| George Galloway sniffs a conspiracy. He wanted to have his picture in the National Portrait Gallery. Who wouldn't? But the gallery said no. In artist Darren Coffield's own words, "I've painted George Bush as if he were a cowboy made from the pages of the Financial Times. He's holding a gun to Galloway's head; he wants to make sure he keeps hold of his oil. Blair's having a go from the other side, brandishing a tomahawk and wearing a Native American head-dress." Apart from the fact that Egregious looks even more bronzed than usual, and that the Bush-cowboy is now holding his pistol to his crotch, this is a fair description of the portrait. The culprit is apparently Lord Browne, "Blair's crony" and, until last week, the chief executive of BP, which sponsors the NPG's annual portrait competition. It turns out Coffield's entry was one of just 1,810 that didn't make the cut this year and won't appear in the exhibition. Commiserations. |