Prescott makes class war on Cherie

Cherie Blair may well be a working-class girl made good – a fact she mentions at the drop of a hat – but according to John Prescott (pictured with Cherie) that hasn't stopped her being the most colossal snob. Despite sharing a broadly similar background, born in the north of England, never much money around, etc, the former deputy Prime Minister says that he and Cherie never hit it off, something he puts down to the social divide she created between them.

"We never got close to the Blairs,” he says. “It just didn't happen. We were not their set; certainly we were not her set." The old Labour bruiser makes his remarks in Prescott: The Class System And Me, a programme he has made for BBC2 to be broadcast on October 27. In it, he also admits to badgering Tony Blair for an invitation to Chequers. "I did say to Tony once, 'Surely you must have state dinners there? Pauline [Prescott's wife] would like to come to a state dinner'."

But his plea was in vain. Prescott puts this down to Cherie, saying "she did the list". He adds: "Despite what Cherie might say about her class background there weren't many of them [working-class people] going to Chequers." He also recounts a conversation he had with the PM's office before a meal with the Blairs and the Browns. He says Blair's office said they would not be dressing for dinner but wearing chinos. Prescott was baffled. "What the hell are chinos? Pauline was told she could dress casual but my wife has never dressed casual in her life."

Prescott is also filmed at dinner with a hereditary peer, the Earl of Onslow. Onslow, a fruity-voiced Old Etonian, found the experience telling. He said: "He is totally obsessed with class in a rather silly way – a real character flaw. I said to Mr Prescott: 'You don't have a chip on your shoulder, you have the Alps. You became the Queen's Second Minister, so why are you worrying about failing the 11-Plus so long ago?'"