Flankers (part two)

Gloria De Piero's career seems to have gone politics/showbiz/politics, and now she may have ended up with a mix of both, joining Ivan Lewis's new Shadow team at the DCMS.

Born in 1972 to manual worker Giorgio and his wife Maddalena in Queensbury, Bradford (home to Black Dyke Mills and its famous band), she took her A-Levels at Bradford and Ilkley Community College. There she became President of the Students' Union and launched a call for a students' charter.

Then on to university to study social sciences.  She's variously described studying both at the University of Central England in Birmingham  (she wrote as President of the Students union there to the THS)  and the University of Westminster, but seems certain she got a first.  An MA (or an MSc ?) followed from Birkbeck College. In the 1992 election, wherever she was, she was on the doorstep for the Labour Party, campaigning for Neil Kinnock.

In 1997 she joined the team producing the Jonathan Dimbleby politics programme on ITV, then moved to the rival BBC team at On The Record/The Politics Show and some radio reporting for R4's The Westminster Hour. In 2003 she joined GMTV as Political Editor, and that's when things became a little more showbiz. She talked of a routine of taking MPs to J Sheekey's or The Cinnamon Club every Thursday. Fridays might be The Ivy with friend Kate Garraway, who she fixed up with Derek Draper. Saturdays were roasts with partner James Robinson, writing about media for The Observer and The Guardian.  She noted her basic TV makeup - Chanel Vitalimiere Satin Smoothing Fluid foundation, Lancome Hypnose Drama mascara and Clarins Colour Quench lip balm.  She briefly tried blonde.  She became known as "Tony Blair's favouritve interviewer".  She established good relations with Gordon Brown - one interview question started "Some women say you remind them of Heathcliff..."   Gloria and James were guests of Gordon at Chequers.  In 2008, FHM placed her at 85 in a list of the world's 100 sexiest women, and her embonpoint became a discussion topic on the web at home and abroad.

February 2010 was an interesting month for Gloria; she made a couple of appearances next to Ian Wright and others on the fluffy Channel 5 Five O'Clock Show; then suddenly announced that tv was "unfulfilling" and she would seek the Labour nomination for Ashfield in Nottingham - where Geoff Hoon was standing down.   She got in - but Hoon's majority of 10, 213 came down to 192 (after a recount).

Gloria enters the DH Lawrence Heritage centre, Ashfield