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Anecdote

The singing prime minister

In order to become the first woman in Canada to serve as Justice Minister, Defence Minister and prime minister, Kim Campbell had to maintain a reputation as a tough politician. But a talented entertainer lurks behind the combative exterior. From a very young age Campbell displayed musical ability; she plays the piano and the guitar by ear. As a child she joined the Pentecostal Church of a friend, preferring gospel music to the staid hymns of her parents' Anglican Church.

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Whenever there was a school production involving dance, music or unusual costumes, Campbell joined in. At the University of British Columbia's law school in the 70s, she wrote, produced and performed in satires and skits lampooning the legal and political establishment, for the entertainment of her fellow students.

It was probably this taste for the theatrical that led Campbell to pose for her infamous photo as Justice Minister. Wearing a strapless evening gown, she appeared bare-shouldered behind the robes of office.

Source: Canada's Prime Ministers, 1867 - 1994: Biographies and Anecdotes. [Ottawa]: National Archives of Canada, [1994]. 40 p.

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