Upon being asked about a scene in the film Love Actually wherein Hugh Grant, playing the UK Prime Minister, calls the United States a ‘bully’ and suggests it is “no longer a friend” of the United Kingdom, Blair responds: “When that bit of the film is played, often the audiences would applaud at the end of the speech. ‘Cause it’s a great speech. It’s a movie, and it’s not life, it’s not real life. The implication is that America and Britain want different things in the world, and I don’t believe that is true. If we ever for a single moment think it is smart to be anti-American, then we will make a mistake of fundamental proportions for our future.

This man will be missed.