Liz Truss storms off stage after being ‘lettuce bombed’ by Led By Donkeys: ‘That’s not funny’
Liz Truss stormed off stage after a prank reminded her of her short-lived time in office. (Led By Donkeys/X)
Former prime minister Liz Truss walked off stage after a banner featuring a lettuce meme was unfurled behind her while speaking at a pro-Trump event in America – an unwanted reminder of her short-lived time in office.
Truss resigned in October 2022 after less than two months in office. She was memorably outlived by an iceberg lettuce – a viral challenge set by the Daily Star newspaper to see whether the lettuce would have time to rot before Truss left her job. It did not.
What did Liz Truss do to the economy?
The former prime minister – who is remembered as the shortest-serving UK prime minister in history – saw her time in office defined by two events: the death of Queen Elizabeth II, just two days after she entered No 10, and the mini budget delivered by Kwasi Kwarteng on 23 September 2022.
The mini-budget, delivered during the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, led to a sharp fall in the value of pound sterling against the US dollar and drew widespread criticism from economists. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) issued an openly critical response to the budget, saying it would “likely increase inequality.”
The mini-budget also led to a steep rise in interest rates, which in turn caused mortgage rates to rise and monthly payments to become more expensive at a time when many households were already struggling.
On Tuesday (13 August), Truss was speaking to the audience when the banner, featuring a lettuce with the words “I crashed the economy”, was unfurled behind her.
‘That’s not funny’
Activist group Led by Donkeys claimed credit for the lettuce meme prank and posted a video of the stunt to X with the caption: “We just dropped in on Liz Truss’s pro-Trump speaking tour with a remote-controlled lettuce banner. She didn’t find it funny.”
In the video, which has been viewed nearly three million times, Truss, who last year called for schools to be banned from allowing pupils to socially transition, can be heard saying: “I support Trump and I want him to win… But the, it’s what I was saying about incumbents, I think the average American is not doing well.”
She continued, unaware of the banner being unveiled behind her: “I think it was Bill Clinton’s adviser who said ‘it’s the economy stupid’, so I think that he will probably win.”
“Ive got a load of Trump questions by the way,” Truss says before spotting the banner, adding “that’s not funny,” before storming off of the stage.
The prank prompted widespread hilarity online, with multiple people weighing in and sharing their responses. One person wrote: “Poor old Liz Truss getting lettuce bombed live on stage,” while another quipped: “One of the greatest jokes of our time (pictured with a lettuce).”
Led by Donkeys previously pranked Reform UK leader Nigel Farage with a banner featuring a picture of Russian president Vladimir Putin which read “I heart Putin”.
PinkNews has contacted Liz Truss for comment.
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