Eleanor Hootcliffe
Names: Eleanor Birdie-May Hootcliffe
Species: Ool
Age: 45
Job: Political editor / government stenographer / context avoider
Appears In: Game of Plagues
Eleanor Hootcliffe - possibly I should have given her more bird-like feet? See more design faux pas (faux pases?) at Instagram
Eleanor works as the political editor of the Pundlian Channeling Corporation (PCC). She rose to that position in the same way as every other editor, namely by:
The key to being a good political editor (as far as they see it) is to simplify the world of politics for the non-politically literate. To them this means ignoring the important stuff that shapes people's lives and turning everything into a soap opera. This is why you'll never see a headline like this:
Chancellor loses temper when accused of implementing fiscal plan that will give his obscenely rich friends a handout while ensuring the egregious decimation of public services continues unimpeded
Yet you'll constantly see stories like this:
Politician does gaffe
Like all the best political editors, Eleanor is so good because she doesn't even realise what her job is. She thinks of herself as a lively journalist with her feathers on the nation's pulse. In reality she's the grotty bandage that stops people getting a look at the festering wound that is Pundlian politics.
You can buy Game of Plagues in eBook or paperback by clicking this link
Creation Notes
Eleanor is based on decades of TV political editors. Get them all in a room and throw a dart and I can guarantee the one you hit will have many of her characteristics. I mean - I'm not advocating for anyone to throw darts at past and present political editors, but...
...wait.
Am I advocating that?
No...
No, of course not.
But anyway, the level of political 'insight' we're subjected to in England is atrocious, although I guess that's what happens when every prominent figure in politics and the media attended the same boarding schools; went to the same universities, and intercoursed the same pig's head.*
Like Sleezy Stubfinger, Hootcliffe went in a different direction than I anticipated, but one which caused me less problems. In retrospect I probably shouldn't have made her an owl - a species intrinsically linked with wisdom. It seemed apt because owls always look startled. As the character is supposed to exist as a satire of journalists who don't think about things below the surface level, though, I think we can all agree that this is a:
¡¡¡SYMBOLISM FAIL!!!
*If you're unsure what this means, I'm referring to the UK #PigGate scandal. By some weird coincidence I'm typing this on the fifth anniversary of when that all came out. So it's true what they say - time really does fly when reality is collapsing.
You can download The Quest Factor for free from several retailers. You can buy it in paperback at Amazon
See Also
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