Diane Abbott has divulged some inner details of her relationship with former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn – including one hilarious occasion when he surprised her with an unusual date.
The Hackney North and Stoke Newington MP explained she briefly moved in with Jeremy during the 1970s. They had struck up a relationship; although it didn’t last too long, she admitted.
Diane suggested that Jeremy was more focussed on his career than his girlfriend at the time, and it even led to a bizarre outing to a cemetery.
“We were boyfriend and girlfriend momentarily,” said Diane. “Jeremy is a great person, but his life is 99% politics, and I think I wasn’t prepared to be the 1%.”
Diane said she wanted to be more adventurous with Jeremy during their relationship as they often spent the night in, instead of hitting the town. In response, Jeremy decided to plan a romantic date to Highgate Cemetery, so they could visit Karl Marx’s grave.
She told ITV: “I remember we were together and I even moved in with him for some time. But, I started to whine and complain that we never went out anywhere. So Jeremy, he’s a very kind person and he thought about it.
“Then one day he said ‘we’re going out’, and I thought ‘wow’. I got dressed and we got in the car, and he drove and I thought ‘Oh, maybe we’re going to go to a nice wine bar’. Actually, he took me to Highgate Cemetery and showed me the tomb of Karl Marx. That was his idea of an outing.”
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Even though their romantic relationship never lasted, Diane has always been a close friend and ally of the former Labour leader. She was one of the 36 Labour MPs to nominate Jeremy for the leadership back in 2015, after Ed Miliband’s defeat to David Cameron.
When Corbyn took over, she was later promoted to several key roles in the Shadow Cabinet, including Shadow Health Secretary, and then even Shadow Home Secretary.
Diane was elected in her Hackney North and Stoke Newington seat for the 10th election in a row, and has gained the title of Mother of the House. When Parliament officially reopened after the election, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer spoke incredibly highly of Diane, and praised her for her new role.