Who is Count Binface – the man behind the bin?

He's currently the only candidate set to stand against Nigel Farage in Clacton

Following a public meltdown after he was asked by a Sky News reporter about undeclared gifts from convicted criminal George Cottrell, he went on to accuse the organisation of 'harassing his daughter'.

Sky News have denied the claim and provided evidence to back this up.

In his speech, the most establishment man of all establishments claimed that the establishment were trying to kick him down and stop him disrupting the establishment which would be rather counterintuitive seeing as he is indeed part of the establishment.

Farage boasted about the success of Reform UK in recent years, including the local elections and recent rise of popularity in former red and blue areas.

While he continues to take his supporters for literal mugs, the other political parties of Britain have seen straight through 'Nigel Mirage's' attention-distracting performances.

This was made clear when all the major parties refused to stand a candidate in the Clacton by-election, leaving just one man to take on the Reform leader, Count Binface.

The question is though, who on earth is he?

Who is Count Binface?

Count Binface. Image: Getty.

While Count Binface hides his noggin under a large, comical bin, we do know in fact who portrays the character.

Yes, I know, it slightly kills the mystique, but sadly he is not an actual intergalactic space warrior with a bin for a head.

Count Binface is portrayed by Jonathan David Harvey, a writer and comedian and uses the character to satirise British politics and encourage voter participation.

Binface describes himself as an "intergalactic space warrior" and "leader of the Recyclons" hailing from the planet Sigma IX and he is over 5,900 years old - so just about old enough to remember the first episode of 'Have I Got News For You'.

While Count Binface claims to be six millennia old, he in fact dates back to late 2018 when he did a sort of Doctor Who regeneration from Lord Buckethead, who Harvey impersonated before.

However, Buckethead does have history, first appearing in the 1987 general election.

He is a character created by American filmmaker Todd Durham for the science fiction film Hyperspace and Mike Lee, who worse the costume was the owner of the video distributor for the film.

Buckethead appeared again in the 1992 general election, before taking a hiatus until Jonathan Harvey assumed the role in the 2017 UK general election, standing against then Prime Minister Theresa May.

David Hughes as Lord Buckethead in 2019. Image: Getty.

However, Lord Buckethead had to hang up the bucket as Durham asserted his ownership of the character, displacing Harvey.

He did, however, return in 2019 with Durham's authorisation, but this time worn by David Hughes.

With this change, Harvey appeared as Count Binface's for the first time against Boris Johnson in Uxbridge and South Ruislip in 2019 where he received 69 votes which is, of course, hilarious.

His most recent appearance was in the Makerfield by-election, standing against Andy Burnham and running on a manifesto of introducing a £2 price cap on Wigan Kebabs and building at least one affordable home.

Incredibly, Binface does have some voting sway, picking up 92,896 votes in the 2021 London Mayoral Election, finishing 9th out of 20 candidates.

Count Binface is no mug

While the other parties refused to enter the by-election, Count Binface has seized his chance.

It's worth remembering that he's not daft, he doesn't enter elections to win, but rather to satirise British politics and encourage voter participation.

He's often joked about his low voter count and runs on very clearly satirical manifestos.

The best moments come when reporters and other politicians try and catch him out by taking him seriously or mocking him, as his quick wit means he always has an answer.

So, what are his politics?

Because Count Binface is a satirist and is, in general, mocking the entirety of British politics, he doesn't really fit neatly on the classic political spectrum we were all taught at school.

Like a prime Thomas Müller, Binface exists in the half-space looking to exploit any opportunity that might come his way.

However, we can get an idea of his politics from his previous manifestos.

Most of his policies are pretty universally accepted, such as criticising river pollution, sewage discharges, and climate inaction.

He has joked that executives of water companies should swim in polluted rivers which everyone can get behind.

Other policies often mock those of the mainstream parties, including 'building at least one affordable home' and 'nationalising model railways'.

However, mostly what he does do is raise awareness for British politics, criticising its shadier underbelly and praising it for its uniqueness.

For the Clacton by-election, he is yet to release his manifesto, however, in an interview with BBC Breakfast this morning, he reiterated his national policies which includes "nationalising Adele [the singer]", "bringing back Ceefax", and "moving the hand dryer in the gents' toilet in the Crown and Treaty pub in Uxbridge to a more sensible position."

Why this time feels different

In Count Binface's previous election stunts, it was very clear he was there for his usual role of making fun of the whole political fanfare and do a few funny interviews.

However, while he probably won't win, this Clacton by-election feels different already.

This is mainly due to the fact he is the only opposing candidate so far to Nigel Farage who has said they will stand.

Nigel Farage. Image: Getty.

With Farage's antics likely to upset a fair few people in his own constituency, Binface is set for his best by-election result to date - even if he still loses by a landslide.

Outside of Clacton there appears to be a real movement behind getting Count Binface to beat Farage and, let's be honest, it would be the best thing to happen in British politics since the Liz Truss lettuce.

Even Andy Burnham, the PM-to-be, has shared a cheeky dig at Farage using a picture of him with Count Binface that he captioned, "always worth knowing when bin day is."

In a world of uptight politicians that are constantly trying to get one over on each other, Count Binface is a breath of fresh air that is dearly needed in this time of chaos.