Colin Sheridan: Sometimes the simplest messages are the most difficult to deliver

Communication is hard sometimes — it doesn't matter who you are or what team of paid communication consultants you have

Ex-Labour MP Zarah Sultana has accused Jeremy Corbyn of overseeing a 'sexist boys' club' locking women out of the founding of a new left-wing party the pair announced earlier this year.

A few years ago, a friend of mine received a text from his mother in Mayo that read:“WELL ANY NEWS THE CAT IS DEAD LOVE MAM.” 

It was confusing, not because of the all caps, nor the lack of punctuation, but because of the cat. My friend didn't have a cat. His family never had a cat. He wondered if this was the beginning of something nefarious. The start of the Great Decline. He rolled the message over in his mind. Discussed it with siblings. Sought the informal advice of medical professionals in his social circle. Might there be a hidden meaning? Was it a cry for help? A “Luca Brasi sleeps with the fishes” type signal?