In one of the more bizarre things to happen on our tellies in the lead up to the General Election; get ready for Educating Joey Essex: General Election, What Are You Saying?, the show in which Joey Essex of The Only Way Is Essex fame heads off to meet Ed Miliband, Nick Clegg and Nigel Farage from erm, parliamentary fame to find out exactly what all this politics nonsense is about.
We met up with Joey last week to find out how filming went and, TBF, he was fully open about the fact that, before the show, he’d known nothing and now, even though he wasn’t politics mad, he at least knew how to vote, who the main parties were and what they stood for. Even better, he’s encouraged a whole bunch of his friends to vote and, he’s hoping that the show will help other young viewers to realise why voting is so important.
Here's the man himself opening up about his day date with Nigel Farage, what exactly ‘hicking’ is (fracking, it turns out) and why the party leaders need to stop ‘mugging each other off’.
Hello Joey Essex!
Hello!
What did you get up to while you were filming the show?
I met up with all the Prime Ministers. I keep calling them Prime Ministers but they’re not are they? They are MPs. I don’t really get it still. I met Ed Miliband, I met Nick Clegg, I met Nigel Farage. Sadly I didn’t get to meet David Cameron but he’s a busy guy. He’s the Prime Minister of the country. Got to respect that.
That’s still pretty impressive though
It was amazing, I’ll never get to do that again. I’m friendly with them, sometimes I’ll see them out and that but it’s different to sit down interview them – it’s not an easy thing. I spoke to so many high up journalists that were intrigued by the fact that I got an interview with them when they’ve been in the industry for 20 years and they’ve never been allowed to step foot near any of them.
Why did you want to learn about politics?
I didn’t know anything. I was completely oblivious. I didn’t even really know who the Prime Minister was a few months ago and now I can probably name every single party, what they do in the party, every leader, the colours… well some colours. The ones I can remember. I know the basics of it and I know how to vote now so I can do it now for the rest of my life.
I went to Grimsby with Nigel Farage which was the strangest day of my life. Just sitting in a boat with Nigel. Then we went to get fish and chips.
Also, you’re encouraging other young people to vote?
That’s the aim really! Just to try and show the youth that it’s easy and that every vote counts. If people start moaning about stuff but they haven’t voted then you haven’t really got a say have you?
Did you manage to get into 10 Downing Street?
I was very lucky to get to the door because they wouldn’t let me for at least an hour. We were across the road and it was upsetting because people over the road were just walking in.
So they were really strict?
Really strict. I was really surprised. I had to use an Oliver Twist line; I went over and was like (baby voice) ‘Excuse me sir… all I want to do is have one picture next to the number ten sign, please sir!’ And he was like ‘Go on then be quick, walk over there slowly’ and I was like ‘No I’ll run!’and he was like ‘DON’T RUN’. You’re not allowed to run. It was really strict.
What was the most bonkers thing you saw?
I saw some thing called ‘hicking’ (PR whispers something) ‘fracking’ I mean! I don’t really know what it is? But it was pretty like mad. These people living in huts because they’re trying to tell people that they’re not allowed to dig for… What are they digging for? Like coal or something? Oil? (PR whispers something) yeah gas! So they’re ‘freckling’ or whatever… I kept saying it wrong throughout the show – I’m never going to get it right but yes that was pretty weird going there.
Erm cool. Go anywhere else cool?
I also went to Grimsby with Nigel Farage which was the strangest day of my life, just sitting in a boat with Nigel and then I was on BBC news with Nigel and he was calling me an ‘icon of youth’.
That’s very nice
It was nice! Then we went to some weird fish market building and then we went to get fish and chips together. I was pretty great day.
Like a date day with Nigel!
It was a like a little date day with Nigel Farage. He’s nice but they’re all nice people. I wouldn’t say any of them are nicer than they others.
I didn’t get to meet David Cameron but he’s a busy guy. He’s the Prime Minister of the country. Got to respect that.
So do you reckon you’ll ever run for politics?
I don’t’ want to go grey yet! It’ll stress me out. Even talking about it in interviews is so hard because I still don’t know that much about it. I don’t think I’d ever become an MP but I mean in the future why not? I’ll look into it more when I’m older.
So what do you think the current lot need to do to get younger people interested in politics?
I think they should all respect each other because there’s no need to keep mugging each other off all the time.
What about their dress sense?
You can’t mug off their dress sense. All their dress sense is is completely basic. If they wanted you could dress up a bit like me but then they’ll probably be hated.
How come?
Sometimes I wear loud stuff and people go ‘oh look he’s wearing this’, next minute everyone’s wearing it anyways. I think the whole going out eating bacon sandwiches and stroking lambs and all that… that’s a bit weird. I think they’re trying to hard to be like oh look at me I’m normal instead of just being normal and being themselves.
What would you do if you were Prime Minister?
I would say on the 28th July, which is my birthday, make it a kind of Christmas Day. It would be the biggest day of the year and everyone has a party and goes crazy. And you’d get free haircuts. It’d be sick.
Educating Joey Essex: General Election, What You Saying?! is on ITV 2, Tuesday at 9PM
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.