So that’s it, he’s resigned — though not before more than 50 of his MPs beat him to it first.
Really though, it was obvious Boris Johnson wouldn’t go down without a fight. In many ways the Prime Minister’s last 48 hours have been a fitting reflection for his time in office: tumultuous, a rollercoaster and sometimes hanging on a knife edge — if we’re talking about his near-death brush with Covid in those first few months of the pandemic. Remember that?
Johnson’s three years since taking over from Theresa May as Prime Minister will inevitably be remembered by Brexit, Covid and the war in Ukraine, but there are plenty of less globally-significant moments too. Like the time his own brother resigned as his minister, or when he became the first world leader to go to intensive care with Covid. And who could forget the time is No11 flat renovation was the subject of an expenses scandal.
From his unlawful proroguing of Parliament in 2019 to his more recent (surprising) comments about ITV’s Lorraine, here are 22 Boris moments you might have forgotten about.
1. July 29, 2019: The time he quoted batman in his first PM speech
Obviously, Johnson started his premiership as he meant to go on: with bombshell quotes and “down-to-earth” film references (see: Peppa Pig World-gate 16 months later).
The most memorable part of his debut speech as PM? The moment he quoted Batman character Bane from The Dark Knight Rises. “The time has come to act, to take decisions, to give strong leadership and to change this country for the better,” he said, addressing the country outside Downing Street. “My job is to serve you, the people.”
2. August 2, 2019: The time he lost a seat in his first 11 days in office - a new record
There’s no denying that it was a rollercoaster from the start. Just 11 days into his time as PM, Johnson set an unprecedented record by losing a parliamentary seat thanks to a by-election in Brecon and Radnorshire.
Tory candidate Chris Davies ended up losing his seat to the Lib Dems by 1,425 votes. The previous record-holder? Herbert Henry Asquith, PM from 1908 to 1916, who lost a Liberal Party seat within the first 16 days. Unlucky, Boris.
3. August 28, 2019: The time he unlawfully tried to prorogue UK Parliament
Yet more unprecedented scenes in Johnson’s first year in office. This time, the history-making involved a word many of us had never heard of before it hit the headlines: proroguing, the act of discontinuing a session of Parliament without dissolving it, which Johnson attempted to do for five weeks at the height of the Brexit crisis.
The PM controversially ordered the prorogation to the Queen in late August but the order was later deemed unlawful by the Supreme Court. “This court has … concluded that the prime minister’s advice to Her Majesty [ to suspend parliament] was unlawful, void and of no effect,” Lady Hale announced the following month, commenting that it involved “circumstances which have never arisen before and are unlikely to arise again.”
She continued: “This means that the order in council to which it led was also unlawful, void and of no effect should be quashed.”
4. September 5, 2019: The time his own brother quit Government
If Johnson’s three years in office have proven anything, it’s that you can’t always trust family members to have your back. The first relative to deal him a blow was brother Jo, who decided early in autumn 2019 that enough was enough and stepped down from his role as MP for Orpington and minister for universities and science, citing “unresolvable tension” between his family loyalty and the “national interest”.
“The prime minister would like to thank Jo Johnson for his service. He has been a brilliant, talented minister and a fantastic MP,” a No 10 spokesman said at the time.
5. September 22, 2019: The time his alleged affair with Jennifer Arcuri was exposed
You’d (almost) forgotten about her, hadn’t you? Yes, this particular scandal involved Johnson’s relationship with the American businesswoman Jennifer Arcuri who said she had a four-year affair with him - pre-Carrie - when he was London mayor.
The PM was referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) over reports Ms Arcuri’s tech firm was able to access £25,000 in public funds and that she was allowed onto three overseas trade missions, and while the IOPC found that there was no basis for any criminal charges, it did find that Johnson should have declared an interest concerning Arcuri and that his failure to do so may have breached the London Assembly’s code of conduct. He has denied any wrongdoing.
6. October 6, 2019: The time he was called a “filthy piece of toerag”
This quote might not be one of Johnson’s, but it’ll certainly go down as one of the most memorable of his time in office: the extraordinary moment an elderly woman in Uxbridge offered up an astonishing put-down and voiced how many across the country appeared to be feeling about their new PM, calling him a “filthy piece of toerag” as part of a voxpop on Sky.
Filthy piece of toerag (FPTR) quickly trended online and the meme machine naturally got to work. The video had been viewed more than eight million times within three days.
7. December 11, 2019: The time he hid in a fridge to dodge Piers Morgan
Sure, none of us probably fancy being interviewed by Piers Morgan, but would you be prepared to go as far as hiding from him in a fridge? The fact that Johnson was willing to jump into an ice-cold appliance stacked with milk bottles on a farm in Yorkshire the day before the election may well have been testament to the fact that he already many voters weren’t best pleased with him after filthy-piece-of-toerag-gate.
GMB producer Jonathan Swain pressed him for an interview and told him he was live on TV, Johnson replied: “I’ll be with you in a second” and walked off, with Morgan exclaiming “he’s gone into the fridge”. “It’s a bunker,” someone is heard saying off-camera.
8. March 3, 2020: The time he admitted to shaking hands with Covid patients
There are times to boast about manners and shaking hands, but the first weeks of a global pandemic probably aren’t one of them. “I was at a hospital the other night where I think there were a few coronavirus patients and I shook hands with everybody,” Johnson probably regretted telling reporters in a news conference in early March, leading viewers on Twitter to warn that Britain had a “dangerous and potentially fatal idiot in charge”.
Just weeks later, Johnson found out about those dangers all too well himself when he ended up on a ventilator in hospital.
9. April 7, 2020: The time he became the first world leader to go to intensive care with Covid
Another, more sombre, unprecedented moment came just a month after Johnson’s hand-shake comment when he became the first world leader to be infected with the virus and display persistent symptoms.
He ended up in intensive care, fighting for his life at the same time his then-fiancee Carrie was heavily pregnant with their first son, Wilfred, who was born later that month.
10. May 22, 2020: The time he stood by Dominic Cummings after Barnard Castle-gate
You’ll remember the surreal rose garden conference but you might have forgotten the details of how it happened: reports emerged that the PM’s aide had made his notorious trip to Barnard Castle to “test his eyesight” while the country was in lockdown. Cummings denied that he’d broken any rules, saying that he’d spoken to Johnson about his decision to travel to Durham at some point leading up to 6 April but that “neither of us remember the conversation in any detail”. Johnson was criticised for refusing to sack him and insisting he acted responsibly.
“What I can tell you is that, when you look at the guidance and the childcare needs at the time, it was reasonable of him to self-isolate as he did for 14 days or more with his family where he did,” Johnson said at the time. “I think that was sensible and defensible and I understand it. As for all the other allegations… I’ve looked at them carefully, and I’m content that at all times, throughout his period in isolation – actually on both sides of that period – he behaved responsibly and correctly with an view to defeating the virus and stopping the spread.”
The PM probably regretted this later when Cummings promptly turned on him after leaving the job, calling his old boss a “complete f***wit” and saying it was his “duty” to get rid of him as PM in an interview with New York Magazine in January.
11. June 28, 2020: The time he did press-ups to prove his fitness
That's a single "press-up". If there's no video proof then they could well be lying. #BorisJohnsonMustGo #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/PFahVavYRg
— Stephen🔶🐟🇺🇦🇪🇺#StandWithUkraine #GetPRDone (@TheStephenRalph) June 27, 2020
We’ve all seen the running action-shots over the years: jogging in Green Park; panting in a bizarre combination of running shorts and shirt; being put through his paces by a personal trainer before work. But one of Johnson’s most famous sporting photo-opps was rather more unexpected: fully-suited and doing press-ups on the floor inside Downing Street.
The bizarre image appeared on the front page of the Mail on Sunday in an effort by Johnson to prove he was “fit as a butcher’s dog” and “full of beans” after his stint in intensive care. Oh, and to announce a new booster plan for the economy post-pandemic, apparently.
12. July 3, 2020: The time he was called “arrogant” by the official Civil Service Twitter account
As a parade of ministers are sent out to lie for @BorisJohnson, remember this tweet from May 2020:
— Jane Roberts - PastToPresentGenealogy 🇺🇦 (@JaneElRoberts) July 5, 2022
“Arrogant and offensive. Can you imagine having to work with these truth twisters?” pic.twitter.com/o1lJwjZluR
“Arrogant and offensive. Can you imagine having to work with these truth twisters?” They’re words that would have insulted Johnson whoever they came from, let alone the official Civil Service Twitter account. The tweet was naturally quickly deleted (and presumably the account’s login details were promptly changed), but not before being screenshotted and read out by presenter Clive Myrie live on BBC News.
Clearly, not everyone in the workplace had his back - even then.
13. July 3, 2020: The time his own father ignored his rules and went on holiday
Another month, another family member seemingly not having Johnson’s back. This time the scandal involved his father Stanley Johnson, who appeared not to be concerned about the deadly evolving virus that had nearly killed his son and was spotted sunning himself on holiday in Greece in a flagrant disregard for his son’s “essential travel only” rule at the time. He also told reporters he’d still go to the pub, despite restrictions.
14. April 27, 2021: The time his wife called Theresa May’s furniture a “John Lewis nightmare”
A leaked email revealed that Tory peer Lord Brownlow had donated £58,000 towards Johnson and his fiancee’s renovation of the flat they were living in at Number 11 Downing Street.
The works were speculated to have cost as much as £200,000 thanks to Symonds’ hiring of eco designer Lulu Lytle, whose designs mimic the boho glamour of Symonds’s beloved club 5 Hertford Street and whose fabric prices start at £100 a metre.
More famously, Symonds was widely quoted as having described Theresa May’s upgrade of the flat as a “John Lewis furniture nightmare”, a comment for which she was criticised as “snobby” by the public - and John Lewis itself, which came out on Twitter and said it prided itself on “having something for *almost* anyone”. Touché.
15. May 29, 2021: The time he got secretly married at Westminster Cathedral
Last year, 12 months after his brush with Covid in intensive care, he became the first PM to marry while in office in almost 200 years, exchanging vows with fiancee Carrie Symonds in front of family and friends in a low-key “secret” wedding at Westminster Cathedral.
A picture issued by No 10 of the couple in Downing Street’s garden after the wedding saw them gazing at each other — her wearing a £2,870 lace gown by Costarellos, him in a a dark suit and blue tie, with a white flower in his buttonhole.
16. November 22, 2021: The time he spoke about Peppa Pig world during a business speech
From Batman to Peppa Pig. In November Johnson made headlines for yet more surprising public speaking about visit to a Peppa Pig theme park during a speech to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) conference in South Shields. “Yesterday I went, as we all must, to Peppa Pig World,” he told the business executives. “I love it. Peppa Pig World is very much my kind of place: it has very safe streets, discipline in schools. Who would have believed that a pig that looks like a hairdryer or possibly a Picasso-like hairdryer, a pig that was rejected by the BBC, would now be exported to 180 countries with theme parks both in America and China?”
Other memorable moments in the rambling speech included the PM quoting Lenin, referring to himself as Moses and impersonating an accelerating car, saying: “Broom broom brah brah!”
17. April 9, 2022: The time he met President Zelensky in Kyiv
Now for one of the moments Johnson probably would like to be remembered for: the first of two “surprise” visits to the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, where he met president Zelensky and praised the “heroism” of the Ukrainian people.
Speaking after the meeting, the PM said: “Ukraine has defied the odds and pushed back Russian forces from the gates of Kyiv, achieving the greatest feat of arms of the 21st century. It is because of President Zelensky’s resolute leadership and the invincible heroism and courage of the Ukrainian people that Putin’s monstrous aims are being thwarted.
“I made clear today that the United Kingdom stands unwaveringly with them in this ongoing fight, and we are in it for the long run. We are stepping up our own military and economic support and convening a global alliance to bring this tragedy to an end, and ensure Ukraine survives and thrives as a free and sovereign nation.”
18. April 12, 2022: The time he became the first PM to be fined for breaking the law over partygate
Unfortuantely for Johnson, the months-long partygate saga will no doubt be one of the most memorable periods of his career. Vomiting, partying until 4am, and staff hoping they’d “got away with it” were among the scandalous details to emerge as part of senior civil servant Sue Gray’s long-awaited report into the 16 alleged boozy events across Downing Street and Whitehall during lockdown.
Johnson was at the heart of several allegations, including attending an alleged cheese and wine party in the Downing Street garden and attending a “surprise” birthday party thrown by his wife at No 10. He also became the first sitting PM to officially break the law, after being fined £50 by police for attending his own lockdown-busting birthday party on 19 June, 2020.
19. May 3, 2022: The time he asked who “Lorraine” was
“Who’s Lorraine?”. Johnson probably never thought this would go down as one of his most famous phrases. This particular quote came just a couple of months ago when the PM appeared on ITV and interviewer Susanna Reid referenced ITV’s Lorraine show. His reaction? Asking who Lorraine was.
The Lorraine in question was, of course, beloved ITV presenter and national treasure Lorraine Kelly, who gracefully responded by saying the PM was welcome as a guest on her TV show “whenever he likes”.
The irony is that while Lorraine might be a stranager to him, she has long been involved in following personal affairs. “What was the point in that?” the GMB host famously asked alleged ex-lover Arcuri after she appeared on GMB and refused to answer any questions. Remember that one, Boris? I’m sure Jennifer does.
20. June 3, 2022: The time he was booed at the Platinum Jubilee
This week’s public calls for him to quit won’t have come as a total surprise to Johnson, if he was listening to the crowds who booed him as he and his wife walked up the steps of St Paul’s Cathedral for the National Service of Thanksgiving for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
The couple were met by jeers from spectators before taking their seats in the cathedral, as speculation mounted that he could face a no confidence vote as early as the following week following the Partygate fallout.
21. June 19, 2022: The time a story about his wife “disappeared” from The Times
Last month saw a fresh scandal surrounding the PM. But the main scandal wasn’t around allegations that he’d tried to appoint his now-wife to a Government role when he was Foreign Secretary, but that he tried to hush it up.
The Times ran a story suggesting that he attempted to hire Carrie Johnson as his chief of staff at the Foreign Office in 2018, but the report was pulled from later editions of the Saturday paper, sparking questions over whether No 10 applied political pressure on its editors.
The Prime Minister’s spokesperson later acknowledged there had been contact between Downing Street and The Times before and after the story was published.
22. June 7, 2022: The time he... resigned in front of his new daughter
Johnson’s speech certainly suggested he’d like the public to believe his leaving was of his own choosing. “I’ve agreed with Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of our backbench MPs, that the process of choosing that new leader should begin now and the timetable will be announced next week,” he told the public outside Downing Street.
He said he was immensely proud of his achievements, including getting Brexit done, getting the UK through the pandemic and leading the West in standing up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
His wife Carrie was seen standing in the sidelines with their youngest baby Romy in a sling at just six months old. Where they’ll live and what they’ll do when he leaves the job in a few months remains to be seen, but one thing’s for sure if the last three years are anything to go by: the next few months will surely be full of more surpises.
