Ed Miliband bacon sandwich photograph facts for kids
In 2014 and 2015, a photograph of Ed Miliband, who was then the leader of the Labour Party, eating a bacon sandwich became very well known. It was talked about a lot and turned into a popular internet meme. The picture was taken for the London Evening Standard newspaper in May 2014, when Miliband was campaigning for local elections. Many people thought the image made Miliband look a bit awkward.
The photo led to many internet memes. Some of these memes supported him, while others made fun of him. It also made people discuss how much politicians try to control their public image. Miliband himself said the whole discussion was not important. Other people, even some who disagreed with him, felt that the media's focus on the photo was unfair. The picture even appeared on the front page of The Sun newspaper, which was the UK's most widely read newspaper at the time. This happened the day before the 2015 general election.
The Famous Photo
The picture was taken on May 21, 2014, by a photographer named Jeremy Selwyn. He worked for the Evening Standard newspaper in London. The photo was taken during the first stop of Miliband's two-day campaign tour. He was campaigning for local and European elections. Miliband arrived at New Covent Garden Market at 6:30 AM to talk about his plans for small businesses. After that, he visited a café and ate the sandwich.
The Standard newspaper published the photos in a group of 13 pictures. They called it "Ed Miliband's Bacon Sandwich." A story by political editor Joe Murphy went with the pictures. The story was titled "Ed Miliband's battle with a bacon sandwich as he buys flowers for his wife at London market." Murphy wrote that Miliband's struggle to eat the "greasy treat" worried his media team. They tried to stop photographers from taking close-up pictures. After a few bites, Miliband seemed to give up, and the sandwich was given to Lord Wood, a senior member of his team.
In December 2014, Jeremy Selwyn defended his photos. He said it was not a planned shot. He also said that all politicians are "fair game" for photographers, even though their press officers try to control what pictures are taken.
Why It Became a Meme
A meme is an image, video, or piece of text that is copied and spread rapidly by internet users, often with slight variations. According to The Daily Mirror newspaper, the photo of Miliband "struggling" to eat the sandwich quickly led to people making fun of it. They said it made him "look a fool." In the week that followed, it became a popular internet meme. People online used the picture and put it into famous scenes from history and popular culture. Examples included the Last Supper and a scene from the movie When Harry Met Sally.... They often used the hashtag #EdEats.
The Daily Telegraph newspaper published some of these funny versions. They said that Miliband had tried to look like a normal person, but it didn't work out. They believed his awkward expression was what made people create all the funny pictures.
What Others Said About It
On May 29, 2014, Nick Clegg, who was the Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the Liberal Democrat party, was asked to eat a bacon sandwich live on the radio. He was on the LBC radio show with host Nick Ferrari. Clegg said he felt for Miliband. He explained that he didn't think anyone looks very graceful while eating. He joked that if someone took thousands of pictures of him eating, they could probably find an unflattering one too.
The Independent newspaper wrote on May 21, 2014, that Miliband had a simple task, but he still struggled to look normal. They said this happened even though his team had carefully planned everything. They linked this to other mistakes he had made in recent interviews.
