Japan Democratic Party

It’s the latest headache for Japan’s longest-serving premier, who has already weathered two cronyism scandals in recent years

As Yukio Hatoyama prepares to become Japan’s new leader, his wife is already emerging as a gloriously eccentric foil to her hum-drum husband.

It’s tempting to dismiss last weekend’s landslide election victory of Japan’s opposition as reflectinga bad-tempered mood among recession-hit voters.