"Image" and how people perceive it

Gordon Brown's problem, at least in the mind of all the labour spin doctors, is his "Image". Tony Blair's problem, later in his premiership, was his "Image". John Major , Maggie Thatcher, James Callaghan all suffered at some point from their "Image".

The Bremner, Bird and Fortune Sketch last night with Rory Bremner as John Major really hit the mark. A Chancellor, taking over from the Prime Minister, someone of limited charisma taking over from someone suffering from charisma overload.

We have become as obsessed by personality in Politics as we are with celebrity. So where does the obsession come from? Primarily from the media, many of them follow public opinion, but exaggerate the condition dramatically. What I don't know is how much these opinions, espoused in papers like the Sun and Mirror, form the opinion of the readers, or whether the readers are already of the Political beliefs held by the papers. The Mirror has, in my time at least, always been staunchly socialist, the Sun has flip flopped to try to get the most influence for Murdoch. But does the headline "It was the Sun that won it" ring true? I think that the people of this country had, in all the big turning points in recent history, decided "enough is enough" and that we needed to give the other bunch a try.

Callaghan was brought down by "The Winter of Discontent", Major by "Black Wednesday", will it just be his personality that brings down Brown? Or will it be that once again, the British People will want a change, almost for changes sake?