Who is the worst political commentator?

We are approaching the deadline for the prestigious ‘Most Odious Political Commentator of the Year’ award. Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart’s joint bid is so far out in front of the pack, that the result is surely a foregone conclusion. But this should not deter us from running through some of the other noble contenders.

Owen Jones has had a quietish year, for which we should all be grateful

I am keeping my eye on Newsnight’s Nick Watt as a dark horse. Frequently seen gracing Watt’s programme (and on which he was a staffer) is the ghastly Lewis Knowall, who plies his trade now with the shriekingly right-on Emily Maitlis on something called The News Agents. If only that’s what they actually were: ‘I’ll have the Telegraph, a packet of Polo mints and a copy of Razzle, please love.’

Owen Jones has had a quietish year, for which we should all be supremely grateful. Meanwhile, Kehinde Andrews at Birmingham Polytechnic and the BBC’s Lyse Doucet were disqualified because simply carping on about slavery or Israel does not count as political commentary.

Gary Lineker was at one time a serious contender but now that he is leaving the BBC, people are rightly worried that, pace Assad, what comes next might be much worse.

Kay Burley and Ros Atkins have been quietly picking up one or two late votes, but my suspicion is that the Campbell/Stewart axis will carry off the gold, with the perennially dreadful James O’Brien nicking the silver. This could be a big year for James as he is also shortlisted for the David Lammy Award for Outstanding Stupidity.

Please add your own contenders in the comments below.