Politics makes for strange bedfellows

Posted by Victoria S Dennis on January 01, 2006

In Reply to: Politics makes for strange bedfellows Posted by Joe Trainor on December 31, 2005

: anyone familiar with the origin of "politics makes for strange bedfellows"

Like so much else, it's originally from Shakespeare: "Misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows" (from The Tempest). In the 19th century it was adapted by Lord Lytton: "Poverty has strange bedfellows". I don't know who first attached it to "politics", but I have also heard "necessity makes strange bedfellows".

• Politics makes for strange bedfellows ESC 01/January/06