The Financial Times tells the story of an estranged partner seeking reconciliation. Tony is from Mars; The People are from Venus:

The prime minister used his keynote speech at Labour’s spring conference in Gateshead to acknowledge it was largely his fault that his bond with the public had frayed.

His decision to reach out to frustrated voters – he likened it to fixing a troubled relationship after “a bit of crockery” had been thrown – reflects growing Labour fears that many voters will stay at home rather than back his party in the general election expected on May 5.

…

But the most striking feature was a soul-searching analysis of where Mr Blair felt his relationship with the public had gone wrong, which presented the relationship as a tempestuous marriage. “I understand why some people feel angry – not just over Iraq but many of the difficult decisions we made,” he said. “And, as ever, a lot of it is about me.”

Mr Blair said the relationship had been soured by the Iraq experience and turned into a situation in which the public seemed to be saying: “You’re not listening” – while the prime minister replied: “You’re not hearing me”.

“Look, y’know, it’s not about you…”