Prominently displayed in the hall of Government House is a painting that has already aroused curiosity amongst those who have called on the new Governor, Lord Waddington.

Indeed, Lord Waddington himself appears in the picture, along with 399 others who were selected by ballot to appear in a commemorative painting of Question Time at the House of Commons during the Thatcher era.

"Someone said it wasn't perhaps appropriate for Government House, but the House of Commons played a very big role in my life,'' said the former Home Secretary.

"We had to have a ballot because although there are 650 MPs, the House only holds 400 at any one time. I was one of the lucky ones, so we all went off to be sketched and have our photographs taken,'' he explained.

Lord Waddington is not on the front bench in this picture as it was painted in 1986, when he was a `second' bencher as a Minister of State in the Home Office.

The painting, which has been painted 400 separate times by the artist, Mendoza, shows Mrs. Thatcher (now elevated to the House of Lords and the rank of Lady), standing in the traditional place at her table below the the chair of the be-wigged Speaker of the House, Bernard Weatherall.

"Funnily enough, we had Roger Moate here the other day, leading a delegation from the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, and he pointed out a serious error. He said that he had been depicted on the upper left, standing up -- which is the wrong protocol. Only one person at a time has the floor, so Roger Moate would never had stood up while the Prime Minister was speaking!'', he explained.

The people standing in the foreground and at the back of the picture are members who were unable to get a seat (Lord Waddington said that the House was always full for Question Time) but could listen to the proceedings so long as they did not venture beyond the `bars' that section off the main floor.

Lord Waddington appears to know most, if not all the politicians in the picture, but casual observers would have no trouble in picking out the former Leader of the Opposition, Neil Kinnock, former Prime Minister James Callaghan, Dennis Healey and left-wingers Michael Foot and Tony Benn. Amongst the Liberals and Liberal Democrats are Sir David Steel and Lord (David) Owen.

On the Government benches, former Prime Minister Edsward Heath gazes a little testily as Mrs. Thatcher holds forth, while behind her sit Sir Geoffrey Howe and other members of the Cabinet.

Engaging in a little fantasy by conjuring up illustrious figures from the past, the artist has painted in a row of figures in a top gallery, gazing down at the scene below. These include Churchill, Disraeli, Gladstone, and a shadowy figure in 17th century garb whom Lord Waddington believes may be Cromwell or possibly Charles I, whose lack of co-operation with the Houses of Parliament lost him his head.

Asked if he missed the excitement of the Commons, Lord Waddington admitted that he found the House of Lords "very civilised'' after the wrangles in the lower House: "I think anyone who's ever been in the House of Commons does miss it. It is where the great political occasions take place and it has a tremendous atmosphere. It can be very tough.'' He made the observation that most politicians in Britain develop a necessarily thick skin as they spend a long time climbing to the heights, "but maybe one of John Major's problems is that he rose to the top very fast, without the long training. Of course, one can become the President of the United States without going through the ` grilling and seasoning' that you would get in Britain!'' Lord Waddington remembers Margaret Thatcher as "a marvellous person -- she expected a lot and woe betide anyone who went into her presence without having mastered his brief. She would test you and try to catch you out. It could be very wearing because this could go on for an hour or an hour and a half. Then she would suddenly say, `All right -- you've convinced me!'.'' QUESTION TIME -- Thatcher-era commemorative painting at Government House.