The Tale of Nick Clegg and the Puppet Show #puppetshowincident

Treasurers as a whole are a pretty humourless, miserable bunch of bean counters whose favourite word is "no" because they don't want people to spend any unnecessary money. Careful stewardship of finances is very important. I know that's what I'm like.

Liberal Youth Scotland are, as ever, bucking that trend. Their treasurer is the gregarious, witty, engaging, creative and original Eilidh Dickson.

Now, Eilidh is utterly competent in every area of her life except when she is in the vicinity of Nick Clegg. In Birmingham last year, the poor girl got so starstruck when she met him that she shook so much that she made him spill his tea.

So, let's fast forward to Scottish Conference in Inverness last weekend. I'll never give up the chance to narcissistically plug my tv interview, but there is a good reason. If you look in the background, you'll see a yellow thingy. That's part of the Eden Court furniture, a puppet show, which gives the children of Inverness a fantastic opportunity to use their imaginations.

Last Friday morning, the leading lights of Liberal Youth Scotland arrived to set up their stall ahead of the start of Conference at 1pm. Eilidh is easily distracted and was enchanted by the puppet show. Her creative genius compelled her to construct a simple play. The subject of this play is closely guarded secret which no amount of alcoholic bribery has so far managed to dislodge, but I suspect it might be a little rude. So the puppets were on the stage, doing their thing, expertly controlled by Eilidh.

The play was in full flow when, all of a sudden, the invisible Eilidh realised that no less a person than the Deputy Prime Minister was walking past on his way to his first engagement at the Conference. I am absolutely certain that that made his day after an early start and a delay for fog at Gatwick.

The only question is, what will Eilidh do at Gateshead Conference this weekend? I actually think that her record merits a wee turn at the Glee Club and, who knows, in future years the Eilidh Dickson Puppet Show may even rival that event as the must see event of Conference......