Blubbering politicians always risk charge of shedding crocodile tears

BRITAIN, it seems, is drowning in a vale of tears. One after another, in the run-up to their general election, British politicians are lining up to emote in public. Never before have so many cried so easily, so openly and so often.

Like yawning, crying is proving contagious. Is this a sign of damp times ahead in Ireland, one wonders? It’s tempting to believe that 1997 was the turning point in Britain, the year that they of the famously stiff upper lips suddenly turned into a race of whimperers. You’ll recall Tony Blair’s croaky voice as he beatified “the people’s princess” and the so-called national outpouring of grief as the great unwashed demanded that their queen weep on cue over Diana’s tragic death.

But, in fact, political tears have a more ancient history. Viscount Goderich, briefly Tory prime minister of Britain and Ireland in the 1820s, reportedly burst into tears when George IV dismissed him and the king had to lend him a handkerchief. He went on to serve in high office again but never managed to escape his nickname, “The Blubberer”.