- On October 14 the Daily Star asked who would last longer — Liz Truss in Number 10 or a wet lettuce.
- The outlet set up a livestream on Twitter to document the competition.
On October 14, British tabloid newspaper the Daily Star asked via Twitter who would last longer — embattled UK Prime Minister Liz Truss or a head of wet lettuce, setting up a livestream to document the competition. Truss resigned six days later, crowning the lettuce the winner.
Truss gave an impromptu speech outside Downing Street at 1:30 p.m. on October 20, saying she was stepping down as Prime Minister and there would be yet another Conservative leadership election. This followed an unpopular mini-budget in September that saw the British pound disastrously crash, the sacking of chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng, and a growing list of Conservative MP resignations that triggered rumors of a no confidence vote.
The Daily Star decided to use a lettuce as its point of reference for the livestream after a column in the British publication The Economist described Truss as having "the shelf-life of a lettuce." The term generated countless memes on social media as people genuinely wondered how long Truss would survive as Prime Minister. It was also directly referenced with salad puns on current affairs shows, such as ITV's "Peston," with phrases like "tip of the iceberg" and "not a romainer."
—Mia Jankowicz (@miajankowicz) October 19, 2022
After the news of Truss' resignation broke, the livestream was updated to the (not at all decomposed) lettuce, which has googly eyes and a blonde wig similar to the Prime Minister's hair, surrounded by disco lights, a Gregg's sausage roll, and cup of tea. It was now wearing a new crown, as a remix of Kool & The Gang's "celebration" played in the background. Bottles of champagne, gin, and pieces of fruit joined the livestream as the party, adorned with Union Flags, continued.
"Breaking: The lettuce will make a speech to the nation at 19:00," a banner across the bottom reads. Meanwhile, Liz Truss' resignation makes her the shortest serving Prime Minister in British history with a term of only 45 days in office.
—Daily Star (@dailystar) October 20, 2022