Soprano hits right note for Blair faithful
(25.5.01)
The
Times
BY JAMES LANDALE
TONY BLAIR was joined last night by the teenage soprano Charlotte Church and Mo Mowlam to celebrate Labour’s biggest party rally in the election campaign in Bristol.
In front of more than 600 cheering party members, the Prime Minister delivered an unscripted and passionate defence of new Labour’s ethos and a call to arms against voter apathy. The Prime Minister — in his shirtsleeves — also stepped up his efforts to focus the campaign on the state of schools and hospitals rather than Europe and tax.
Labour faithful at the British Empire Commonwealth Museum roared their support for Miss Church, the 15-year-old singer, as she performed Summertime and Dream A Dream, the title track of her third album.
The young woman, who has sung for two American presidents and one Pope, took in her stride the less onerous task of performing for a mere Prime Minister. Although Miss Church is unable to vote, her mother, Maria, 36, said she was there to continue her family’s longstanding support for the Labour Party.
“We are staunch Labour supporters and always have been. Although Charlotte is not old enough to vote, she is delighted to be able to sing,” she said. Miss Church herself said she had met Mr Blair before and thought he was “a nice man”. Master of Ceremonies for the event was Tony Head, the actor best known as one half of the first Gold Blend coffee couple, and more recently as Giles in the television drama Buffy The Vampire Slayer.
Ms Mowlam, the Cabinet Office Minister, who is always a favourite among the party faithful, was cheered as she introduced Shellina Brown, who found work through the Government’s New Deal programme. She described how she got an NVQ qualification and now has a permanent job as a clerical officer with Gloucester City Council.
This was the second of what is expected to be a series of four rallies held by Labour during the campaign. During the last election, Labour refused to call them rallies and instead referred to them as “party events” in a desperate attempt to avoid comparisons with the ill-fated, triumphalist Sheffield Rally in 1992, which many MPs believe cost the party the election. But Labour has since relaxed — a bit — and uses the word rally to describe what is an odd mix between entertainment and politics.
One significant difference is that Labour is at this election for the first time handing out plastic Union Flags — as well as party ones — for the audience to wave. Although some traditional Labour members bristle at waving what for them has always been a symbol of the far Right, Millbank officials are keen for the party to be seen to have recaptured this totem of patriotism.
Mr Blair last week used the first rally in Manchester to launch a direct appeal to One Nation Tories to come over to Labour.
The rallies are attended exclusively by party members from the region. For many, it is a welcome break from campaigning and a rare chance to see the Prime Minister in the flesh.
Mr Blair does not use them to deliver important speeches. Instead, he tends to give less scripted, more off-the-cuff personal addresses in defence of new Labour and critical of the Tories. He also tries out his jokes.
The jokes from Blair’s speech:
Labour’s policies on hereditary peers: “A lot gone, a lot more to go.”
The Lib Dems’ proposals to fund their spending plans with 1p on the basic rate of income tax: “The longest pee in history.”
The election: “Mick Hucknall does not want William Hague in 10 Downing Street. Alex Ferguson does not want William Hague in 10 Downing Street. Sir John Mills does not want William Hague in 10 Downing Street and even Michael Portillo does not want William Hague in 10 Downing Street.”
Charlotte sings for PM
(24.5.01)
BBCNews
Charlotte Church sang for the prime minister
Teenage soprano Charlotte Church has become the latest celebrity to pledge her support for prime minister Tony Blair.
At 15, the Cardiff schoolgirl is still too young to vote but she sang for Blair at an election rally in Bristol on Thursday night.
She was the latest in a line of celebrities including pop singer Gerri Halliwell ,actress Michelle Collins and Sir Alex Ferguson to lend her support for Labour in the fight for the 7 June poll.
And for the girl who has had a meteoric rise to fame and fortune after singing on a TV talent contest it was the latest in her line of famous audiences.
Church has already sung for former US President Bill Clinton and Pope John Paul.
She delighted the crowd of Labour supporters and party activists.
Dressed in a white suit on stage, Church begun her performance off with "Dream a dream" and followed up with a cover of "Summertime", warming up the audience before a sleevless Blair took to the stage.
The prime minister then urged his audience of Labour supporters and activists not to be complacent in the face of soaring opinion poll ratings for Labour.
"We will be the first Labour government to win a second term," he said.
"And we will do it not for ourselves, but for the British people we serve."
Mr Blair has come under heavy fire during the campaign for distancing himself from "real" grown-up voters with issues to ask him about.
Instead its claimed he has been trying to cultivate a young, cool image by mixing with pop, soccer and television soap stars.
However, earlier on Thursday, police herded a group of farmers protesting at Labour's policies for the countryside out of the grounds of a college the prime minister was visiting, forcing them to stand behind a fence as the PM's car swept past.
And he also came face to face with student Andrew Chaplin, angry over tuition fees and student debt, during a visit to the University of Glamorgan at Pontypridd in south Wales.
Charlotte Church sings for PM
(24.5.01)
ANAOVA
Charlotte Church has been performing for the Prime Minister at a pre-election rally for Labour supporters.
Miss Church sang two songs, Dream A Dream and the Gershwin classic Summertime, after Mr Blair addressed the 600-strong rally in Bristol.
Dressed in a white suit, she was warmly applauded by delegates at the British Empire and Commonwealth Museum, a former railway station built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel.
Introducing Miss Church, former secretary of state for Northern Ireland Mo Mowlam said: "She's sung for the Pope, she's sung for Prince Charles, she's sung for Bill Clinton, and now she's singing for us."
Mr Blair entered the rally to a standing ovation after narrowly missing about 40 demonstrators who waved placards outside.
He praised Ms Mowlam, saying: "We will have many difficult times ahead in the peace process in Northern Ireland but I have got no doubt about two things.
"The first is that the Northern Ireland peace process offers the only real chance of a stable future in Northern Ireland.
"The second is that we would never have had that process started if it was not for the courage and the determination of Mo Mowlam."
Ms Mowlam received a standing ovation herself as she walked on to the stage in the museum and described Mr Blair as the hardest working member of the Cabinet.
She urged the assembled party workers to continue the campaign with enthusiasm as turn-out would be crucial in the election.
Labour go to Church
(23.5.01)
WorldPop
Teenage opera star Charlotte Church has become the latest celebrity to join Labour's election bandwagon even though at 15 she can't vote.
Charlotte will sing two songs in front of Prime Minister Tony Blair and Cabinet Minister Mo Mowlam tomorrow in Bristol. Charlotte's mum, Maria, 36, said: 'We are staunch Labour supporters and always have been. Although Charlotte is not old enough to vote she is delighted to be able to sing tomorrow.'
Charlotte has already met and sung for the Pope, Prince Charles and Bill Clinton. This year
Charlotte became the youngest British singer to reach the US Top 10 with her third album, Dream A Dream.
Last week Geri Halliwell appeared in Labour's Election TV broadcast and yesterday Travis told worldpop they thought David Bowie would make a good Prime Minister!
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