FANS of Michael Palin staged a demo yesterday in an attempt to reclaim the comedian/broadcaster’s surname from US Vice-Presidential hopeful Sarah Palin.
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“There is only one Palin!” chanted the demonstrators, some of them dressed in the costumes of famous characters played by their Monty Python star hero.
The Python revellers aren’t the only ones to use today’s US elections as an excuse for a bit of fun. Election parties take place across London tonight and, with an estimated 100,000 US citizens living in London, those election shindigs have a ready-made audience.
But it’s not only partying Americans who have been captivated by the race between Barak Obama and John McCain; British TV companies expect this year’s election to be the most watched US poll ever as we sit up all night with some popcorn for the first glimmer of a result.
That should arrive at about midnight London time, when the early exit polls report from east coast areas. Beware, though, as last time out, in 2004, the exit polls picked the wrong winner.
Election parties go ahead in a wide variety of venues, from well-known like the Planet Hollywood on Coventry St and Yates Wine Lodge on Leicester Square, through the decidedly more upmarket American Bar at the Stafford Hotel, to normal pubs such as the Hoop and Toy in South Kensington, as well as the traditional do at the American Embassy for those with top connections.
Well worth checking with the venues to make sure they’re not sold out before you venture out.