Michael Portillo in Wolverhampton show - with video
Former Tory MP Michael Portillo shared with a Wolverhampton audience how his Spanish father was captivated by famous Enoch Powell speeches that had been translated into his native tongue.
Around 350 people packed into the Wulfrun Hall on Monday evening for the 63-year-old's show, A Game of Two Halves, in which he told stories from his life, political career, television work and gave opinions on a variety of topics.
Nothing was off limits, and the audience enjoyed grilling him about his views on Brexit and the US presidential election, his most cringeworthy moments and his time working under the notoriously sharp-tongued Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
Mr Portillo said it was good to be back in the city where he filmed for an episode of Great British Railway Journeys in 2014 in which he explored the history of the first public appearance of Queen Victoria in the city after the death of Prince Albert. He reminisced how his father enjoyed the speeches of controversial former city MP Mr Powell.
He said: "I've been in Wolverhampton for several political events over the years and when I was filming for Great British Railway Journeys. It's good to be here and to engage with people in the area. I normally get people who are interested in one of two things, politics or trains. That's why the show is called A Game of Two Halves. I've very lucky to be doing what I'm doing now.
He added: "My father was a Spanish university lecturer but he was forced to leave Spain due to the civil war. He was actually on the opposite side of the conflict to his brothers. He was a poet and a master of the Spanish language but, when he came here, he couldn't master English in the same way and that was a great frustration to him.
"I used to get Enoch Powell's speeches translated for him, and he would be captivated by them. He may not have agreed with all the content, but Powell had such a poetic way with how he wrote his speeches. His language was beautifully chosen."
