Avenue

16
17
West End to Westminster
BY ELIZABETH BUIE
www.glasgow.ac.uk/youngalumnus
‘ The biggest learning curve for me was
experiencing just how much the media can twist
and misrepresent things for their own agenda.’
Mhairi Black, MP
Mhairi Black (MA 2015) has
been in the constant glare of
the limelight ever since, as a
final-year student, she was
being tipped to unseat Labour
Shadow Foreign Secretary
Douglas Alexander as MP for
Paisley and Renfrewshire West.
Now, as Baby of the House – the youngest
MP – she is being feted by some of the
‘big beasts’ of the media, ranging from
Channel 4 presenter Jon Snow, for whom
she demonstrated her piano-playing skills, to
Jeremy Paxman, who invited her for a curry at
the Cinnamon Club in London for his ‘Lunch
with the FT’ column.
Being elected at the age of 20 – making her
the youngest MP since the Great Reform Act of
1832 – has thrust her into public prominence
she did not seek. Barely a day passes without
someone speculating on her future in politics.
But for now she finds it ‘humbling’ to accept
one accolade – the title of our Young Alumnus
of the Year 2015.
Mhairi had to combine campaigning for
the Westminster election with her final exams.
Politics lecturer Dr Tom Lundberg, who
supervised her final dissertation and taught
two of her Honours classes, commends
her commitment: she only missed one or
two seminars at a time when she was on
the campaign trail – an admirable record
compared to many other students.
She was to gain a first class MA Honours
degree in Politics & Public Affairs. Dr
Lundberg says: ‘She was very passionate
and enthusiastic about her politics. That was
always present in seminars – it was something
you saw right away.’
As a political scientist he was not surprised
when Mhairi was elected in the tidal wave of
SNP support that swept the country. He adds:
‘It was pretty clear she would probably win – I
did mention that to her, and she seemed quite
concerned about it.’
Her maiden speech in the House of
Commons received more than 10 million
online views – so where did she learn the art of
public speaking?
‘The first time I ever participated in a
public debate was a few months before
the Referendum. One of the panellists had
pulled out of the independence debate that
was taking place, at very short notice, and
my lecturer asked me to stand in because
he knew I was planning to attend the event
anyway. Even though I was debating against
Ruth Davidson MSP and James Kelly MSP,
I felt completely confident as I knew my
facts due to the rigorous research methods
university had instilled in me.’
Perhaps her rudest awakening has been
press intrusion into private aspects of her own
life and into the lives of friends and family.
‘The biggest learning curve for me was
experiencing just how much the media can
twist and misrepresent things for their own
agenda. Almost all of the reports on me
pre- and post-election are inaccurate in
their portrayal of me, and yet the information
hasn’t really been falsified. Watching how
the meticulous and very deliberate selection
of facts and words can project such a
manipulating point of view was quite an eyeopener,’
she adds.
Mhairi came close to dropping out after
her first year but decided to give herself until
Christmas in her second year to see if she
could actually get ‘anything above a C’.
‘I worked the hardest and most intensely I
have in my life (including the election
campaign and my finals) and studied non-stop
for a solid two months. When I opened the
email to tell me my results, I was totally elated.’
Graduation day was very important for
Mhairi.
‘I knew that because of the resilience I had
shown in my first and second year (bearing
in mind that I was 16 when I started university
and was always much younger than everyone
else), I now had achieved a degree which no
one can ever take away from me.
‘That was an incredible feeling.’
• The Young Alumnus of the Year Award is
an annual University honour which aims to
recognise and celebrate the achievements
of alumni who have graduated within the last
15 years and made a major contribution to
the community, arts, sciences or business.
MHAIRI
& MUSIC
Mhairi worked part-time
in the Oxfam Music
shop on Byres Road
during her studies at
Glasgow, and music is
still an important part
of her life. After she
played the theme tune
from Titanic on the
piano to Jon Snow, we
wondered about her
musical influences.
What are you listening
to now?
I’ve been working my
way through all of
U2’s albums and I’m
currently re-listening to
my favourite album of all
time, Achtung Baby.
What music got you
through your exams?
No song or playlist got
me through exams in
particular, however,
the six-hour videos on
YouTube with scores
to lots of different films
always got me through
intense study sessions.
I would always remind
myself, ‘when this video
is done, your study
session will be done –
keep going!’