Do political faces have a ‘use by’ date? Is there a point beyond which even the mugs of politicians that we like start to grate? The recent mini-media hubbub about Nigel Farage’s continuing prominence in British politics has me pondering. Is the time limit on political careers down a lot more to familiarity than anything else?

It used to be a pretty accurate rule that certain occupations were flash-in-the-pan affairs. It was rare, for example, for a pop star to remain a big sensation for very long. Even the biggest stars only had about five years tops before their shine wore off and something younger, brighter and shinier turned up. In the same way, hit TV shows would blaze away for a while, and then other shows would take their places. Disposability was a given. In this century, however, it seems we may be stuck with Ed Sheeran, Adele, I’m A Celebrity and Strictly until our grandchildren are claiming their pensions.

But politicians haven’t learnt the same trick of longevity. Ubiquity is a big factor here. We just get tired of politicians, even the ones that we like. They don’t have the option of only popping up once a week, like TV presenters or (ahem)........

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