Two of Labour’s largest figures once dated each other – and after decades of speculation, one of the pair has revealed the rather odd reason they decided to part ways.
Diane Abbott and Jeremy Corbyn briefly dated in the late 1970s, and Corbyn reportedly ‘drew Abbott in’ and ‘infected her’ with his love for the political party.
Speaking to the Guardian, she recalled some of the time the couple spent together in 1979 on a camping holiday in the South of France.
Abbott said: ‘We travelled by motorbike and, Jeremy being Jeremy, it was a socialist motorbike, an East German model. It broke down regularly on our trip south, which I found rather irritating, but lovingly repairing his motorbike by the side of the road was Jeremy’s happy place.’
She also recalled her ‘horror’ when he unpacked the saddlebag to reveal instant macaroni and other processed foods for the trip – which she argued against.
After spending Christmas with the Corbyns, Abbott said she began to realise they may not be a good match.
She added: ‘We were too different. I had a range of interests and enjoyed reading and the theatre, but Jeremy was 99% absorbed in party politics. The only other thing I remember him spending time on was growing vegetables in his back garden.
‘Once, after I lamented our lack of social activity as a couple, he pondered it for a few days and told me we were going out. Feeling excited, I dressed up nicely and we bundled into the car. I had no idea where we were going – perhaps a nice wine bar?
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‘It turned out Jeremy’s idea of a social outing was to drive me to Highgate cemetery and proudly show me the tomb of Karl Marx.’
The trip to Karl Marx’s grave turned out to be one of the final nails in the coffin for their partnership, which ended amicably.
‘There were no regrets for either of us: for me, meeting Jeremy in 1978 had steered my political life in a new direction, and for that I was grateful,’ she said.
Back in 2015 in The Times, questions were raised about Jezza’s ability to intervene in disputes concerning Ms Abbott because of their previous relationship.
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