As support withered for Prime Minister Liz Truss of Britain, so did the ball of lettuce.
Purchased at a Tesco grocery store for 60 pence (68 cents), the lettuce became a caricature of the Conservative leader’s flailing hold on power, pitted against the prime minister by The Daily Star, a left-leaning British tabloid.
“Will Liz Truss outlast this lettuce?” the newspaper asked in a live video that has been running since October 14, attracting scores of viewers and comments on social media.
The lettuce gag was inspired by The Economist, which noted on October 11 that between a near-immediate political implosion at the beginning of her tenure and the 10 days of mourning after Queen Elizabeth II passed away, her grip on power amounted to seven days, or “roughly the shelf-life of a lettuce.”
In the end, the lettuce emerged victorious after Ms. Truss resigned on Thursday. Someone flipped her photo face-down on the table, colorful lights swirled, and a recording of “God Save the King” played on repeat as nearly 20,000 people watched live.
“The lettuce outlasted Liz Truss,” the video declared. Minutes later, a remix of “Celebration” by Kool & the Gang set the mood.
To be compared directly to lettuce was one of many indicators that Ms. Truss has had a nightmare turn as Britain’s leader since the Conservative Party elevated her in September to replace Boris Johnson. Her proposed tax-cut plan so alarmed voters and the markets that she was forced to retrace her steps and fire her top ally, leaving many to wonder if she would be pushed out just weeks after she had started.
Source: The New York Times & The Daily Show