#snapapolitician lol pic.twitter.com/LVbpK3jzya
— Becky Smith (@bixsmith) May 8, 2014
David Cameron was spotted tucking into half a chicken, chips, coleslaw and red wine in a Nando's restaurant in Bristol on Thursday, but still managed to fit in a quick selfie with fellow diner Becky Smith.
Politicians, pictures and social media don't always work well. David Cameron was mocked for a picture of himself he posted on Twitter looking serious while talking to Barack Obama on the telephone. George Osborne's picture of himself eating an expensive burger while working on the last spending review didn't go down too well either. And eyebrows were raised when Cameron posed with Obama and Danish prime minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt for a selfie at the Nelson Mandela memorial service in South Africa last year.
Yet they just can't seem to resist a quick selfie with a member of the public. Last week, while visiting the aftermath of the tornado in Arkansas, volunteer relief worker Casey Williams managed to snap this selfie with Barack Obama.
16 yo Casey Williams who President Obama talked about in his speech! She helped organize relief efforts #ObamaAR pic.twitter.com/skn3rai3pa
— Shelley Orman (@local24shelley) May 7, 2014
And Guardian journalists jumped at the opportunity to take selfies with Labour leader Ed Miliband when he visited the London offices last month.
You owe me a coffee @sirajdatoo pic.twitter.com/D6C0ZJnXtK
— Elena Cresci (@elenacresci) April 3, 2014
But selfies aren't without their risks. During a shot with London mayor Boris Johnson last month, Buddhist monk Lelung Rinpoche lost a 900-page history of Buddhism that he had collated from around the world. Distracted, Rinpoche left his laptop containing the work on the Metropolitan line train from Uxbridge. He recovered his bag, but not the laptop and is offering a £500 reward for its safe return.
Have you ever taken a selfie with a politician? Share your images via GuardianWitness, or tweet me @carmenfishwick and we'll add the best to a gallery on the site.
