LONDON (AP) — Timing is everything in comedy and, it seems, in British politics for a perennial joke candidate who wears a trash can on his head. Count Binface, a self-styled intergalactic space warrior, landed at the center of the U.K. political universe ahead of a special election Thursday that was derided as a sham long before the ballot was filled with nearly three dozen candidates, many of them from the dumb end of the spectrum. and present, was the first to throw his bucket in the ring when the UK’s reformist leader, Nigel Farage, abruptly resigned from Parliament and said he would seek re-election to clear his name over financial allegations. “Go ahead, Nige,” Binface declared shortly after Farage, presenting himself as the victim of a witch hunt, said he would represent the people against the establishment. But when major political parties denounced Farage’s move as a political stunt and boycotted the Clacton-on-Sea election in southeast England, the trash-talking comedian was thrust into a prime position as a default rival. Since then he has been in constant media bombardment. “I’m the only new thing on the menu,” Binface told The Associated Press in a day of interviews with reporters from Japan, the Netherlands, Italy and Germany. “They’re all fed up with these politicians, no matter how good they try to be, but they know they need something different, a little bit of secret sauce.” The jokes have continued almost non-stop, and not all of them come from the tin can man with a 20-point plan. “If (Farage) wants to spend the summer arguing with a container, I won’t stop him,” said then-Treasury Secretary Rachel Reeves, known more for crunching the numbers than playing for yuks, as she officially accepted Farage’s resignation and set the stage for the special election. The man behind the mask is a comedian who keeps his identity hidden. Beneath Binface’s black cape, trash can, and ample body armor that looks straight out of a low-budget sci-fi movie, is a middle-aged comedian named Jon Harvey trying to keep his cool during a sweaty summer. You would never know who was there when talking to his alter ego. Binface never breaks character and offers sarcastic responses when challenged to lift his lid. “Has anyone here seen ‘Return of the Jedi’?” he told a BBC presenter in reference to the “Star Wars” sequel where Darth Vader is unmasked. “Nobody wants to know what’s underneath the recycling… It’s absolutely putrid.” Harvey is a married father of two, who grew up in London and studied classics at Oxford. He has been a television writer on the political comedy “The Thick of It” and on the humorous news competition “Have I Got News for You.” He is the author of a sports memoir written after his brother’s death and of Binface’s memoir, “What the Hell? An Extraterrestrial Guide to Fixing Britain.” Subscribe to Morning Wire: Our flagship newsletter breaks down the day’s biggest headlines. Binface was born out of a copyright dispute over a cube. In a country where almost any adult citizen can run for office, regardless of where they live, eccentric candidates are a celebrated electoral tradition. On Clacton’s 3-foot-long (90-centimeter-long) ballot are no less than three members of the Monster Raving Loony Party, including Nick the Incredible Flying Brick and Baron von Thunderclap. Harvey’s turn in politics began almost a decade ago when he jumped to Earth from the so-called planet Sigma IX as Lord Buckethead to run for the House of Commons seat held by then-Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May. He won handily, but Binface rose to fame and appeared on “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.” But the use of Buckethead, taken from a “Star Wars” parody, ended in “an unfortunate battle on the planet Copyright.” He was reincarnated as Binface to take on Prime Ministers Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak. He twice challenged London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who proclaimed in his 2024 victory speech that he was the first person in British politics to win successive victories over Binface. “Believe me, he made me work hard for it,” Khan joked. In June, Binface lost a special parliamentary election to Andy Burnham, who quickly replaced Keir Starmer as prime minister when he was forced to resign after his Labor Party was beaten by Farage’s party in local and regional elections. Binface, leader of the “Recyclons” on his home planet, continues to reuse elements of past campaign manifestos that present a mix of absurd, hyperlocal policy proposals that don’t necessarily resonate with a global audience. Among the most identifiable points, he promises to “reduce your taxes and raise everyone else’s,” build an affordable home, and nationalize singer Adele, whatever that means. One item that has raised some eyebrows is a promise to relocate the hand dryer in the men’s toilet at the Crown & Treaty pub in Uxbridge to a more sensible location. “Do you want to use the urinal and have another human wash your parts with incredibly hot air?” said. His main attraction is that he is not Farage, although he has chosen not to directly attack his main opponent. Instead, his platform makes not-so-subtle digs at the populist who is often portrayed with a pint of beer. Referring to the gift Farage failed to declare when he was elected, which is the source of a parliamentary inquiry, Binface said it would not accept gifts of £5 million ($6.7 million) from “crypto billionaires (on Earth).” Clacton than Washington, DC, in reference to Farage’s trips to the United States, where he considers President Donald Trump an ally. Candidate seeks a more perfect union with the United States. Binface, if elected, has no interest in dealing with Trump: “He’s horrible.” But he would “love to cement” the so-called special relationship between Britain and the United States “with a galactic union.” “You still have the Atlantic Ocean. I can’t do much about it, but yes, I would love to foster better relationships,” he said. Binface has admitted he does not expect to win, but if he pulls off an otherworldly upset, he would have to check his headdress at the door of the House of Commons under rules that ban costumes and require a professional attitude. outfit. He said some members of Parliament have been discussing making an exception. “You would think that they should first try to fix Britain’s economy, health system and infrastructure,” he said. But those are issues for serious politicians, and not issues that will be found on a platform that includes price caps on croissants and a plan to punish cyclists who break the law by forcing them to ride unicycles.
