When Tom Elliott called me earlier this year and asked me would I speak at the Annual General Meeting of the Fermanagh Ulster Unionist Association, I thought it was a wind up.
But he was serious and, on February 23, I made the trip to Enniskillen to share a few thoughts on the Stormont House Agreement and to take part in a question-and-answer session.
I also discussed the fortunes of Elliott’s team Ballinamallard FC and gave him a tin of special carrots, suggesting the strikers needed some help to see the nets.
But, on a more serious note, there is something I remember about that evening, words spoken by one of the association’s officers, James Cooper.
The unionist pact had not yet been agreed, but Cooper told the audience that Elliott was the best unionist hope in the constituency.
Best hope, but what hope, was probably the thought that ran through my head.
Could he really give Michelle Gildernew a run for her money?
That question was answered in the early hours of this morning when the votes tally put Elliott at 23,608 and Gildernew at 23,078.
Then I remembered a conversation with Mike Nesbitt just a few days ago when I chatted to him for a piece I was writing for the Belfast Telegraph about the latest interviews for Victims Commissioner.
That conversation ended with a few thoughts about the election.
He mentioned Danny Kinahan as being in with a big chance, knew that Joanne Dobson would perform well in Upper Bann and his parting words were, “Don’t rule out Tom.”
This morning, those words would prove prophetic.
It was a significant election for the Ulster Unionists with Danny Kinahan also taking a seat, and Nesbitt will have had a much better night and morning than Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg.
The pre-election polls were turned upside down, Cameron and the Conservatives got much better numbers than expected, but this election story is about Scotland, the SNP, Sturgeon and Salmond.
A new political stage is being created, and let us now watch the new actors take their places and wait for the next plays.
