Few political contests match the bizarre twists and turns of the 2011 presidential election campaign, won by Michael D Higgins. If the most enduring image is the evaporation of frontrunner Sean Gallagher’s lead during a disastrous televised debate, Dana Rosemary Scallon’s confusing declaration on Prime Time that “vile and malicious rumours” were due to surface about a family member might come a close second.  Both incidents had a legacy.  Gallagher successfully complained to the Broadcasting Authority about an unfair and game-changing tweet during the RTÉ Frontline debate which he believed derailed his campaign.  In Scallon’s case, the 1970 Eurovision Song…

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