The Punishment of Margaret

Terence Parkes (1927 - 2003), better known as 'Larry', was one of the most prolific and popular of British cartoonists. He produced a series of cartoons based on famous paintings at the Walker and Lady Lever Art Galleries, satirising current events and art. This cartoon reworks 'The Punishment of Lust' by Giovanni Segantini (WAG 2127). Larry has turned the painting into a satirical comment on Margaret Thatcher and her 'punishment' by voters in the polls. The floating bodies of the women in the original painting are now those of Thatcher. A piece of newspaper half-buried in the sand reads: 'DAILY MIRROR / LABOUR LEAD / NOW 25%'.