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Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Elizabeth "Liz" Truss has complained that it was not funny being compared to a lettuce.
Headed for trouble
Truss has been trying to rebuild her public profile in recent months, after a harrowing stint as prime minister which began with the death of the British monarch Queen Elizabeth the Second, and ended with her being the shortest serving PM in British history.
Her tenure was punctuated by an ill-judged attempt at radical economic 'reform', with her finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng, whom she ejected from his role in an attempt to salvage her prime ministership.
But it was in vain, and it became evident that her time in office was coming to an end.
That was when local newspaper the Daily Star began a "contest" to see what would last longer, the PM's tenure or a head of lettuce.
The lettuce won.
Turning over a new leaf
Truss's tenure lasted just over 44 days, although some outlets count it as 49.
According to the BBC, her predecessor Boris Johnson has just been censured by the UK's parliament, would have been suspended for 90 days had he not resigned first.
This would mean that he would have been suspended longer than she was in office.
Truss is remembered in the UK for the economic chaos, but outside the country, the lettuce is probably what she is best remembered for.
So much so that when she appeared at the News Xchange Conference in Dublin, Ireland, on June 19, it was the first thing on her interviewer's mind.
In an interview that Irish newspaper The Journal described as "acerbic", she was questioned about several topics such as social media and how political coverage is handled by the media.
But the interviewer, David McCullagh, kept returning to her shot stint in office, repeatedly asking her about the lettuce and its victory.
"What's the relevance of that question?" Truss apparently snapped.
"I don't think it was particularly funny, I think it was puerile," she was quoted as responding.
Truss tried to defend her record
Truss tried to defend her record in office, saying that she saw the Britain as being in "serious economic trouble", and that she was attempting to be "bold" in finding solutions.
It should be noted that at the time, several politicians and commentators had noted that her economic plan ran counter to the mandate her party had been elected on in 2019.
Politco.eu quoted her as showing some acknowledgement of her policy failure, with Truss admitting that she "could have gone a bit slower" with her economic reforms.
She criticised the media as treating politics like "a branch of the entertainment industry", and that the level of understanding of economic ideas was "very poor indeed".
Politico included in their piece a list of economists who had criticised Truss's policies at the time.
Fun sponge
The Daily Star, in a piece of meta-commentary, covered the story as well, describing Truss as a "fun sponge".
To be clear, that is a sponge that soaks away fun, not a particularly happening washing implement.
They also quoted Truss as saying:
"I think that the British media are known throughout the world for being particularly vociferous and I don’t think they are particularly deferential to politicians."
Meanwhile, she has been attempting to raise her foreign policy profile, most notably with a speech in Taiwan.
For her effort she was described as obsolete by China's media, and the trip as "Instagram diplomacy" by members of her own party.
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Top image via Getty & Unsplash