to be irritated by politicians holding hands with their other halves in public?

[clam]

I mean, come on! Gordon Brown? Touchy-feely hand-holding romantic? It's such a blatant attempt to manipulate our opinions. I can't imagine him kissing his wife in their bedroom, so why have a go on a podium in front of millions? Just because they do it in America.... it just does not translate, in my book. Makes me cross.

LOL!! YANBU

yab (a little bit) u
dont think it should be tripped out for the camera's but lots of people hold hands in public.

Can someone settle a debate in our house - last night on Newsnight Ruth Kelly was filmed in the street holding hands with a bloke who looked about 65.

DH reckons it's her husband, I reckon it's her dad.

Does anyone know

Husband

I hate public hand-holding, anyway. It always looks naff. Funnily enough I don't mind linked arms, though. Doesn't have that "look at us, we're so in lurve" angle to it.

YANBU - I wish the other halves were kept firmly in the background. They are irrelevant.

Bridie - LOL

My dh loves holding hands and hates linked arms, I do it to wind him up - he tells me to get off he is not 80!

platypussy, yes, that's partly my point. They don't take their spouses into the Commons each day (holding hands or not) so why wheel them out for the conference? And whilst I've never been a particularly holdy-handsy sort, I don't object to couples cosying up during a weekend outing/shop/picnic/night-out/whatever, (good of me, I know ). But it's the fact that the sub-text here is so clearly "look at me, I'm part of a couple who have solid family values, so I'm not going to shaft you while in government" that annoys me. That and, for the Beckhams et al... the more they hold hands, the less happy their marriage is likely to be. Remember all that piggy-back nonsense when the allegations broke about Rebecca Loos? Just who did they think they were fooling? I bet they went back inside and carried on the punch-up.

And mumblechum....LOL at Ruth Kelly holding hands with her dad. Now, that would be weird!

if my dh was taking an absolute pasting in his work and had to go out to do a speech to thousands of people and millions of viewers that'd be exactly the time i imagine i'd want to hold his hand. seems really nasty to assume they're doing it for the benefit of cameras rather than precisely because they could do with giving each other a squeeze while everyone else in the room is peering at them.

Hee hee, Flimbo!

We never do either much in public. Probably because we don't go out much. [looks at over-used credit cards and shakes head]

No, YANBU. It's cringeworthy. It's the silent, sycophantic smiling the partners do which squicks me out as well.

But aitch, they all do it. And that's not the first time I've seen Gordon and Sarah do it, either. And are you really suggesting that Gordon would be prepared to put across the idea that he was nervous of this speech so allowed his wife to come and hold his hand? Doesn't exactly inspire confidence, does it? And he's very quick to emphasise the point that he will not perform to the media by parading his kids in public (quite right, too. I applaud him for that), but then that's exactly what he's doing by the hand-holding business. In all other respects he presents as a shy, reserved man, and that's at total odds with the touchy-feely stuff.

am with you there clam !

YABVU - I am sick of Gordon bashing, at this rate we are going end up with that moron David 'bandwagon' Cameron

yanbu-t's on a par with celebs who carry their 6 yr olds

It's not personal to Gordon! I'm irritated by anyone who does it, whatever their political leaning!

Mind you, if he says he's "getting on with the job," one more time, I'll throw something at the TV.

YANBU. They can keep this sort of barf making behaviour in America. Bring back the stiff upper lip, I say.

Not as bad as Cherie's 'wifey' hugs with Tony, looking up in amazement and admiration as if he was the messiah.

Lol Ruth Kelly's dad/husband quandary, btw

(GetOrfMoiLand) .....and not a million miles away from that awful "fake recognition of someone in the audience" stuff that Hillary Clinton always does.

YANBU

god forbid that a married couple should...

join hands

ach, thi is naff. i like gb, i like sb, i think it must be torture for her not to rip the heads off his detractors.

I agree with you, TheCrackFox. More stiff upper lip, less public emoting all over the place is what we need at times like this.

I like SB, though. Why can't we have HER as PM instead of Gordon?