A Right Charlie

‘NORMALLY it takes months, years and sometimes even several lifetimes before the Government can witness the results of a policy shift.

”What’s up, doc?”

However, Education Secretary Charles Clarke got to see the fruits of his labours on the very day that he announced that primary school should be less work and more fun.

Two pupils at Rotherfield Primary School in Islington, took the opportunity of a ministerial photo-call (called to announce the scrapping of SATs for primary schools) to stick their fingers up behind jug-eared Clarke’s head and give him a pair of bunny ears.

The Telegraph, which splashes the resulting picture on its front page, says eight-year-old Joshua James was first to make his mark, followed by 10-year-old Ryan Hassan.

The Times is also quick to applaud the prank, which it says was ”continuing a tradition dating back to Mr Clarke’s own school days”.

But, according to the Independent, the Department Of Education didn’t see the funny side, trying to persuade papers not to publish the picture, supposedly because it might get the pupil in trouble.

As it was, the boys got away with it, with their teacher blaming a photographer for egging them on.

”We are a bit annoyed by it,” the teacher tells the Telegraph. ”In the light of that, we haven’t given the boys a ticking-off.”

We should think not. Wedgies and dead arms all round.

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Posted: 21st, May 2003 | In: Broadsheets Comment | TrackBack | Permalink