The ITV debate was always a threat to Boris Johson and an opportunity for Jeremy Corbyn.
With Labour trailing in the polls, Corbyn was the candidate for Prime Minister who desperately needed a boost.
The live TV setting gave the Labour leader the chance to bypass the print media he dislikes so much and communicate directly to voters.
Corbyn probably shaded - Johnson’s flippant nature shone through - but not in a way that will seriously alter the polls.
He performed better than expected on Brexit - his weak point - but struggled when Johnson taunted him on his nuanced position on IndyRef2.
Corbyn was at his best when accusing Johnson of wanting to sell off the NHS and comfortable when criticising austerity.
His words of rebuke for Prince Andrew’s also stood in contrast to the weasel words of Johnson, who fell back on instinctive support for the royal family.
But the gains were marginal and both of these flawed men looked uncomfortable when quizzed on trust and personal integrity. Johnson shuffled uncomfortably at this point and Corbyn’s shocking handling of the anti-semitism row in his own party was inevitably raised.
The strange format did not help. Julie Etchingham struggled to keep the peace and the time allocated to vital subjects of importance seemed unsatisfactory.
The winners may have been Nicola Sturgeon and Jo Swinson, who were excluded from the debate.
A Johnson versus Corbyn showdown reflects our broken politics and voters were reminded that other options exist.
