The 1992 General Election coincided with my second year at University and by a stroke of good luck, I found myself working for the day as a poll clerk in Collyhurst, Manchester. An ideal job in some ways for a student as it didn’t involve too much effort although less ideal was the incredibly early start. Coming from a terraced house in St. Helens I had always considered myself working class. That was until I got to Collyhurst.

The polling station was a small, single storey community centre used by community groups in particular a sewing group based on the number of electric sewing machines in the building. Outside three large tower blocks loomed over it like nightclub bouncers about to confiscate someone’s drink. Early in the morning, I ventured out to buy some cough medicine only to discover everywhere still shut. “No-one goes to work so the shops don’t bother opening early”, a local told me. When the shops did open, the first purchase was unlikely to be predictable. An elderly woman wandered in to vote. In her pockets, two cans of Special Brew. My more confident colleague, the older, more experienced Presiding Officer asked, “Early breakfast?” to which she replied, “nah, they’re for him..” gesturing with her hand to outside the front door, presumably to her husband?

More of this followed through the day. Of the 406 people eligible to vote at this polling station 200 did so, including Mark Hughes. How strange that he shared his name with the then Manchester United centre forward…and he had forgotten his polling card too…as I was scanning down the list looking for his name he grabbed the ballot and half-jokingly started to run off with it. A shortage of police meant that our on-duty PC was shared between this polling station and one at a Primary school across the main road.

Collyhurst is part of the Blackley and Broughton constituency and the MP, Ken Eastham was re-elected in 1992. When he stood down in 1997 he had been the MP for Collyhurst for 18 years.