There was a sea of empty chairs and but a smattering of supporters in a huge, near-deserted room.
Seasoned operators - be it Nigel Farage, Sir Keir Starmer or Ed Davey - would have had the placards lifted and the activists cheering, but Polanski and his new MP, Hannah Spencer, enjoyed just a smattering of applause as they took to the stage.
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But, make no mistake, if the celebration was muted in the moment, the implications of the result are absolutely mega.
The Green Party went from third in this seat at the 2024 General Election to winning by 4,400 votes over Reform UK, and overturning Labour's 13,000 majority with a whopping 26 percentage point swing.
It was only the 18th time in 100 years that a party had come from third to take a seat, and the Greens clocked up 40% of the vote.
It was a stunning victory that proved the Polanski surge is real and that the Greens are a serious threat to Labour's left flank.
Starmer ran a campaign claiming that only Labour could beat Reform. This by-election proved that wrong.
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Greens can argue they can beat Reform in working-class Britain
Now the Greens can argue that they are the party that can beat Reform in working-class Britain as Polanski positions the party firmly on Labour's left.
It is a nightmare for Labour as it finds itself fighting on two fronts.
Starmer's stony face as he addressed the country on Friday said more than a thousand words could: the Greens, like Reform, are emerging as a serious, seat-winning electoral force.
Had Reform won, Starmer could have used it as proof that voting for the Greens was a waste of time. Instead, he now has to try to prove to Labour voters why they should stick with him rather than tack to the left with the Greens.
Starmer recriminated after results
In the hours after the results, the recriminations began.
Angela Rayner, the former deputy leader, said the result was a "wake-up call" that showed the party needed to be "braver" as she seemed to voice what many MPs think: that Labour needs to move more to the left.
The unions also piled in with Sharon Graham of Unite saying Labour needed to "stop listening to rich mates and listen to everyday people" while Fire Brigades Union general secretary Steve Wright said Labour has to change course and its "us versus Reform" strategy "is in tatters", with the core vote collapsing.
Starmer, who looked shell-shocked, didn't answer these criticisms as he addressed the cameras. Instead he reiterated his position that only Labour could unite the country and he would continue to "fight against extremes in politics" on both the left and the right that "want to tear our country apart".
The two-party system has shifted to a multi-party one
It is important to say here that by-election results are in general not indicative of national elections, and - as Labour will be arguing - when it comes to a general election, people are picking a prime minister and government rather than registering, in some cases, a protest vote.
But this result does tell us something about the shape of our politics in this country.
It reinforces the idea that the two-party system has shifted to a multi-party one.
Voters are looking for alternatives on the left and right
The Green Party and Reform UK took 70% of the vote in this by-election as Labour came in third in its once 38th safest seat, and the Conservatives lost their deposit.
It is a reminder that voters are impatient for change, have decided that Starmer's government is not it, and are looking at alternatives on the left and the right of the two governing parties.
Starmer has spent much of his first 18 months facing out towards Reform, but this result shows that the Greens, positioning as the progressive left, can mobilise ethnic minority voters who have long been staunch Labour, younger voters, and more left-wing Labour voters who flocked to Corbyn's Labour but feel politically homeless in Starmer's Labour.
Polanski hails 'seismic victory'
"Labour's electoral stranglehold is over. This is a seismic victory. We have torn the roof off British politics, and that's because people now recognise there is an alternative," said Polanski at his news conference, telling me that, just as Reform are replacing the Conservatives, the Greens are beginning to do the same to Labour.
Starmer's approach, and hope, is that as these insurgent parties become more successful at the ballot box and their policies and people become more scrutinised, voters may think twice about voting for them in a general election.
On Friday, Labour again took aim at the Green Party's policy to legalise all drugs or withdraw from NATO as proof that Polanski doesn't have a "serious programme for government".
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Voters want a full-fat version of progressive politics
But what we saw on Friday is that voters don't want, as pollster Luke Tryl told us on the Electoral Dysfunction podcast, a "Macron" strategy in which progressives are asked to compromise in the middle ground for fear of something worse (in this case Reform). They want a full-fat version of progressive politics instead.
What inspired a huge swathe of voters to Corbyn's Labour seems to be now pushing them into the arms of Polanski's Greens.
For Starmer, it is the stuff of nightmares as he contemplates attacks on both flanks.
The squeeze that broke the Conservatives at the last general election - Reform to the right and Labour/the Lib Dems to the left - now threatens to sink Labour too. It makes the May local elections all the more daunting and consequential for Starmer's premiership.
The Number 9 tram was supposed to have continued straight along the central Vittorio Veneto avenue, but it suddenly swerved at a switch track that is used by another tram line, according to a video of the crash broadcast by Sky TG24.
The video shows the tram nearly flipping onto its side as it takes the curve before crashing.
Milan mayor Beppe Sala suggested human error was to blame, saying the driver had apparently failed to switch tracks to keep the tram going straight.
He described the driver as an experienced employee who had only been on his shift for an hour.
However, he said the driver had skipped a stop before the crash and would be questioned from the hospital where he was being treated for his injuries.
Emergency services said three people had been killed. Mr Sala confirmed that among the victims, one passenger had died on the tram and one on the street.
He said none of the other injured were in a life-threatening condition.
Dozens of ambulances, fire engines and police cars responded to the crash, with crews escorting passengers in thermal blankets away from the scene.
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ATM, the Milan public transport company, said it was cooperating with prosecutors "to precisely establish the cause and dynamic of the incident".
The incident came as the city is hosting its seasonal fashion shows and is in the interim between hosting the Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games.
Robert Easom, 57, was found guilty of wounding with intent, following a trial at Preston Crown Court.
He had previously admitted to engaging in coercive and controlling behaviour between 2017 and 2025 and two charges of actual bodily harm.
Lancashire Police said Easom waged a "relentless campaign of coercive and controlling behaviour" against his former partner, Trudi Burgess, including physical assault and verbal abuse.
When Ms Burgess told Easom she was leaving the relationship on 17 February 2025, he launched a "brutal assault" on her, severing her spinal cord and leaving her paralysed.
Ms Burgess, who now requires specialist care, documented Easom's abuse in the notes section of her phone.
Lancashire Police said Easom would subject her to a cycle of verbal and physical abuse followed by apologetic and affectionate behaviour.
In one incident in 2019, Easom dragged Ms Burgess upstairs by the head, banging her against each step.
In 2021, Easom placed a sheet over her head and strangled her, leaving her terrified for her life.
The next day, he claimed he was "just trying to teach her a lesson", police said.
Sentencing Easom at Preston Crown Court, Judge Robert Altham said: "No sentence I can pass upon you could begin to equal the harm that you have caused.
"I must pass the sentence which I consider to be just and lawful. But the fact remains that even with the lengthy sentence I am about to impose, you will have a prospect of a future which you have denied to your victim.
"This is not a case where a life sentence is called for, however I am satisfied that an extended determinate sentence is required in order to protect the public from you."
Easom was sentenced to 16 years in prison, followed by a four-year extended licence period, for wounding with intent, two charges of actual bodily harm and coercive and controlling behaviour.
In a statement read by her brother Charlie outside court, Ms Burgess said: "I believe today's sentence reflects the seriousness of the harm done and the lasting impact of this abuse.
"While it can't change what I've been through, it sends an important message that this kind of violence will be taken seriously.
"This, however, is not the end of my story. What happened to me will always be a part of my life, but it will not be the thing that defines the rest of it.
"From this point forward, I choose to look ahead with purpose, with strength, and the desire to make people aware of the signs of coercive, controlling behaviour and abuse.
"The injuries inflicted on me are life-changing. They have brought enormous challenges and every day I'm learning how to rebuild my life in ways I never expected. However, the love I have in my life is far greater than any injury I have sustained or any pain I will endure."
Ms Burgess' family have set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for her round-the-clock care. You can donate here.
Khawaja Muhammad Asif said Islamabad's patience had run out as tensions escalated, with casualties reported on both sides.
"Our cup of patience has overflowed," he said in a social media post. "Now it is open war between us and you [Afghanistan]."
He alleged the Taliban had turned Afghanistan "into a colony of India", gathered militants from around the world and had started "exporting terrorism".
There has been no reaction from Afghan government officials to Mr Asif's comments.
Pakistan carried out strikes on the Afghan capital Kabul and two other provinces overnight, Afghanistan government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said, just hours after Afghanistan launched a cross-border attack on Pakistan.
Security sources in Pakistan said the strikes involved air and ground strikes against Taliban posts, headquarters and ammunition depots along the border.
A Reuters news agency witness in Kabul said many ambulance sirens could be heard following a series of loud blasts.
Both sides reported heavy losses, issuing sharply differing figures that have not been independently verified.
Afghanistan's defence ministry said overnight that 55 Pakistani soldiers had been killed, including some whose bodies were taken into Afghanistan, and that "several others were captured alive".
It said eight Afghan soldiers were killed and 11 wounded. The ministry also said it destroyed 19 Pakistani army posts and two bases and that the fighting ended around midnight, about four hours after it began on Thursday.
Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, a spokesperson for the Pakistan military, claimed its armed forces had killed 274 members of the Taliban forces and militants.
He also said 22 Afghan military targets were hit, adding that at least 12 Pakistani soldiers were killed in the fighting.
None of these figures has been independently verified.
He added that military operations were ongoing on the orders of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
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Cross-border battles have intensified following months of tensions and skirmishes between the two nations.
The escalation threatens a fragile ceasefire along the 1,615-mile border and deepens a dispute over Islamabad's claim that Kabul harbours Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants - an accusation the Taliban deny.
British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper wrote on X: "The UK is deeply concerned by the significant escalation in tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
"We urge both sides to take immediate steps toward de‑escalation, avoid further harm to civilians, and re‑engage in mediated dialogue."
The Foreign Office warned Britons against "all but essential" travel to Israel and Palestine on Friday due to the deteriorating security situation in the Middle East.
Its advice against all travel to some parts of Israel and Palestine remains in place.
Britain also moved some staff from Tel Aviv to "another location within Israel", amid concerns the security situation "could escalate quickly" and international borders might close with little notice.
The alert was issued shortly after Britain pulled its staff out of its embassy in Iran as a "temporary" precautionary measure.
"We have temporarily closed the British Embassy in Tehran, this will now operate remotely," a government spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told embassy employees in an email that a decision had been made to authorise departures for non-essential personnel and their families.
Mr Huckabee said in the email that staff who wish to leave should do so that day, adding "there may be outbound flights over the coming days, there may not be".
"Persons may wish to consider leaving Israel while commercial flights are available," the US embassy said.
The travel warnings are one of the strongest indications yet that a regional conflict could be imminent, as the threat of US military strikes on Iran looms.
They come just a day after talks between the US and Iran over its nuclear programme ended without an agreement.
The US State Department revealed on Friday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Israel early next week to "discuss a range of regional priorities including Iran, Lebanon, and ongoing efforts to implement President Trump's 20-Point Peace Plan for Gaza".
However, no further details were provided.
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Donald Trump set out his case for a possible attack on Iran in his State of the Union speech on Tuesday.
The US president said while he preferred a diplomatic solution, he would not allow Tehran to obtain a nuclear weapon.
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Mr Trump has previously threatened to take military action against Iran if a deal is not reached.
The US has spent the last month amassing a fleet of aircraft and warships in the region.
Iran has in turn threatened to attack Israel, raising the risk that military action could trigger another regional war.
A confidential report from the UN nuclear watchdog confirmed that Iran has not offered inspectors access to sensitive nuclear sites since they were bombed during the 12-day war launched by Israel last June.
Iran insists it has the right to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes and denies pursuing a nuclear weapon.