'Mug shot' stirs up Twitter

A section of Twitterverse was shaken and deeply stirred at the sight of UK home secretary Priti Patel's enormous mug, days after a dekko of Chancellor Rishi Sunak's £180 'smart' coffee cup. Judging from the picture alone, the mug seems to be a large, grande and venti hybrid.

Patel can be seen on video, sipping out of the long and tall mug, decorated with a London theme, including guards, crowns and the Union Flag, during a remote meeting of the Home Affairs Committee on Wednesday. According to The Daily Mail online, "it comes just a week after Sunak was photographed with his £180 'smart' mug – an expensive gift from his wife – as he prepared his coronavirus mini-budget".

Twitterati speculated whether it was the mug that was a normal size and 'twas Patel who was very small. Others wondered if the mug was about as tall as her. It could not be clearly established what they had been drinking and out of what. One Twitter user referred to it as a 'tankard' while yet others faulted it on technical grounds, saying it was too tall for the contents to be stirred with a teaspoon.

Another Twitter user said: 'Priti Patel's mug holds three hundred thousand and thirty four, nine hundred and seventy four thousand ml of coffee.' So, what makes the mug ' smart'? For starters, it is smartly priced for the 'smart set', selling at £180 online and can keep drinks warm for 3 hours. Users can even use a smart phone app to set the exact temperature they want their beverage held at and requires an electronic charging coaster.