Ukip have chosen an actual Gammon as London mayor candidate

Dr Peter Gammons hopes to take the London Mayoralty (Picture: UKIP)

UKIP has announced that its Mayor of London candidate is called Dr Gammons – and attracted widespread mockery on social media. 

The pro-Brexit party say Dr Peter Gammons is ‘an internationally respected motivational speaker and an award-winning and best-selling author’.

But unfortunately for the politician — who will attempt to replace Labour’s Sadiq Khan in next May’s delayed election — his surname is also an insult aimed at angry, middle-aged, right-wing men. 

Urban Dictionary defines the word Gammon as a ‘Collective noun for white, middle-aged, furious-faced men who are heavily concentrated in the vast reaches of England’s Brexit heartlands.’ It adds that ‘spitting out talking points found in fascist organs like the… Daily Express, gammons exist in a state of perpetual outrage and exasperated “I’m just an ordinary bloke, me” confusion.’

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A website that appears to be linked to Dr Gammons suggest that he has healed people of various ailments, including cancer, through prayer.

Question marks have also been raised about his PhD, which he says comes from Canon University in Florida – an institution not governed by the US Department of Education. 

But this weekend, UKIP – which has been struggling for support in recent years, particularly after its former leader, Nigel Farage, founded the Brexit Party – rubber stamped Dr Gammons’ mayoral bid.

Announcing his candidacy on Twitter, where his handle is ‘Gammons4London’, UKIP also made its own name-based joke, writing: ‘Dr Peter Gammons is UKIP’s candidate for London Mayor, taking our fight to the Khanage left behind by Labour.’

Various social media users piled in to mock the party, and noted that another unfortunately-named former leader was called Dick Braine.

On Twitter, Dave Macladd wrote: ‘It’s important in these unprecedented times to find an hour or so to laugh at the new Ukip mayoral candidate being called Dr Gammons.’

Comedian Nish Kumar added: ‘There are no words’. 

For his part, Dr Gammons acknowledged the fun poked at him on social media and branded the jokes are funny – even if he has heard them before.

He also declared himself ‘delighted’ to be the candidate and said: ‘I know that London is tired of the same old politicians. I present a real alternative to the outdated establishment politicians.

‘All the other candidates are saying the same things, but there are so many innovative ideas I have to restore London as the world’s leading city.’

One of Dr Gammons’ ideas is to convert over 2 million miles of unused tunnels beneath London into underground areas for pedestrians and cyclists to use, in an effort to ‘clear up congestion’. 

He added that he wanted to defend the police, create more affordable housing and to stop migrants ‘being prioritised’ for it ‘over Londoners’. 

Dr Gammons’ recent tweets also show him railing against vaccines, lockdown and alleged postal voter fraud in the USA – a rallying cry for President Donald Trump supporters following last week’s presidential election. 

UKIP interim leader Neil Hamilton said: ‘Dr Peter Gammons is an excellent candidate for Mayor of London.

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‘He is an impressive communicator with his feet on the ground, not head in the air like so many Establishment politicians. He has the energy to rebuild London after years of Sadiq Khanage.

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‘London needs a real alternative to the LibLabCon mish-mash. Peter and UKIP will fight for the interests of ordinary, normal people, not the “woke” political Establishment.’

The current Mayor Mr Khan, Conservative Shaun Bailey, Green Party leader Sian Berry were among those who spoke exclusively to Metro.co.uk about their plans for the capital ahead of last year’s postponed election.

Independent Rory Stewart has since dropped out of the race, while Liberal Democrat Siobhan Benita has been replaced by Luisa Porritt ahead of the May 6, 2021 election.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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