Sunday, November 01, 2009

Missing Kevin Maguire Already

Seeing as Kevin Maguire crowed over my failure to be selected in Bracknell, let me be rather more grown up than him (not difficult) and express my concern that his services no longer seem to be required by the New Statesman. His often incomprehensible diary column hasn't appeared since 1 October, the week of the magazine's relaunch. I don't recall seeing it in the printed edition and there are none online since that date.

It could, of course, be that he has been on holiday for the last month and that no one has noticed.

Perhaps I should suggest to Ben Duckworth, the new editor of Total Politics, that we should offer him a berth.

On second thoughts...

29 comments:

Keith Elliott said...

But this isn't more grown up. You're crowing too. You're just as bad as he is. Pathetic.

Hypocrisy reigns!

Anonymous said...

I would never have been able to be so statesmen-like Iain.

You've put up with a hell of a lot from that pathetic excuse for a journalist - lets hope he never returns from holiday!

Norton Folgate said...

Looks like "Toilets" has been flushed.

The Flying Spaghetti Monster said...

Kevin Maguire is a steaming turd. I think you've been remarkably restrained Iain.

Frugal Dougal said...

I liked the way one of the Telegraph bloggers put it (I think it was Damian Thompson): "The New Statesman hacks could always train as barristers...oops, sorry, baristas".

Ted Foan said...

Maguire was always a useful tool of McBride but now the Labour spinning machine has lost most of its cogs he has no traction.

If he's still in the loop its as a useful fool. And he likes a drink too!

Michele said...

Keith Elliott - interestingly only been on blogger since November 2009and has not profile.

Another Labour troll perchance??

Jimmy said...

If you're missing him, he had an interesting piece in the Sunday Mirror today.

Johnny Norfolk said...

Iain, I think the way you have supported CCO over South Norfolkgate perhaps shows why you have failed to be selected. You have taken the party line instead of even giving the locals a hearing.
We are not the Labour party, it is because they have had this central dictatorship we are in the mess we are. So let the locals decide and support their decision whatever they do.

The Turnip Taliban are not happy.

I would want an MP that supported my area first and not CCO.

John M Ward said...

I like the comments he gets. Even "Mirror" readers disown him, and from them it looks like he has lost a fair number of former Labour voters (I have some of these comments on file and could quote some real corkers).

As far as the New Statesman is concerned: the comments to an earlier article there prompted the editor at the time to promise never to commission anything from him again (I also have that on file). I assume the editor has either changed or been leant on since then…

Martin S said...

Iain, offering him a job would be the ultimate revenge!

Anonymous said...

How sad.

Keith Elliott said...

Michelle @ 02.30

No I'm not a Labour troll. Whatever a troll may be.

Just a reader of this blog who has commented many times in the past, and always, I hope, in a constructive manner. I now find to comment I must be a google account holder, hence, the recent acquisition of such an account.

I did regard this particular post by Mr Dale as a little sad and just a touch vindictive.

As for my own political beliefs, I was a Tory Party member from about the age of 14 but left the party in the early years of this century, in my early 30's. I live in Canada and vote Liberal here, as I would now in the UK too.

BTW, Mr Dale, I wonder why you have not commented on Prof Nutt's dismissal and the resultant crisis in the Government's drugs policy. I wonder if it has anything to do with Mr Grayling's non response?

waymore said...

Kevin Maguire is a busted flush, writing for a rag with a plummeting readership and peddling a tissue of Number 10 approved class hatred stories. The Lord Ha Ha of our day; his demise is imminent, like that of his yellow sheet.

Anonymous said...

Iain, just console yourself with the circulation numbers of the Mirror since he has been there. Then sit back with a big grin on your face.

Emma said...

I believe he is fully committed to his full-time gig to be on standby 24/7 at a moment's notice (pretty sure a small room has been provided to assist) for the BBC, from Breakfast News to Newsnight, as 'the independent voice of the working person' (sic)

Anonymous said...

>> Time to privatise the BBC! Have a glance at their latest cock-up!!!!!

http://ddtaylor88.wordpress.com/2009/11/01/privatise-the-beeb/

O'Sparticus said...

As a SW Norfolk "turnip Talib" my resentment is not that the selected candiate is a woman or that she has a private life - its the fact that she was parachuted in past some excellent local candidates (both male and female). Carry on at this rate and we will have to start pushing again for Norfolk Independence!

Sean said...

Normally if I tread in something nasty I don't go back for seconds.

Anonymous said...

I like the comment that some writers might retrain as barristos . . .

The World Champion barristo makes coffee in London.

It is a skilled occupation when properly followed and requires conversational skills some journalists and commenter's toilet style vocabulary suggest they lack.

scripts said...

Maybe he'll be left out the Sky News paper review too. The other guest can never get a word in edgeways!

Anonymous said...

@Sean Haffey

You have a foot?

Pam Nash said...

So you could fully understand Maguire's vile obsequiousness to his masters in the Labour party, I should have been able to post a link to an article that he wrote as the McBride/Draper email affair broke, in April. It garnered 300+ comments, virtually all hostile - so hostile, in fact, that the Mirror has since deleted the article.
Fortunately, James Delingpole preserved a part of it for posterity. http://bit.ly/2979c8

Sean said...

@quietzapple

Is that the most obscure comment today? Or is it just mid-afternoon blues kicking in so that I have no idea what you mean?

Anonymous said...

Sean:

Back to your microflora . . .

Anonymous said...

Nice ironical joke to try and ape Harold Wilson's position going into the only referendum the Uk has had on Europe.

They didn't pay much attention to his demands, and they would pay less to Chameleon, tied in with extreme right wing EU loons and upsetting German and French conservative Christian Democrats.

Chameleon is not so foolish as to believe this piece of hog candle. But he will peddle it until next wick.

Anonymous said...

Iain, I must take issue with you when you seek to disparage Kevin Maguire in this way. You may be interested to see my blog post last week about a Labour Party fundraising event in Richmond Park constituency hosted by the Labour PPC Eleanor Tunnicliffe.

http://thehoneyballbuzz.com/2009/10/31/eleanor-tunnicliffe-for-richmond-park/

Kevin was there in his capacity as a good Labour Party member in Richmond Park. I think it's good to see top journalists like Kevin putting their money where there mouth is and supporting their local Labour Party.

Iain Dale said...

What he does with his own time is his own affair.

Perhaps you'd like to condemn him for the countless times he traduces me in his various columns.

Thought not.

Anonymous said...

Maguire has been traduced in foul terms, more than any male Labour figure, with the exception of Gordon Brown.

I've missed out on similar abuse of yourself, Iain, no need to post links. Your followers also seem to be into toilet humour.

Almost whatever happens at the next election and thereafter most of us will still want to live here. I am tempted to link to Crystal Miller of Toronto as an exemplar to you all:

http://twitter.com/iheartslife

You won't be moving to Canada then?