Bizarre 30ft inflatable Boris Johnson appears at Hartlepool by-election

A bizarre 30ft inflatable of Boris Johnson has appeared outside the by-election count in Hartlepool after the town voted for a Conservative MP for the first time ever.

It was at 4 am when the inflatable first appeared outside the Millhouse pub opposite the leisure centre where votes were being counted.

Just an hour after Labour realised they would be facing a hefty defeat in the thousands - we know now that this would be by nearly 7,000 votes.

A local businessman, Ray Lidell, was behind the stunt and is well known locally for raising tens of thousands of pounds for charity with an inflatable Grinch at Christmas.

Though the pub’s landlord, Taffy Turner, 57, didn’t actually vote Conservative in the by-election.

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“I went Sam Lee, independent, so it was a wasted vote,” he told The Mirror.

“But I said yes to this because it’s a bit of fun.”

He added: “The higher they go, the more corrupt they become.”

When asked about the Prime Minister, Mr Turner said: “Mr Turner said: “He’s approachable, isn’t he? He is a buffoon. But you see him in Hartlepool and he isn’t standoffish.”

People on social media had plenty to say about the 30ft tribute.

A few were thought that the inflatable reminded them of another blonde public figure.

From AC-12’s finest.

To former gameshow host, Chris Tarrant.

To that other blonde politician.

To another blonde Boris.

Another saw the uncanny family resemblance.

Some joked about the fact that the losing Labour candidate had to walk past the unmissable inflatable.

While others were less than impressed with the bizarre gesture.

Conservative, Jill Mortimer won the seat with 51.9 per cent of the vote (15,529), and Labour’s Paul Williams trailed behind in second with just 28.7 per cent (8,589)

Mortimer is the first Tory MP for Hartlepool for 57 years in a historic win.