Hot on the heels of winning the Spectator Politican of the Year award earlier in the month, Boris Johnson has today been awarded the same accolade by the Political Studies Association.
Alas the London Mayor was unable to attend in person, but stepping into the breach was his indefatigable father, Stanley, who - as my picture shows - accepted the award on his son's behalf from the former London Mayor, Ken Livingstone.
Stanley - not only the spitting image of his son but a former Tory MEP and parliamentary candidate - joked that being Father of the Mayor was a full-time job these days. He said that he'd spoken to Boris this morning and passed on his apologies for not being there, but that he was busy "canceling the third runway at Heathrow, building a new airport in the Thames Estuary, abolishing the congestion charge, eliminating speed humps and slapping £2 billion off the budget for the Olympics". As far as I'm aware, his father's pronouncements do not neccesarily constitute official mayoral policy.
Another Tory winner was the peer and academic, Lord Norton of Louth, who won the Special Recognition for Political Studies Award.
It was also great to see recognition for Michael Cockerell, the BBC political documentary maker, who won a special Judges' Award. Michael's films, for which he has been granted unrivalled access to political leaders and figures across the spectrum over the decades, never fail to give a remarkable insight into their subjects and provide students of politics present and future with incredible primary source material.
The other award winners were:
Parliamentarian of the Year - Vince Cable MP
Backbencher of the Year - Frank Field MP
Political Journalist of the Year - Steve Richards, The Independent
Political Broadcaster of the Year - Gary Gibbon, Channel 4 News
Setting the Political Agenda - Anne Owers, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons
Sir Isiah Berlin Prize for Lifetime Contribution for Political Studies - Professor Vernon Bogdanor
Political Studies Communication Award - Professor Tony Travers
Special Recognition Award - Professor Anne Phlillips
Jonathan Isaby