The Londoner: Now Clive of India is a monumental problem

In today's Diary: Clive of India statue should go, say Lord and campaigner / Michaela Coel on the empathy required when speaking out / Len Goodman and Bruno Tonioli's partnership / Dawn Butler takes on Priti Patel
Frozen in time: Robert Clive
Bloomberg via Getty Images
9 June 2020

The row about statues is coming to Whitehall, with leading figures calling for the removal of Clive of India from outside the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, “Robert Clive is just as bad as Edward Colston,” Lord Adonis tells us, while writer Afua Hirsch says: “He is not “of India”, he plundered it.”

Clive was an 18th-century soldier who laid the foundations for the later British Raj, though he himself worked for the East India Company. A statue of him was erected by in 1916.

Adonis has asked the Government to start a public consultation on the statue, warning that “public anger will focus on that next”. Branding Clive “the most rapacious and murderous of the Indian imperialists,” Adonis added that his behaviour was “mind-boggling even by the standards of Indian imperial rulers”.

Hirsch said Clive was “a symbol of the most morally bankrupt excesses of Empire,” continuing, “his statue is not a piece of history but an attempt — when it was erected centuries after his death — to rewrite it.” However, recent Tory adviser and commentator Tim Montgomerie told us: “I’m reluctant to judge people from history by our own time. I’m wary of taking down statues and where it leads to.”

---

Reflection: Michaela Coel (Photo: David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images for Hearst Magazines)
Dave Benett/Getty Images for Hea

Michaela Coel, star and writer of new BBC series I May Destroy You, says tackling discrimination requires speaking up but also empathy. Coel told Screen Daily: “To change the narrative you need to understand where the other person is coming from. I have to call out racism while thinking: ‘Can I also be racist? What might make someone end up like that?’” Wise words.

---

LEN GOODMAN recalls “the good old days” when he and fellow Strictly Come Dancing judge Bruno Tonioli lived in the same block. “He couldn’t iron. I like ironing,” Goodman tells Paul McKenna’s podcast. “I used to go up to his apartment and while he was cooking something or other I’d iron all his shirts.” Men behaving rather nicely.

SW1A

Rebuke: Dawn Butler (Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
Getty Images

LABOUR’S Dawn Butler attacked Priti Patel’s apology to Windrush victims as “crocodile words”. She tweeted: “Why haven’t you implemented the lessons learnt review?” Only 60 people have received compensation.

---

Lib Dem Wera Hobhouse, a party leadership contender, says: “We need to work with other centre-left parties to build a winning, progressive alliance at the next election.” Anything to do with the tanking polls?

Bubbly Laura and Ainsley support their pet causes

Happy times: Ainsley Harriott and Bobby (Photo: Ainsley Harriott/Guide Dogs/PA Wire)

Laura Whitmore tucked into a bottle of bubbly as she celebrated her boyfriend cooking her dinner, wearing a jumper to support a Covid charity. Meanwhile Ainsley Harriott and his handsome pet Bobby took part in a virtual dog show to support Guide Dogs. The chef said: “I know I’m finding lockdown hard enough, but for people with sight loss, social isolation can happen every day.” And pop star Lizzo proved she’s still got the juice, showing off a new dance she’s been learning.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in