the event sponsors and two firms of lawyers whetting our appetites for gladiatorial action. The next contest was rather more serious, with the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service taking on the Merseyside Police. The firemen looked very big and had clearly been taking their practice very seriously - and pulled their opponents quite easily.
A pretty even contest between the Royal Engineers and the RAF followed before the penultimate all-female contest between a team from Macmillan Cancer Care and a team from the House of Commons. Admittedly, MPs were fairly sparse, so I am delighted to be able to report that Julia Goldsworthy was there to uphold Liberal Democrat honour, alongside, somewhat surprisingly, Susan Kramer. I've known Susan for some time, and never really seen her as the physical type, but one couldn't help but be impressed by the way she, and the rest of the team, eased their way to a comprehensive two pulls to nil victory.
And then the main event. No ringers here as two eight-man teams took their places under the watchful eye of officials from the British Tug of War Association, with commentary from Jeremy Vine. My heart was with the Lords, with my noble Lords Addington, Clement-Jones and Redesdale flying the golden pennant for the red benches, but my head was with the Commons (including Andrew George and Sir Robert Smith) given the evident advantages of relative youth and fitness. Sadly, my head was proven to be the better judge, as history repeated itself and the Commons team ran out fairly easy winners, two pulls to none.
Suffice to say that a lot of money was made for charity, and everyone seemed to have a good time. Not a bad evening then...
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