If the face fits
The staff at the House of Commons are famed for their knowledge of faces. But even they have been hard-pressed to learn the names of 250 new MPs all at once.
So I was more than a little impressed by the greeting that the new MP for Dorset South, Richard Drax, received when walking in with me through St Stephen's entrance.
My impeccably dressed former BBC colleague was struggling to find his pass under layers of fine tailoring but the policeman on duty waved him through with a cheery "That will be fine, Mr Drax."
As we walked on I commented on the hard work they must have put in mugging up on the new intake.
"Don't be fooled" says Richard. "They only know me because I went around on the first day introducing myself to them all."
Good army officer training you see - defuse the security risk and secure an easy line of escape, all in one simple act of good manners.
Now he's just got to straighten out things with the whips after his comments about the "appalling" deal with the Lib Dems...
Welcome to the hustings! I'm Peter Henley, the BBC's political reporter in the south of England. From parish councils in Sussex, to European politics in Oxford, this is the blog for you. 
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