Twitter Bitch Fight – Hopkins v Dorries

It was a moment that made the reputation of Ian Hislop: when Neil Hamilton and Mohamed “you can call me Al” Fayed were locked in a legal scrap, he declared that he didn’t care who lost, and would rather it was both of them. Now we have an MP and pundit dust-up of which many will take a similar view: step forward professional motormouth Katie Hopkins and Tory MP (yes, it’s her again) Nadine Dorries.

Viewers may want to look away now

These so-called Twitter “Bitch Fights” are usually picked up on by the perpetually thirsty Paul Staines and his rabble at the Guido Fawkes blog. Not this time. Why should this be? Ah well. Staines’ tame gofer, the odious flannelled fool Henry Cole, is Nadine’s Little Helper. He would not want to offend one of the few real friends he has in this world. So the Fawkes folks have left well alone.

I want a word with yew!

So how did this one kick off? Unwisely, Ms Dorries had replied to a prompt from James “saviour of Western civilisation” Delingpole. Ms Hopkins was in like a shot: “Nadine never needed childcare because we pay for hers to be in her office”. There was a swiftly issued defence: “I employ my post grad daughter and ALWAYS will – but none of my children were in my office”.

This generated further adverse comment, with one Tweeter snarking “Means she can keep all that constituency stuff at bay while you get on with writing your books”. Nadine countered with “I have five staff, she is one of a team” and “I don’t claim any expenses” but did not look convincing.

And Katie never leaves it at just the one hack in the guts. So it proved, as back came the Hopkins Twitter feed for some afters. “The taxpayer pays for five staff for Nadine Dorries – including her daughter. It’s tough writing books and sitting in jungles you know” said someone who has also written stuff and sat in jungles.

Was that her final offer? No such good fortune for Ms Dorries, as back came Katie: “Nadine is a bit like my kids 9, 8, 5. They say they are going to bed but come back down fifteen times just to say something else irrelevant”. And I thought one of them was called India.

Sadly, it was not possible for both participants to lose, and on the day it does look as if Ms Hopkins has got the best of the encounter. And that is another reason for the fragrant Nadine’s pals at the Fawkes blog to steer clear from the scrap.

If only Katie Hopkins could make herself useful more often. We can but hope.