REALITY TELEVISION ICON Gemma Collins met Jeremy Corbyn this week.
No, there’s no punchline – this was an event that actually took place. The pair met on the red carpet of the Pride of Britain awards, and many were surprised at how starstruck she was at meeting the Labour leader.
Can’t see the video? Click here.
On the chance encounter, Gemma said: “It was a magical moment. He said it was a pleasure to meet me, and that he liked my dress – he obviously loved it that I was wearing red.
It was like When Harry Met Sally.”
Yep, exactly like that, I’m sure.
The joke’s on us though – Gemma followed this up with some surprisingly insightful commentary on Labour policy.
“Do you know why I love Jeremy? He wants to end hospital car parking charges,” she said.
“I’m not being funny, but someone’s died – a member of your family – and you’ve gotta put three quid in the meter?
It’s just not the time. Your mum has a heart attack, yet you’ve got to rustle around in your bag for £5? It’s not the one.”
Gemma continuously baffles the media, from her pronunciation of ‘memes’ to the fact that she has yet to run out of reality television shows to sign up to (she’s on Dancing On Ice this winter, just FYI.)
No doubt, her toe dip into the realm of politics has many gobsmacked – commentators probably thought her too stupid to be clued in. Reality stars? Capable of independent thinking? Pull the other one.
What’s more shocking though, Gemma’s relatively sound takes or Kanye’s fumbling attempts at alt-right rhetoric (which he now conveniently doesn’t align himself with anymore.)
The same people guffawing at Gemma’s political stance were probably the same ones who were gobsmacked at Kanye’s initial tango with Trump, while making vain attempts to justify his actions. “Sure I mean, he’s not well” was bandied about as if it automatically absolved him of his misguided views on race, slavery and Republicanism.
It’s important for people with platforms to give a voice to wider issues. Just be careful what you wish for when it comes to closeted problematic faves …
