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Birmingham: A little showbiz never hurts a political conference – so Dame Andrea Jenkyns knew exactly how to liven up the supporters at a Reform UK gathering in Birmingham a few days ago. Jenkyns strode on stage in a sparkly blue jumpsuit to a thumping pop-rock tune and began singing with her arms flung wide.

Andrea Jenkyns in full song at the Reform UK national conference in Birmingham.Credit: Bloomberg

“I’m an insomniac,” she belted out. “I’m an insomniac, staring at the ceiling, waiting for my thoughts to switch off.” The deeper meaning of these lyrics was a mystery – they just happened to be something she wrote when she was in a rock band long ago. Journalists groaned and began thinking about the withering take-downs they would write. “Bizarre,” was the most common adjective. Jenkyns was mercilessly panned.

But the party faithful loved it. Jenkyns, a former Conservative MP who was appointed a dame by Boris Johnson before he lost the prime minister’s job, injected colour and energy into a conference that already seemed euphoric. While she converted to Reform only last November, she now has the base on her side. Smart move.

The conference was a huge success for the Reform leader, Nigel Farage, a lively character who knows how to make politics interesting. He jokes and exaggerates. He misleads, too, but he seems to absorb more energy every time his enemies try to Taser him. His party is

© The Sydney Morning Herald