Mr Kennedy goes to Walford

Eastenders has an exciting new character. His first scenes have not been aired yet, but we know a little about him already. He's a convivial red-haired Scotsman, quite often to be seen on chat shows. Oh, and he also happens to be the leader of the Liberal Democrats. But sadly, Charles Kennedy will not be staying in Albert Square long. He will make a brief cameo appearance in the EastEnders Christmas special and then - like, one of Ian Beale's wives - he'll disappear without a trace.

Eastenders has an exciting new character. His first scenes have not been aired yet, but we know a little about him already. He's a convivial red-haired Scotsman, quite often to be seen on chat shows. Oh, and he also happens to be the leader of the Liberal Democrats. But sadly, Charles Kennedy will not be staying in Albert Square long. He will make a brief cameo appearance in the EastEnders Christmas special and then - like, one of Ian Beale's wives - he'll disappear without a trace.

We can't help feeling that this is a wasted opportunity, though. Mr Kennedy would have made a fine MP for Walford Central. We could have heard him explain the finer points of the Lib Dem policy on tuition fees to Kat Slater, or watched him become embroiled in a heated debate with Dot Cotton over whether the Chancellor will keep to his golden rule. At the very least, he could have demanded that Pat Evans's earrings got proper planning permission in future.

But light entertainment's loss is politics' gain. At the end of the day (as they say in the Queen Vic), the soap opera going on in Westminster needs Mr Kennedy more.