Key Election Task for U.K. Tories: Tame Boris Johnson
Anger management may decide whether the prime minister delivers profound and historic change to the U.K.
Boris Johnson erupted with rage. It was the spring of 2008, and he was fighting to win his first major election to become London mayor. Backstage at a television debate, the Labour Party’s Ken Livingstone, the incumbent Johnson needed to beat, had questioned Johnson’s ancestry, suggesting his Turkish great-grandfather who was murdered by a mob in the 1920s had collaborated with the British. Johnson saw red. According to Livingstone, he threatened to punch his lights out. Another person familiar with the matter said Johnson tried to strangle the Labour mayor.
Anger isn’t a facet of Johnson’s character that many people are familiar with. He made his name as a lighthearted journalist and TV personality who won fans for his performances as a lovably shambolic buffoon. The self-deprecating, boyish, and occasionally gaffe-prone character never took himself too seriously.