The escort, sexual trainer, and anti-censorship campaigner will telling Sean about how she hopes to clean up the sordid world of British politics, and what issues will define her political campaign.
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If elected, Charlotte Rose will become the first sex worker to achieve political office in Westminster, but she’ll join the ranks of countless politicians who’ve had rather unorthodox careers before running for election. Here are five politicians from around the world whose past didn’t get in the way of politics...
- The Brazilian clown that became a congressman
Francisco Everado Oliviera Silve, better known by his stage name Tiririca, dropped out of school at the age of nine to join the local circus.
Making the transition from the ring to TV, Tiririca announced he’d be running for office after accepting an invitation from the Brazilian Republic Party in 2010. While critics accused him of being illiterate and running as a joke, Tiririca topped the poll and won a seat in the São Paulo state constituency.
[Wiki Commons]
- The wrestler who became a governor
Jesse Ventura, better known as The Body to millions of wrestling fans in the US, took part in the World Wrestling Federation circuit for more than a decade, before being forced to retire after developing blood clots.
In 1990, after growing frustrated with his local government, Ventura ran for mayor of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, knocking out the 18-year incumbent and winning the seat.
Eight years later, he ran and won the gubernatorial race for Minnesota, winning the governorship on a pro-choice, pro-gay rights and pro-gun ticket.
[Pixabay]
- The porn star who became an Italian MP
As a member of the Radical Party, Hungarian-born porn star Ilona Staller served as an MP for five years in the Italian parliament.
No shrinking violet, Staller’s political career was unorthodox; she became the first women to expose her breasts on live TV, and typically delivered her political rhetoric with one breast exposed. She also continued to perform in adult movies while in office. When her term ended in 1992, Cicciolina was not re-elected.
[Wiki Commons]
- The Oscar-winning actress who is still an MP
Glenda Jackson twice claimed the Best Actress prize at the Oscars (in 1969 and 1973), but gave up Hollywood to represent the people of Hampstead and Highgate for the Labour Party in 1992.
A long-time critic of Tony Blair’s leadership, her political career has been marked, perhaps unsurprisingly, by brilliant speech deliveries in the House of Commons – no big deal for a RADA-trained Oscar-winner.
[IMDb]
- The rock star who rocked Australian politics
At 6’4”, singer Peter Garrett’s music career as the front man of the band Midnight Oil saw him performing gigs while shining a light on the political issues of the 1970s – nuclear disarmament, environmental destruction, homelessness and the state of the aboriginal community.
He ran for office in 1984, under the ticket of the Nuclear Disarmament Party, losing out. He finally made it to the House of Representatives in Canberra 20 years later, as a member of the Labour Party.
[Pixabay]
- The circus founder who coined the phrase “there’s a sucker born every minute”
Whether PT Barnum was talking about the American voting public or the audience members of his beloved circus is unclear.
Barnum was a famous show producer, putting on minstrel and vaudeville acts, as well as displaying freak shows and human curiosities. He gave up his lucrative entertainment career to seek political office, and was elected to Connecticut’s state legislature.
He was a noted abolitionist, and supported the rights of African Americans, but grew disillusioned with politics claiming other elected officials treated him with contempt.
Out of office, at the age of 61, he helped form the Barnum & Bailey Circus, a world-famous institution still running today.
[Wiki Commons]
