A witty criticism of Brexit—a mug with holes

brexit-mug-fb Image posted on Facebook by Bentham Pottery

A pottery firm in Yorkshire in Northern England has created a mug featuring the word "Brexit" in lettering cutting through its side, as a witty response to Brexit.

A mug that cannot be used and therefore "sums up the whole Brexit negotiation" Lee Cartledge observed about his creation. Cartledge, a potter at Bentham Pottery, designed the mug as a humorous response to the current situation. "I'm not a political person really, but it is a political statement I guess," said Cartledge. "It was more the humour than the political statement. It appealed to my sense of humour."

The picture of the mug was shared on the Facebook page of Bentham Pottery, where Cartledge works. The image was shared on Tuesday as Prime Minister Theresa May and EU officials agreed on a draft Brexit deal. It began to trend the following day as Brexit discussions became top news. Cartledge posted a picture of the mug to Facebook with the words: “Limited edition commemorative Brexit mug available from 29th March 2019.”

May faced a huge blow yesterday as four ministers, inlcuding the Brexit secretary Dominic Raab, resigned from her cabinet. They said they would rather resign than back her draft proposal.

Cartledge said that as the British public was associated with cups of tea, it was an "inoffensive way to explain" how he felt about Brexit scenario. “It looks brilliant but when you actually use it it’s not so good,” he said.

Though he had not intended to sell the cup commercially, he is now planning to make 100 Leaky Brexit mugs and to donate 12 per cent of the sale price to the Motor Neurone Disease Association (MDNA). According to his blog, the mugs have all been sold out.

Cartledge hopes to donate one to his local MP, Julian Smith, also the chief whip, who will be in "need of a strong Yorkshire brew at the moment". He plans to upload more photos in a few weeks as soon as the Leaky Brexit mugs are glazed and fired, he said on his blog.