Brexit speech by Tory MP Geoffrey Cox turned into a hilarious meme by Twitter users

Before yesterday's crucial Brexit vote, attorney general Geoffrey Cox made an impassioned plea to MPs to back Theresa May's deal.

His theatrical address to his peers instructed them to choose between order or chaos and told them to stop "playing with people's lives".

If you were a litigant in a court, if you were dependent upon having concluded a contract on the basis of EU law and you found yourself suddenly with the rug pulled from under you, not knowing what your legal obligations would be, you would say to this House, 'What are you playing at? What are you doing? '

You are not children in the playground, you are legislators - we are playing with people's lives.

His efforts eventually proved to be fruitless as May's deal was defeated by the biggest margin ever experienced by a British government, adding more humiliation to the prime minister's premiership and forcing her to face another vote of no confidence.

One good thing did come from Cox's speech is that it became a hilarious meme that briefly took Twitter by storm - and we have to say, it was glorious.

Not everyone was pleased to hear his speech.

In all fairness, we could probably ask most of the Commons 'what they've been playing at' for the past two-and-a-half years.

More: Theresa May threatened that Brexit might not end up happening and everyone made the same joke