It seems Punch and Judy politics is alive and well in Westminster. Labour suspended Falkirk MP Eric Joyce from the party on Thursday morning after he was accused of head-butting a Tory MP and attacking several others.
Wednesday night's fight in a parliament bar perhaps indicates the designers of the Commons were right to make sure the government and opposition benches were at least two sword distances apart.
While regrettable, British politicians are a tame bunch compared to their international colleagues - at least they have never come to blows on the chamber itself for some time.