A liar and a cheat pairs up with a possessor of counterfeit goods and ex-con to raise money for UKIP

Never let it be said that UKIP is too selective about its membership. The Evening Standard reports:

A former brothel madam who served time in prison has re-emerged as a Ukip fundraiser and supporter.

Vanessa Coleman, 68, is organising the opening of a regional HQ in Bournemouth and has hosted events, including a sponsored slim and a £12.50 per head “VIP afternoon tea” with former MP Neil Hamilton…

She was jailed for eight months in 2006 after being found guilty of running venues for prostitution and possessing counterfeit goods.

Neil Hamilton is, of course, the former Conservative MP who was found guilty by a Parliamentary inquiry of taking cash for questions. His attempt to sue The Guardian for libel over the accusations collapsed, resulting in the famous front page labelling him “A liar and a cheat“.

(As an aside, reading that story online now comes with none of the visual oomph that the banner front page headline had at the time. I’ve long since moved to preferring to read news online, but there’s certainly something lost with no newspaper website – so far – managing to match online the visual impact of a huge front page offline.)