From Sunak’s Sky saga to a Labour MP’s rap: 6 funniest election and pop culture crossovers so far

Politicians are dropping in pop culture references and even rewriting song lyrics to win votes... to varying levels of success

Thursday 13 June 2024 11:55 EDT

Dawn Butler raps in campaign video to mark 21 days until general election

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

The battle for No 10 is well underway, as politicians trawl up and down the country to secure votes in the forthcoming general election.

In their attempts to appeal to voters in the run-up to 4 July, hopeful MPs are doing all they can to endear themselves to the public, with varying success.

(You can follow The Independent’s coverage of the general election here.)

From candid admissions in televised interviews and remixes of UK Garage hits, to strutting down a runway on breakfast TV, this round of campaigning has resulted in some bizarre moments.

Here are some of the standout politics and pop culture collisions we’ve seen so far...

Dawn Butler’s So Solid shoutout

To mark 21 days until the election, Dawn Butler released a campaign video showing her performing a parody of “21 Seconds”.

In the clip, released on Thursday 13 June, Labour’s candidate for Brent East sing-raps to So Solid Crew’s 2001 hit as she mocks Tory leader Rishi Sunak and his party.

“Don’t let a liar run the show / If you like me let me know, let me out the shadow / Got 21 days before they gotta go,” Butler raps over the garage beat.

Dawn Butler raps in the style of 21 Seconds by So Solid Crew (X / Dawn Butler)

Model behaviour from Ed Davey

On Thursday 13 June’s edition of ITV’s This Morning, Sir Ed Davey had a go at modelling as he walked the catwalk during the fashion segment of the magazine programme.

Wearing a cream blazer, a light blue striped shirt and dark chinos, the Liberal Democrat leader strutted down the runway, much to the amusement of hosts Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard.

Ed Davey on This Morning (ITV / screengrab)

David Cameron’s bicycle equation

Speaking of This Morning, David Cameron recalled one of the programme’s most beloved moments during an interview with Sky News’s Kay Burley on Thursday 13 June. After being asked what he’d do if the Conservatives lost the election, Cameron dismissed the hypothetical question and shot back: “If my mother had wheels, she’d be a bicycle.”

The former PM was seemingly referring to a phrase uttered by celebrity chef Gino D’Acampo during a cooking segment on This Morning in 2010. After then-host Holly Willoughby suggested that his meal would be like a carbonara if it had some ham, the unimpressed D’Acampo replied: “If my grandmother had wheels, she would have been a bike.”

Rishi Sunak’s Sky slip-up

The prime minister and leader of the Conservative Party was asked on Wednesday 12 June what he did to remain in touch with the struggles of the general public despite being “wealthier than the King”.

After protesting that there are “lots of things” his family had to sacrifice when he was a child, Sunak then declared: “Famously, Sky TV. That was something that we never had growing up, actually.”

Sadly, Sunak’s mention of the premium TV service was mocked by many across social media and beyond. Yet, one social media user commiserated with him for not having access to the Sky TV game “Beehive Bedlam” in his youth, writing on X: “To hear that Rishi Sunak didn’t have Sky TV and therefore never played ‘Beehive Bedlam’, meaning he never had to learn the lesson of storing flowers to help the bees make honey for winter, all makes sense. Makes you think really.”

Rishi Sunak discusses not having Sky TV as a child (ITV News / screengrab)

A Corrie-worthy showdown

For one X user, the debate between Tory candidate Penny Mordaunt and Labour’s Angela Rayner was something that could be likened to another fictional match of wits: Bet Lynch (Julie Goodyear) and Rita Tanner (Barbara Knox) on Coronation Street.

A splash landing

Racking up his numbers on the bizarre moments list, Ed Davey also took several dips into the water at a Warwickshire aqua park on Wednesday 12 June, causing some social media users to compare his excursion to an episode of the BBC adventure series Total Wipeout.