Count Binface, the man in a can with a plan, seeks Parliament seat in Britain's wackiest election

LONDON, Aug 10, (AP): Timing is everything in comedy and, so it seems, in British politics for a perennial joke candidate who wears a garbage can on his head. Count Binface, a self-described intergalactic space warrior, has landed in the center of the UK’s political universe ahead of a special election Thursday that was derided as a farce long before the ballot was packed with nearly three dozen candidates - many from the silly end of the spectrum.

Binface, who has run against prime ministers past and present, was the first to throw his bucket in the ring when Reform UK leader Nigel Farage abruptly quit Parliament and said he would seek reelection to clear his name over financial allegations. "Game on, Nige,” Binface declared soon after Farage, portraying himself as the victim of a witch hunt, said he would represent the people against the establishment.

But when the major political parties denounced Farage’s move as a political stunt and boycotted the Clacton-on-Sea election in southeastern England, the trash-talking comedian was launched into prime position as default challenger. He has been on a nonstop media blitz since. "I’m the only fresh thing on the menu,” Binface told The Associated Press on a day of interviews with reporters from Japan, the Netherlands, Italy and Germany.

"You’re all sick of these politicians, as good as they’re trying to be, but you know you need something different, a little bit of secret sauce.” The jokes have continued nearly nonstop - and not all are coming from the man in the can with a 20-point plan. "If (Farage) wants to spend the summer arguing with a bin, I won’t stop him,” then-Treasury Secretary Rachel Reeves, known more for number-crunching than playing for yuks, said as she officially accepted Farage’s resignation and set the stage for the special election.

Under Binface’s black cape, rubbish bin and ample body armor that looks straight out of a low-budget sci-fi film, is a middle-aged comedian named Jon Harvey trying to keep his cool during a sweaty summer. You’d never know who was in there from talking to his alter ego. Binface never breaks character and delivers snarky ripostes when challenged to lift the lid

. "Has anyone here seen ‘Return of the Jedi’?” he said to a BBC host in reference to the "Star Wars” sequel where Darth Vader is unmasked. "Nobody wants to know what’s under the recycling. ... It’s absolutely putrefying.” Harvey is a married father of two who grew up in London and studied the classics at Oxford. He has been a TV writer on the political comedy "The Thick of It” and the humorous news quiz "Have I Got News for You.”

He’s the author of a sports memoir written after his brother’s death and Binface’s memoir: "What on Earth? An Alien’s Guide to Fixing Britain.” In a country where almost any adult citizen can run for office - regardless of where they live - eccentric candidates are a celebrated electoral tradition. On the 3-foot-long (0.9-meter-long) Clacton ballot, there are no fewer than three members of the Monster Raving Loony Party, including Nick the Incredible Flying Brick and Baron von Thunderclap.