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Podcast: Today In History with The Retrospectors
Episode: Ed Milibandâs âBacon Sandwichâ Moment
Description: Labour leader Ed Miliband awkwardly ate a bacon sandwich at New Covent Garden Market on 21st May, 2014. Mid-bite, eyes squinting, lips oddly parted, and fingers clumsily gripping the sandwich - it was an instantly meme-able moment.
The British press pounced. The photo became a viral sensation, with endless edits, spoofs, and headlines suggesting Miliband wasnât âhuman enoughâ to relate to the average voter. It was a perfect storm of bad optics, class-coded food politics, and the relentless image-focused nature of modern campaigning. The idea that someone couldnât even eat a sandwich âproperlyâ became, biza...