Spin doctor to give view of next election

THE FORMER British government’s head of communications Alastair Campbell will be the guest of honour at this year’s Trim Swift Festival in Co Meath in July.

In his hugely influential role as spin doctor for the former prime minister Tony Blair, Mr Campbell was seen as a key architect of New Labour and its focus on communications.

He has also been a controversial figure. Mr Campbell's abrasive style is believed to have provided the inspiration for the foul-mouthed character Malcolm Tucker from the BBC series The Thick of Itand its spin-off film In the Loop.

There was also the hugely controversial dossier on Iraq’s military capabilities with which he had an involvement. A disputed claim that Saddam Hussein could launch weapons of mass destruction in 45 minutes led to a media furore. The scientist who leaked information critical of the role of the government in its preparation, David Kelly, later committed suicide, after his identity became known.

Mr Campbell is now a writer, commentator and strategist. He is expected to provide an insight into media, politics and how Ireland’s next general election will be won and lost.

The festival, which runs from July 1st to July 4th, celebrates various aspects of Dean Jonathan Swift's life. He lived in the town in the 1700s and wrote parts of Gulliver's Travelsand A Modest Proposalthere. Mr Campbell will be joined by a host of leading celebrity, political, media, academic and sports figures such as Nob Nation's Oliver Callan, George Hook, Irish Timeswriter John Waters, the Irish Independent'sBrendan Keenan, Ministers Noel Dempsey, Conor Lenihan and Dara Calleary, Deputy Leo Varadkar, Senator Dan Boyle, Ibec director general Danny McCoy and ex-Meath football manager Seán Boylan.

The academic strand of the festival features a symposium of six leading internationally recognised academics. Each speaker will present a paper on their research into Swift and 18th century literature.