The Reform UK leader faces a challenge from Count Binface as the main parties rule out standing in Clacton.

Nigel Farage's decision to trigger a by-election in his seat of Clacton in Essex took a bizarre twist this morning, when a man who dresses up as a bin and tells the world he lives on the planet Sigma IX began his interview with the BBC. Count Binface's conversation with Justin Webb and Nick Robinson on the BBC's Today programme came about because he is one of vanishingly few people saying he will run against Farage in the contest expected this summer. As Reform UK could have predicted – and insist that they did – the main parties at Westminster have each said they won't be putting up a candidate in the race. With Labour, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party all declining to take part, journalistic duty and curiosity led to a spot of scrutiny about a novelty candidate who says he will. Senior figures in Reform say they did price in both scenarios that have since played out: other parties saying they won't stand and some seeking to delay the by-election until after the completion of the ongoing inquiry into Farage by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards. The Liberal Democrats did suggest a delay - but on Wednesday, the process to hold the by-election was triggered, meaning Farage is no longer an MP, and a potential date in August proposed. Clearly, less than 24 hours on from his announcement, the downside for him is triggering what some will see as a pointless by-election that his main opponents are avoiding. And if it makes him look like a laughing stock, it could backfire on him big time.