# Count Binface # Count Binface **Real name:** Jonathan David Harvey **Also known as:** Jon Harvey (former Lord Buckethead) **Species:** Recyclon (from planet Sigma IX) **Age:** Claims to be over 5,900 years old **Occupation:** Independent space warrior, Leader of the Recyclons **First appearance:** 12 December 2018 **Website:** https://countbinface.com/ **X/Twitter:** @CountBinface **YouTube:** @CountBinface **Affiliation:** Count Binface Party (since 2023) **Slogan:** "Make Earth Great Again" / "Make Your Vote Count" --- ## Background Jonathan David Harvey is a British comedian who first entered politics as **Lord Buckethead** in the 2017 general election against Theresa May in Maidenhead. Following a dispute with Todd Durham (who owns the Buckethead character from the 1984 film *Hyperspace*), Harvey created **Count Binface** as a new character in 2018. Binface wears a black and grey uniform with a long silver cape and a helmet shaped like a dustbin with a glowing strip where his eyes would be. In 2026, Binface appeared in episode two of series four of the BBC TV show *Industry* ("The Commander and the Grey Lady"). --- ## Electoral History | Election | Office/Constituency | Votes | % | Position | |----------|-------------------|-------|---|----------| | 2019 General Election | Uxbridge & South Ruislip (v Boris Johnson) | 69 | 0.1% | 6/11 | | 2021 London Mayoral | Mayor of London | 24,775 | 1.0% | 9/19 | | 2023 Uxbridge By-election | Uxbridge & South Ruislip | 190 | 0.6% | 8/17 | | 2024 London Mayoral | Mayor of London | 24,260 | 1.0% | 11/13 | | 2024 General Election | Richmond & Northallerton (v Rishi Sunak) | 308 | 0.6% | 6/13 | | 2026 Makerfield By-election | Makerfield (v Andy Burnham) | 95 | 0.2% | 7/14 | | **2026 Clacton By-election** | **Clacton (v Nigel Farage)** | **TBD** | **TBD** | **TBD** | ### Notable results - **2024 London Mayoral** — Beat **Britain First** candidate Nick Scanlon (20,519 votes vs 24,260). Incumbent Sadiq Khan joked about "becoming the first person in British political history to win successive victories over Count Binface" and said Binface beating Britain First was "another reason to love London." - **2024 General Election** — Best-ever vote count (308) against Rishi Sunak in Richmond & Northallerton. The Daily Star endorsed him. - **2026 Makerfield** — PM Keir Starmer mocked the Conservatives at PMQs for getting "2.2% of the vote in Makerfield, just edging past Count Binface" (who got 95 votes). --- ## Current: 2026 Clacton By-election ### What happened On **7 July 2026**, Nigel Farage announced he would resign as Reform UK MP for Clacton, triggering a by-election, framing it as "the people versus the establishment." Count Binface immediately declared he would stand, calling on the other parties to not contest it: > "Nigel Farage says he wants The People versus the Establishment. So be it. Leave him to me." > — Count Binface, 7 July 2026 ### All major parties have stood down The **Labour Party, Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, Green Party, and Restore Britain** have all ruled out standing candidates. This leaves **Count Binface as the only confirmed challenger** to Nigel Farage. ### Betting odds Bookmakers have slashed odds on Count Binface winning. The story has gone international (Globe and Mail, global press coverage). ### Key articles - **BBC:** "Count Binface intends to stand in Clacton by-election" — https://www.bbc.com/news/videos/ckg066205xko - **Manchester Evening News:** "Count Binface speaks out as he becomes Nigel Farage's sole Clacton by-election challenger" — https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/uk-news/count-binface-nigel-farage-byelection-34254936 - **The Independent:** "Betting odds slashed on Count Binface to beat Farage in Clacton by-election" — https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/clacton-byelection-count-binface-farage-b3010969.html - **LBC:** "Parties rule out standing against Nigel in Clacton by-election 'circus'" — https://www.lbc.co.uk/article/nigel-farage-resigns-by-election-clacton-reform-5HjddKj_2/ - **Metro:** "Only Count Binface willing to take on Farage's 'fake and pathetic' by-election" — https://metro.co.uk/2026/07/07/count-binface-willing-take-farages-fake-pathetic-by-election-29078731/ - **The Daily Britain:** "Farage's Clacton by-election stunt could backfire in the funniest possible way" — https://thedailybritain.co.uk/farage-clacton-byelection-backfire-count-binface-analysis-2026/ - **Braintree & Witham Times:** "Who is Clacton by-election candidate Count Binface?" — https://www.braintreeandwithamtimes.co.uk/news/26262090.clacton-by-election-candidate-count-binface/ --- ## Manifesto Policies (notable) ### Classic policies (carried across elections) - **Bring back Ceefax** (teletext service) - **Abolish the House of Lords** - **Nationalise Adele** - **Ban speakerphone** in public — offenders forced to watch *Cats* film daily for a year - **Rename London Bridge** to "Phoebe Waller-Bridge" and Hammersmith Bridge to "Wayne Bridge" - **Tie politician pay to nurses' pay** for 100 years - **Ban loud snacks** from theatres - **Minimum voting age of 16, maximum of 80** - **Make Piers Morgan zero emissions by 2030** - **£1 trillion a week to the NHS** - **Prorogue Jacob Rees-Mogg** - **Banishing Katie Hopkins** to the Phantom Zone - **Free broadband for everyone** - **Move the hand dryer** at Uxbridge's Crown & Treaty pub to a "more sensible position" ### 2024 London Mayoral additions - **Abolish VAR** (in football) - **Thames Water managers** forced to "take a dip in the Thames" - **Build at least one affordable house** ### 2024 General Election additions (Richmond & Northallerton) - **Space bridge** to solve Northallerton level crossing traffic - **99p Flake ice creams** (price cap) - **National service for former prime ministers** - **Invite European nations to join the UK** ### 2026 Makerfield manifesto - **Build at least one affordable house** - **Cap 99p Flake** at 99p - **Cap Wigan kebab** (butter pie in barm cake) at £2 - **Elected mayors should serve their terms** before standing for parliament — aimed at Andy Burnham --- ## Social Media Presence ### X/Twitter (@CountBinface) **Bio:** "Space politician. Prospective Parliamentary candidate for the Clacton-On-Sea By-Election. Sane." **Promoted by:** Count Binface, PO Box 818, Tonbridge TN9 9YF **Recent discourse (via Nitter, 8 Jul 2026):** The Clacton by-election announcement has dominated conversation. Key themes: 1. **Laughing stock narrative** — Widespread mockery that Farage's "people vs establishment" showdown will be against a man in a bin. Lammy at PMQs called it out: *"The City trader, Putin-admiring professional politician who's pals with crypto billionaires versus Count Binface."* 2. **"Vote Binface as protest"** — Multiple tweets urging voters to back Binface as a protest against Farage. 3. **BBC coverage** — Binface getting significant airtime, with some complaining the BBC gives him more coverage than Restore Britain or the Rape Gangs Inquiry. 4. **Former supporters turning** — Some Reform-aligned accounts now questioning the stunt. **Notable quote (Nitter):** > @TheLittleWaster: "This was glorious from Lammy today in #PMQS 'It's the people versus the establishment… the City trader, Putin-admiring professional politician who's pals with crypto billionaires versus Count Binface.'" ### Bluesky (@beanfarmer.bsky.social search, 8 Jul 2026) High volume of discussion on Bluesky about the Farage-Binface contest, all from today (8 Jul 2026): - **@arnoldtortoise:** "I hope us taxpayers aren't going to be saddled with the bill for Farage's nauseating ego trip. Count Binface for Clacton!" - **@skamille:** "Wait is there really a person in the UK called 'Count Binface' I thought that was like... A Sesame Street insult" - **@fuk-t:** "Ex-City Trader v Inter-Galactic Super-Being... It's going to be a humiliating By-election for ReformUK." - **@toplandscaper:** "Betting odds slashed for Count Binface beating Nigel Farage in Clacton by-election" — linking to the £5m donation flagged as suspicious transaction - **@sofajockey:** "He could change his mind and not resign resulting in mockery. Or run against Count Binface for endless mockery." - **@tragedyoferrors:** "100% obsessed with Nigel Farage v Count Binface. This is the best news to come out of the UK in absolutely ages" - **@albertbrammer:** "#Clacton do the right thing. Count Binface MP." ### YouTube (@CountBinface) **118K subscribers** (estimated based on view counts). High engagement channel. **Top videos by views:** | Video | Views | Date | |-------|-------|------| | Count Binface destroys Sky News interviewer | **1,754,792** | 19 Jun 2026 | | Count Binface launches 2024 manifesto on BBC News | 468,339 | 11 Apr 2024 | | Voting For Binface | 296,085 | 11 Jun 2026 | | Count Binface invades City Hall | 226,956 | 17 May 2021 | | Binface burns Burnham on the BBC | 104,439 | 8 Jun 2026 | | Count Binface invades The Oxford Union | 200,255 | 6 Aug 2025 | | Count Binface beats Britain First, shakes hands with Sadiq Khan | 199,165 | 5 May 2024 | | Count Binface live on LBC (vs Matthew Wright) | 191,693 | 11 May 2026 | | Count Binface vs the Humans: 2021 Election Showdown | 178,050 | 12 May 2021 | | I Wanna Run This City (campaign song) | 179,352 | 5 May 2021 | | Jeremy Vine analyses Count Binface beating Britain First | 210,684 | 7 May 2024 | **Recent uploads (last 30 days):** - "Count Binface: I'll take on Farage in by-election | BBC Radio 4 Today" (8 Jul, 6,143 views) - "Count Binface meets The Daily Star" (1 Jul, 32,412 views) - "Count Binface on Apes, Politicians and Testicles" (29 Jun, 12,578 views) - "Count Binface takes Australia! (The Cheap Seats)" (27 Jun, 72,789 views) - "Count Binface meets Andy Burnham!" (24 Jun, 124,838 views) - "Binface back on Sky News!" (23 Jun, 96,672 views) - "Count Binface on Burnham, Starmer and the Loonies" (22 Jun, 30,125 views) - "Count Binface versus GB News and LBC" (21 Jun, 118,013 views) ### Reddit Cross-subreddit discussion spans r/ukpolitics, r/london, r/unitedkingdom, r/Scotland. Key threads: - **r/london:** "The frightening thing is, Count Binface is seriously the only mayor candidate I trust" — 163 upvotes - **r/unitedkingdom:** "Count Binface beats Britain First candidate in London Mayor election" — popular thread - **r/unitedkingdom:** "Count Binface: 'Suddenly I'm the sanest successor to Boris'" — about the 2023 by-election - **r/ukpolitics:** "Count Binface challenges UK PM Rishi Sunak for Parliament seat" - **r/london:** "You know, I cannot really fault much of these policies of Count Binface" ### Facebook (via Phice) Public discussion about the Clacton by-election on Facebook includes: - "If this is true, it's very funny. A true unity candidate. Imagine losing to a bloke with a bin on his head!" - "Nigel isn't working. Clacton's better off with Count Binface" - "Anyone know if Count Binface is taking donations for his campaign in Clacton. He is the only serious candidate" - "NewsThump formally endorses Count Binface for a better Clacton" - BBC Breakfast clip shared: "My job is to demonstrate that British democracy is wonderful and unique in the entire Cosmos" --- ## Book Binface, Count (2022). *What On Earth?: An alien's guide to fixing Britain.* London: Quercus Editions Ltd. ISBN 978-1529421651. --- ## Trivia / Appearances - Appeared on **Have I Got News For You** (mentioned/referenced multiple times) - Appeared on **Only Connect** — "made history" - Got raised in the **House of Lords** (mentioned in debate) - Appeared on **Richard Osman's House of Games** - Featured in BBC drama **Industry** (Series 4, Episode 2, 2026) - **CBeebies Bedtime Story** reading - Live tour including **Oxford Union**, **Cheltenham**, **Bath**, **Cardiff**, **Bristol** - **Campaign song** released for each election (Ceefax-style) --- ## Sources - Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Count_Binface - Official website — https://countbinface.com/ - Makerfield Manifesto 2026 — https://countbinface.com/makerfieldmanifesto - The Guardian (Jun 2026) — "Binface, foxes and raving loonies: the UK's proud history of costumed candidates" — https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/jun/19/ount-binface-fox-raving-loony-uk-proud-history-costumed-candidates - Cosmopolitan — Count Binface manifesto explained — https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/reports/a71863425/count-binface-manifesto-explained/ - joe.co.uk — "Who is Count Binface and why is he standing against Farage?" — https://www.joe.co.uk/politics/who-is-count-binface-the-man-behind-the-bin-538350 - YouTube channel — https://www.youtube.com/@CountBinface/videos --- *Last updated: 8 July 2026* *Next: Clacton by-election result pending*