Otto English’s In Absurdia

A Lord’s Purpose

When Baroness Mone gave her maiden speech in the House of Lords on 7 March 2016, it must have felt like all the years of networking had finally paid off.

Her journey from a deprived Glaswegian childhood, to celebrity bra magnate, and then government business tsar read like a tale worthy of Barbara Taylor Bradford. There she was, standing before the great and the good, using her platform to put the spotlight on female entrepreneurs – and specifically the one previously known as Michelle Mone.

She urged peers to “think big, just like Graham Bell did”, then quoted a large chunk of the Whitney Houston hit ‘The Greatest Love of All’, before promising to play “a full and active role in your lordships’ house”.

It wasn’t to be.