At first sight, it looked like a PR disaster. Sir Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, was filmed falling off a paddleboard into Lake Windermere five times. He’s a middle-aged bloke with a paunch and no sense of balance. Politicians do all sorts of silly things by mistake – members of the public can ambush them too – but Sir Ed’s aquatic pratfall was deliberate. He’s done a number of similar things campaigning for July’s general election.
And guess what? It seems to be working. At a time when global politics is getting scarier by the day, Sir Ed comes across as a person who doesn’t take himself too seriously. Not everyone will agree, but he seems normal, relatable and authentic. More to the point, the slapstick doesn’t appear to have undermined the seriousness of what he has to say about the NHS or river pollution. If anything, having a sense of humour has helped him to cut through to the public.
Is there a message for the international wine business in Sir Ed’s antics? I think there is and I’ll get to it in a moment. But first an observation. Everyone in our trade would acknowledge that there’s too much wine in the world right now. They would also admit that making the stuff is the easy bit. Selling it is way, way harder.
One of my more depressing experiences at Prowein this year was walking through the echoing French hall each morning en route to the much
