Day One: Helicopters over parliament.

The news reports are full of scenes of black limousines tooling along spookily-deserted city streets and helicopters hanging like buzzards over a parliament.

No, it's not a military coup in Honduras; it's the official start of a British general election campaign, when the broadcast media spend a fortune on kerosene, and when you can help decide who you want to take charge of this venerable, some say rotten, some say venal, some say disgraced, democracy.

Whatever you say, and wherever you stand politically, this will be a brutal contest, albeit among men and women the land over who, at times, look and sound like they have masters degrees in Politician Manners from the University of MPs; the suits and ties and soundbites and smiles and sincere frowns are in danger of merging into one Uber-MP at the back of your mind, a sort of beige political amalgam, hovering, pleading "like me, trust me, not the other one", somewhere in a hallowed dystopia they call... "the centre-ground"...

As the North Devon Journal revealed weeks ago, the bookmakers are not going to go bust by offering you some outlandish odds on either a Tory or Lib Dem win, although they slightly favour sitting Lib Dem MP Nick Harvey to hold the seat.

In Torridge the bookies are a bit more confident the Conservatives will hold the seat. But it's not a dead cert, as in some "safer" seats. And the Lib Dems have caused a general election upset in Torridge in very recent memory.

You can never rule out the other parties although the two constituencies, according at least to history, polls, and bookies, fall squarely within the cliche of "two-horse race".

Already, just this week, in North Devon, I have heard some, how shall I say, "ripe" language used by one well-placed person about a candidate. The allegation was no doubt actionable so it will remain unreported here. I mention it because it proves how seriously local people will take this campaign.

Over the next few weeks this blog will be following, with an independent view, the campaign trail in North Devon and Torridge, keeping an eye on what the candidates are doing, within the national context, and how local people are responding.

I'll also be interviewing all the candidates in-depth over the next couple of weeks and keeping an eye on the campaign for the Journal.