Snowballs, handstands and famous sons - the most farcical by-election ever?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-35543194

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It was 80 years ago this week that the two million acre constituency of Ross and Cromarty in the Scottish Highlands was the scene of one of the most farcical by-elections of the 20th Century.

The National Government had just won the general election, and Malcolm MacDonald, son of former Prime Minister Ramsay, had lost his seat - but not his place in the cabinet - so he needed to get back to the Commons as quickly as possible.

This meant despite being a National Labour candidate MacDonald had the backing of Conservative Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin.

The endorsement of MacDonald really irked the local Unionist association, particularly the farmers - who were expected to fall into line and support him, but they wouldn't - they called on Randolph Churchill, son of Winston to stand for them instead.

So this was a battle with two famous politician's sons, but not only that - the Churchill and MacDonald families had a history of clashes and recrimination going back 30 years.

Winston Churchill's grandson Sir Nicholas Soames MP says Randolph Churchill stood for the seat against his father's advice.

"Randolph was incredibly impetuous and he didn't want to be told what to do by his father."

Sir Nicholas says that Winston Churchill's own father had been "beastly to him" and he therefore was determined to have a good relationship with Randolph, but all that he did was "spoil him rotten".

Randolph was a strange sight arriving in Dingwall with a large cabin trunk and golf clubs, addressing meetings wearing a red waistcoat with gold buttons.

His manner irritated many people - and MacDonald's supporters felt, with their man being a Scotsman and Highlander, this could only help their campaign.

Calamity was never far away from this contest - terrible weather left roads impassable. The Labour candidate Hector MacNeil crashed his car twice.

The Ross-shire Journal reported that Malcolm MacDonald was hit "in a bespectacled eye" during a snowball fight. The broken glass scarred his eye - leaving him out of the race for several days.

The next drama was the death of King George V but rather than creating a moment of unity the candidates immediately fell out over whether they should stop campaign as a mark of respect.

Finally the weather started to thaw, but the rivalries didn't. The night before the vote MacDonald spoke from a balcony on the National Hotel in Dingwall - so Randolph Churchill started speaking loudly from a balcony at the other side of the hotel in an attempt to drown out his opponent.

At the declaration 2,000 people gathered at the town hall, blocking the street. When the Sheriff simply announced MacDonald's name the cheering was so loud he couldn't continue for several minutes.

MacDonald had won. His nearly 9,000 votes gave him a comfortable majority over Hector McNeil's respectable 6,000. Randolph Churchill should have listened to his father's advice not to stand, as he trailed in third with just under 2,500.

Back at the National Hotel for the celebration party, MacDonald's team found Churchill sitting alone and invited him to join them.

It had been a tough fight and MacDonald treated the party-goers to a fine piece of gymnastics as he walked the length of the room on his hands.

Randolph was heard to say: "I'd rather be able to do that than win Ross and Cromarty."