One moment during that Gove encounter with Faisal Islam on Sky hit a fascinating new note. How much will the post-Brexit pound fall, asked Faisal. I know one commentator, at least, who isn’t worried about that, countered Gove. He says the pound goes up and down, but Britain is a “strong country” which can cope with that OK. And the name of that commentator? Well … “it’s you, Faisal”. That’s what you were saying to David Cameron only yesterday. Don’t you even believe yourself? Cue mild applause.
Faisal wasn’t stopped in his tracks. He was still on blunderbuss duty. But Gove had slyly slowed him down, and maybe lit a fuse under the whole Humphrys Memorial School of Interviewing, in which (here they come again!) the twin gods Fairness and Balance dictate that every questioner must transmute into the incredible political Hulk.
Think of Nick Robinson waxing super-indignant with William Hague last week. You know he’s only acting. You know he probably doesn’t believe a word of what he’s saying, snarls and all, and will turn turtle the moment a different interviewee arrives. Think of – and feel for – the often brilliant Andrew Neil, condemned to try to rough up George Osborne or Nigel Farage in 30 primetime minutes of garbled statistics and harrumphing on BBC1.
Much heat, nil light. Professional TV interviewers are instructed to stage a synthetic punch-up; we’ll reach for the remote if there’s no splutter or din. The menu du jour is F and B once more: bore-bore as well as war-war.
