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The political drama over who will succeed Boris Johnson as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom took a whole new turn Tuesday night when a debate between two candidates ended with a crash—literally.
Tories Liz Truss, the UK's Foreign Secretary, and former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak were engaged in a live televised debate on the country's TalkTV network when presenter Kate McCann suddenly fainted.
Truss was in the middle of remarks when an commotion erupted off-camera, catching her off-guard and derailing the debate. See video of the moment below.
\u201cWhat on earth happened then? Hope everyone is ok! #TalkTV #TheSun\u201d— Harry Rutter (@Harry Rutter) 1658856845
The clip showed Truss jumping and gasping "Oh my God!" with her hands to her mouth in shock as the presenter fell and a commotion ensued. Truss then calmly walked over to McCann as the cameras cut to a title card for the network's show Piers Morgan Uncensored.
TalkTV confirmed on Twitter that it was McCann who'd fallen during the broadcast, causing the debate to be suspended.
\u201cKate McCann fainted on air tonight and although she is fine, the medical advice was that we shouldn't continue with the debate. We apologise to our viewers and listeners.\u201d— TalkTV (@TalkTV) 1658858606
The network wrote:
"Kate McCann fainted on air tonight and although she is fine, the medical advice was that we shouldn't continue with the debate. We apologise to our viewers and listeners."
Following TalkTV's announcement, both Sunak and Truss wished McCann well in tweets. Sunak praised McCann's handling of the debate.
\u201cGood news that you're already recovering @KateEMcCann.\n\nIt was a great debate and I look forward to getting grilled by you again shortly!\u201d— Rishi Sunak (@Rishi Sunak) 1658859452
Truss expressed similar sentiments, saying she looked forward to working with McCann again soon.
\u201cRelieved to hear @KateEMcCann is fine. Really sorry that such a good debate had to end. Look forward to catching up with Kate and the rest of the @TheSun @TalkTV team again soon.\u201d— Liz for Leader (@Liz for Leader) 1658860104
Earlier today, McCann responded to the incident herself in a tweet in which she laughed off the dramatic moment and confirmed she'd be sitting down for her next stint as moderator.
\u201cWell that wasn't how last night was supposed to end! Thanks everyone for the lovely messages\u2764\ufe0f- I'm fine now - and apologies to @trussliz and @RishiSunak for cutting the debate short. Tonight I'll be unpicking the debate with some new polling from 7pm ( ...yes, sat down!)\u201d— Kate McCann (@Kate McCann) 1658931355
McCann wrote:
"Well that wasn't how last night was supposed to end! Thanks everyone for the lovely messages❤️- I'm fine now - and apologies to @trussliz and @RishiSunak for cutting the debate short."
"Tonight I'll be unpicking the debate with some new polling from 7pm ( ...yes, sat down!)"
The incident was the latest in a series of British political hijinks, which have been in a state of disarray since Johnson announced his resignation earlier this month following a raft of overlapping scandals that culminated in scores of Johnson-aligned politicians resigning in protest, Sunak among them.
On Twitter, people couldn't help but laugh about the incident—especially those who don't share Sunak's and Truss' right-wing politics.
\u201cThanks go to @KateEMcCann for bringing this unedifying spectacle of lies to a an early close. \n(Ps. Hope your okay)\u201d— Sir John Gordon Sinclair \ud83d\udd77 (@Sir John Gordon Sinclair \ud83d\udd77) 1658906753
\u201c@SkyNews Liz remembering she left her hot water bottle in the oven.\u201d— Sky News (@Sky News) 1658859387
\u201c@TalkTV At first I thought Rishi dropped his wallet.. pleased she\u2019s ok\u201d— TalkTV (@TalkTV) 1658858606
\u201c@TalkTV Sunak is devastated. The cameras caught a genuine reaction from Truss for the first time ever!\nhttps://t.co/1kkyZlJZOY\u201d— TalkTV (@TalkTV) 1658858606
\u201c@TalkTV BREAKING: Kate McCann suffered instant sleep coma when Liz Truss was talking. Paramedics unable to fully wake Kate up but Kate is okay and mumbling \u201cplease stop talking about inflation\u201d. Due to Kate\u2019s condition, the debate has been postponed until Nigel Farage can host the show.\u201d— TalkTV (@TalkTV) 1658858606
\u201cI've heard of 'taking one for the team', but Kate McCann took one for the nation tonight. Drastic times requires drastic action. Saved another hour of pure dross.\n\n(Hopefully she's feeling better already)\u201d— BlueDino \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\ud83d\udc99 #FBPE #FBPPR #GTTO (@BlueDino \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\ud83d\udc99 #FBPE #FBPPR #GTTO) 1658859457
\u201c@SkyNews No disrespect but I can't help but be reminded of\u201d— Sky News (@Sky News) 1658859387
\u201c@SkyNews Kate was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of bollocks, poor thing.\u201d— Sky News (@Sky News) 1658859387
\u201c@harryjohnrutter Target down, over\u201d— Harry Rutter (@Harry Rutter) 1658856845
\u201cBreaking: Tories reveal new weapon in fight for leadership: bore people into submission. Presenter Kate McCann\u2019s only way of escaping the tedium of Liz Truss\u2019 relentless diatribe is to collapse. Liz springs, like a mindful sloth, to her aid. It\u2019s all go! \n#GeneralElectionNow\u201d— Sir John Gordon Sinclair \ud83d\udd77 (@Sir John Gordon Sinclair \ud83d\udd77) 1658905146
The roughly 200,000 dues-paying members of the Tory Party, dominant in the UK Parliament, will select between Truss and Sunak to lead the party and become the next Prime Minister.
Results will be announced September 5. The winner will take office shortly thereafter, following a ceremonial meeting with Queen Elizabeth II.