This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-29163450
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Clacton: Bread's Giles Watling to stand for Conservatives | Clacton: Bread's Giles Watling to stand for Conservatives |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| An actor best-known for sitcom Bread has been chosen as the Conservative candidate in the Clacton by-election. | An actor best-known for sitcom Bread has been chosen as the Conservative candidate in the Clacton by-election. |
| Giles Watling, who played Oswald in the 1980s show and is now a Tory councillor, was selected at an open primary in the constituency. | Giles Watling, who played Oswald in the 1980s show and is now a Tory councillor, was selected at an open primary in the constituency. |
| He was chosen ahead of fellow local councillor Sue Lissimore following a hustings at Clacton town hall. | He was chosen ahead of fellow local councillor Sue Lissimore following a hustings at Clacton town hall. |
| The by-election was triggered by the defection of sitting Tory MP Douglas Carswell, who will now stand for UKIP. | The by-election was triggered by the defection of sitting Tory MP Douglas Carswell, who will now stand for UKIP. |
| The vote will be held on 9 October. | The vote will be held on 9 October. |
| The open primary allowed anyone from Clacton, no matter which party they supported, to take part in the selection. | The open primary allowed anyone from Clacton, no matter which party they supported, to take part in the selection. |
| After his selection, Mr Watling was asked by BBC political correspondent Robin Brant whether an actor could be trusted to serve as an MP. | |
| "'Of course', he responded, adding that actors have "been around for thousands of years." | |
| Conservative Chief Whip Michael Gove was among 30 MPs from the party campaigning in Clacton on Thursday. | |
| Mr Watling became a well-known face because of his role in Bread - a BBC One TV series during the late 1980s and early 1990s about the working class Roman Catholic Boswell family in Liverpool. | |
| He played the character Oswald, a vicar who romanced and eventually married the only Boswell daughter, Aveline. He appeared in a total of 49 episodes and the 1988 edition which saw the couple get married was watched by 21 million viewers. | |
| Other TV credits include roles in How's Your Father?, Grange Hill and 'Allo 'Allo. |