Why do they make that noise in PMQs?

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Have you ever watched Prime Minister's Questions? Every Wednesday at 12:00 on BBC2, all the nation's MPs gather together to go "rrrrreeeeeeeerrrrr". Why? Is this a good thing? Let's watch a video all about it.

P.S. This video might have gone out of date by the time you're watching it, cos there'll've been an election shortly after.

Wow. There's a tense I don't often get to use. There'll've.

Written and created by
JON GRACEY @jongracey
LIAM BUTLER @LiamMakesStuff
JAY FOREMAN @jayforeman

Presented and edited by
JAY FOREMAN @jayforeman

Camera/director
PAUL KENDLER

Additional camera
URS ROBBE

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[BramVanhooydonck]

"Clapping will drown out the sound of the speech. Let's make everyone shout some noise instead!"

[ethanlee]

Politician: *makes a good point*
Everyone else: *zombie noises*

[senatorbencarson]

It’s not London if there’s not a shot of someone walking towards the camera

[dadatronaut]

The whole indirect speaking thing just lets you up your condescending passive aggressive potential

[harrisonofcolorado]

1:36 The rest of the rules are:
5. No accusing another member of lying
6. No accusing another member of hypocrisy
7. No selfies
8. No speaking in any other language other than English
9. No unpariliamentary language (i.e. don't say cockwallet)

[dog]

**does something rights**


The Parliament: *ReeeeEeEeEeEReErrRRrRR*

[charlotteice]

And I always thought that noise was the British version of the "oohh" you make when someone lands a good diss. That's why British parliament reminds me of a classroom full of 12-year-olds.

[michaelheliotis]

In New Zealand, the government gets a list before the session of all the primary questions that will be asked and the minister they will be addressed to along with all the related supplementary questions that might be asked (the opposition parties only get to ask a limited number of supplementaries but get to prepare more than that), so it's somewhat of game where the shadow ministers begin with a vague question and have supplementaries that go all over the place while the government ministers try to anticipate what supplementaries will actually get asked so they can best prepare for them.

The usual trick is to have the primary question be along the lines of "Does the Minister stand by their statements regarding X?" and then have a broad list of supplementaries that interrogate everything surrounding those statements. Usually, the government ministers just prepare more for the questions that think are more likely to be asked (the more embarrassing things), and less for the ones they think unlikely, though this can lead them to get caught out a bit if they guess wrong. Some politicians don't worry too much about what questions will be asked and just wing it, which is more impressive than a scripted answer but is usually a bit more jittery in its delivery.

However, if the government minister can figure out what line of attack they're going to make, they can attempt to prepare an answer that pre-empts all the supplementaries that the shadow minister plans to ask, which makes the shadow minister look stupid because they either have to give up asking their supplementaries, pivot erratically into another line of attack, or keep asking the intended questions and get berated by the minster with "as I've already said in my previous answer". Our PM Jacinda Ardern, who has a coms degree, is actually very good at sussing out the questions coming her way and pre-empting them all, and after stating that she's already answered the question she turns her answer into a self-promotion or an attack against the Opposition. Judith Collins must be getting seriously sick of hearing "well like I said just before, " or quips along the lines of "Had the Member actually listened to my previous answer, she'd know that... but I suppose we already knew from the Member's time in government that she isn't very good at listening to other people."

[Gabsboy]

That's how Boris Johnson became a rap god. Parliament sessions are basically just rap battles

[ZackWelders]

That ' ear ear' will probably further evolve to

[LamsterLou]

1920: hear hear
1940: ear ear
1980: ear
2019: reer
2040: vAcUuM cLeAnEr

[Duarte_GB]

"im studying"
"No you're watching a video"
Why you gotta call me out like that

[homestuck_official]

This is the single most British video I've ever watched

[callumissocoollikf]

Just a sidenote, this is exactly how you do paid promotions without 'selling out'

[greggi]

I try to imagine how a US President would do if he/she were confronted directly with questions from Congress and had to make some kind of (even remotely) coherent responses directly (more or less) to their faces in real time. My mind is boggled.

[didaloca]

"Can I ask the prime minister..." "Yes, yes you can."

[patrickovsiu]

2:38 I briefly searched on more information about this rather entertaining question, and found that: One, this was a question during the Prime Minister's very first PMQ. Two, the question involved something very important to "national security", but was packed into a white-flash at 2:42. Three, the Prime Minister's answer involved a statement of gratitude to the opposition in addition to her own allies (Rather more complicated than just this, but explaining it further would spoil the moment).

The reason of that man "sleeps at night" can be more agreeable than Jay suggests, although it might still fall short of what the populace would expect.

[BloodRider]

To me it sounds like but in a really unenthusiastic way, kind of when you cheer for a sports team that you have to cheer for but you really dislike the time and you are also super tired

[unpaidwaystarroycointern]

"that man sleeps at night :)"
i died

[gabrieleporru]

*0:30** * Vsauce background music starts playing **