We’re sitting upstairs in the diningroom of the famous old Red Lion pub on Parliament Street in Westminster, but part of me wishes we weren’t. It’s my fault. I picked the place.
The pub, which sits just beyond the back gate to the houses of parliament, has a reputation as a favoured haunt of politicos. But they usually just drink here. Only tourists hoping to catch a glimpse of a famous face choose to eat at the Red Lion.
Now I’m beginning to understand why.
Lorraine Butler is no tourist. The effervescent Laois woman, who runs the UK and Ireland arms of outsourced sales group CPM International, politely pushes a frankly weird-looking lump of fish pie around her plate. I feel guilty for getting her into this.
Meanwhile, I’m pretending not to be hungry after inhaling a Lilliputian slice of drab quiche – it took just two forkfuls to dispatch the lot. It should be renamed on the menu as Copperfield Quiche, because the magician couldn’t make it disappear any faster.
