UK Election: Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn face off on election day

When it comes to gains there's no doubt that the trend is favouring the Labour party, and not the Tories as was widely expected. 

Labour has taken Battersea, a Tory seat from Financial Secretary Jane Ellison. 

And the party is hopeful of more wildcard wins. 

Jeremy Corbyn has issued a statement as the prospect of his prime ministership can't be completely ruled out, approaching 2am in Britain.

"Whatever the final result, our positive campaign has changed politics for the better," he said.

The Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson is indisputably one of British politics rising stars. She played a prominent role in the EU referendum campaign and her star has continued to shine since then. 

Of course she is up against Britain's most formidable female politician First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. 

As we've discussed earlier in the blog, the SNP's stranglehold on just about all of Westminster's Scottish seats was never sustainable but Davidson appears to suggest the tories are doing better than even she hoped. 

The popular Labour Deputy Leader Tom Watson has been re-relected in West Bromwich East which voted Leave. 

He gave a speech savaging the prime minister and said while we don't yet know how the election will turn out, Theresa May is a "damaged prime minister whose reputation may never recover."

He condemned her for running a "negative, pessimistic and defensive campaign."

"It looks to be a very, very bad result for Theresa May."

"She said she was strong and stable, the public saw that she was weak and wobbly," he said.

London is telling quite the story. 

Tooting was held by Sadiq Khan who quit to become Labour mayor of London. 

Rosena Allin-Khan has increased Labour's margin by 12 per cent compared with 2015.

Scottish Labour has taken Rutherglen and Hamilton West from the Scottish National Party who have reigned supreme in Scotland since 2015 when they won 56 of 59 seats. 

Holding onto that sort of majority was always going to be a big task and the first in what is expected to be a series of SNP seats has fallen.

Labour hold Llanelli as well as Wrexham. 

When I was last at Parliament before it rose for the election Labour MPs were morose, some had been crying I was told. The Member for Wrexham was pointed out to me as one MP who would likely not be returning to Westminster.

Not so...

Britain's Telegraph reports MPs are briefing against the Prime minister and that Theresa May is in trouble. 

And BuzzFeed UK reports Boris Johnson is already making a move. 

We've got an important result in a bellwether - Darlington. 

The Conservatives were hoping to win this constituency and indeed that would have been a sign of a May landslide but Labour has held on. 

A very interesting set of comments from George Osborne, the former chancellor and now editor of London's Evening Standard.

On ITV's election night coverage, he's said he doesn't think there will be any appetite for a leadership contest if the result doesn't go the Tories' way, but he does suggest blood will be spilled over the disastrous Tory manifesto and the decision to call the early election. 

We're starting to see some high-profile casualties. 

The BBC's Laura Kuenssberg says the conservatives have lost Battersea - held by the Treasury Minister Jane Ellison.

We've already marked Home Secretary Amber Rudd's seat of Hasting & Rye as a seat to watch and fears are growing for the up-and-coming minister's fortunes.

And Nick Clegg of the Liberal Democrats appears in trouble.

Trade Secretary Liam Fox is back on the airwaves. (We discussed his absence earlier in the blog.) 

He says the collapse in support for minor parties, particularly UKIP, shows a return to two-party politics.

He has backed Theresa May's "very brave decision" to call the election, despite signs it could backfire on the Tories.

But...

I present David Dimbleby v studio fly. (It's Antony Green v his computer all over again!)

Many of London's uber wealthy live in the Chelsea and Kensington area so this tweet from Paul Waugh, a Huffington Post journo very well connected with Labour types, would be huge if true.

The shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry has told the BBC that Labour could form the next government and has called on Prime Minister Theresa May to resign. 

That's despite the exit poll showing the conservatives would still be the largest party in the Parliament, even without a majority.

"The exit poll seems to indicate that no party will have an overall majority so it's possible that we will form the next government," she said. 

But she said there would be "no coalition, no deals" and it would be up to the other parties to support Labour's Queen's speech. 

The BBC's David Dimbleby (he's the UK's version of Antony Green) says he can't remember so few results by midnight, as it's just gone in Britain. 

And anyone care to speculate what "gone a bit X Files" means? We're not sure either, Jessica. 

Labour has held onto the constituency of Newcastle-upon-Tyne-East and the Tories hold Swindon North. 

However, the result in Swindon is actually better for Labour than the exit poll. 

It's a similar take across Britain's newspapers, focusing on Mrs May's "gamble" to call the election - she said she wouldn't call - early.

The prospect of a hung Parliament will throw serious doubt over Brexit negotiations, due to begin in earnest in just 11 days.

The EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier has set June 19 as his favoured date for the start of talks, due to last around 14-18 months.

But Brussels officials have indicated that the date is not set in stone, meaning it could be delayed to take account of any change in the UK Government.

What cannot easily be delayed, however, is the date of Britain's departure from the EU, which is due to take place exactly two years after the triggering of the Article 50 Brexit process on March 29 2019, whether or not a withdrawal deal has been reached.

Protracted negotiations over the formation of a new government - or even a second general election in 2017 - could put back the start of formal talks, squeezing even further the limited time available to forge a complex withdrawal agreement and a separate deal on future trade arrangements.

Press Association

There's a growing confidence in Tory ranks that the exit poll, which doesn't include postal votes, is wrong and a majority is still within Theresa May's reach.