Editing Screaming Lord Sutch (section)

== Political activities ==
In the 1960s Sutch stood in parliamentary elections, often as representative of the National Teenage Party. His first was in 1963, when he contested the [[1963 Stratford by-election|Stratford by-election]] caused by the resignation of [[John Profumo]].<ref name="RecordCollector" /> He gained 208 votes. His next was at the [[1966 United Kingdom general election|1966 general election]] when he stood in [[Harold Wilson]]'s [[Huyton (UK Parliament constituency)|Huyton]] constituency. Here he received 585 votes.<ref name="RecordCollector" />

He founded the [[Official Monster Raving Loony Party]] on 16 June 1982 at the Golden Lion Hotel in Ashburton, Devon,<ref>{{cite news |title=Ashburton's role in political history |url=https://www.middevonadvertiser.co.uk/news/ashburtons-role-in-political-history-701383|access-date=11 July 2024 |work=[[Mid Devon Advertiser]] |date=2 July 2024}}</ref> and fought the [[1983 Bermondsey by-election]]. In his career he contested over 40 elections. He was recognisable at election counts by his flamboyant clothes and top hat. In 1968 he officially added "lord" to his name by [[deed poll]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Obituaries – Screaming Lord Sutch |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/politics-obituaries/5496941/Screaming-Lord-Sutch.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090617215545/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/politics-obituaries/5496941/Screaming-Lord-Sutch.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=17 June 2009 |access-date=19 February 2019 |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=18 June 1999}}</ref> In the mid 1980s, the [[Election deposit|deposit]] paid by candidates was raised from £150 to £500.<ref name="RecordCollector" /> This did little to deter Sutch, who increased the number of concerts he performed to pay for campaigns.  He achieved his highest poll and vote share at [[1994 Rotherham by-election|Rotherham]] in 1994 with 1,114 votes and a 4.2 per cent vote share.

At the [[1990 Bootle by-elections#May by-election|Bootle by-election in May 1990]], he secured more votes than the candidate of the [[Social Democratic Party (UK, 1988–1990)|Continuing Social Democratic Party]] (SDP), led by former Foreign Secretary [[David Owen]]. Within days the SDP dissolved itself. In 1993, when the [[British National Party]] gained its first local councillor, [[Derek Beackon]], Sutch pointed out that the Official Monster Raving Loony Party already had six. He contested 39 parliamentary elections – a record number – losing his deposit in all of them.<ref name="Guinness" />

He appeared as himself in the first episode of [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] comedy ''[[The New Statesman (1987 TV series)|The New Statesman]]'', coming second ahead of Labour and the SDP, in the 1987 election which saw Alan B'Stard elected to Parliament.

Adverts in the 1990s for [[Heineken|Heineken Pilsener]] boasted that "Only Heineken can do this". One had Sutch at [[10 Downing Street]] after becoming [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]].

Sutch pulled out of the [[1997 United Kingdom general election|1997 general election]] to take care of his sick mother in South Harrow.<ref>{{Cite web |title=That was 1997, that was |url=https://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/6518586.that-was-1997-that-was/ |access-date=2022-06-15 |website=News Shopper |date=17 January 1998 |language=en}}</ref> Later that year he contested his last two by-elections, in [[1997 Uxbridge by-election|Uxbridge]] and [[1997 Winchester by-election|Winchester]].

In 1999 Sutch starred in a [[Cocoa Krispies|Coco Pops]] advert as a returning officer announcing the results of its renaming competition.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Crawford |first1=Anne-Marie |title=Coco Pops back after vote |url=https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/coco-pops-back-vote/57359 |website=Campaign |access-date=19 February 2019 |date=13 May 1999}}</ref>

A number of Sutch's [[Loony Party]] policies were later adopted by mainstream parties and became law. Specifically:
{{blist|His demands for commercial radio{{explain|date=June 2024}} (introduced by the government in 1974)| 
Votes for teenagers (the voting age was reduced from 21 to 18 in 1970)|
Passports for dogs (the introduction of [[pet passports]] allowed for their international travel without quarantine regimens)}}