Gordon Brown called Alistair Darling into his office one day & said,
'Alistair, I have a great idea! We are going to go all out to win back
Middle England ..'
'Good idea PM, how will we go about it?' said Darling.'
'Well' said Brown 'we'll get ourselves two of those long Barbour
coats, some proper wellies, a stick & a flat cap, oh & a Labrador. Then
we'll really look the part. We'll go to a nice old country pub, in Much
Something or other, & we'll show we really enjoy the countryside,
........ Oh & remember not to mention the Hunting with Dogs Act'
'Right PM' said Darling.
So a few days later, all kitted out & with the requisite Labrador at
heel, they set off from London . Eventually they arrived at just the
place they were looking for & found a lovely country pub &, with the
dog, went in & up to the bar.
'Good evening Landlord, two pints of you best ale, from the wood
please' said Brown.
'Good evening Prime Minister' said the landlord, 'two pints of best it
is, coming up'
Brown & Darling stood leaning on the bar contemplating new taxes,
nodding now & again to those who came in for a drink, whilst the dog
lay quietly at their feet. As they drank their beer they chatted about
how heart-rending it was that pensioners were being imprisoned for not
paying the council tax.
All of a sudden, the door from the adjacent bar opened & in came a
grizzled old shepherd, complete with crook. He walked up to the
Labrador lifted its tail & looked underneath, shrugged his shoulders &
walked back to the other bar.
A few moments later in came a wizened farmer who followed the same
procedure. To the bewilderment of Brown & Darling people of all ages &
gender followed suit over the next hour.
Eventually, unable to stand it any longer, Darling called the landlord
over. 'Tell me' said Darling, 'Why did all those people come in & look
under the dog's tail like that? Is it an old Custom?
'Good Lord no,' said the landlord. 'It's just that someone has told
them that there was a Labrador in this bar with two arseholes!!