Bobby Sands leaves Benn in tears
Tony Benn broke down in tears at the Edinburgh Book Festival as he recalled the late Bobby Sands, the republican MP who died while on hunger strike in the Maze prison, Belfast, in 1981. “Our revenge, Bobby Sands said, will be the laughter of our children,” he said, as tears began to stream down his cheeks. “I’m sorry, but it moves me greatly”.
He also warned his daughter Melissa, sitting in the audience, that she will not thank him when he dies for leaving her to deal with his vast personal archive, which includes leaflets he posted through letterboxes during the 1935 general election. He recalled his grandmother’s words as she approached the end of her life: “The great thing about your last journey is that you don’t have to pack”.
A mixture of law, politics, autobiography and humour. Once described as "The Devilish Advocate" (Guardian), I do have the ability to provoke a response. Sometimes it comes from someone who uses a thought process, and sometimes from jerks usually associated with the knee.
4 comments:
Is there a terrorist or tyrant Benn won't cry for?
anonymous.... Thatcher?
The man has a heart, which is more than can be said for the happy smiling McCanns displaying merchanize whilst, they said, the child on the tee shirt was in the hands of an abductor.
A sickening spectacle .....
Tony Benn is a giant of a human being and a politician. His ability to talk straight sense on any issue never ceases to amaze me. The greatest Prime Minister we never had.
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