Posted: 10:09 PM EDT October 3, 2020 | Updated: 10:09 p.m. EDT October 3, 2020
Earlier this year I read – and enjoyed very much – Rachel Johnson’s mischievous political memoir, Rake’s Progress This ostensibly concerns her unfortunate efforts to get elected as a pro MP Remain of doomed Change UK party
But there are also some fascinating glimpses into his family life, and in particular his childhood with three brothers, one of whom is, of course, our Prime Minister
She writes about their chaotic childhood, their charismatic but absent father Stanley, their beautiful but troubled mother Charlotte She paints a picture of benign neglect, a peripatetic existence often on the verge of disaster
« Today the Johnson children would have been taken into care, » she says, describing Charlotte as a « tied broodmare » who « seemed to me to spend most of her time when she wasn’t. didn’t mind us smoking or cleaning ‘
Boris Johnson, UK Prime Minister, gestures as he speaks at a press conference unveiling coronavirus contingency plans inside Number 10 Downing Street in London on March 3
One of his brothers eats a strange mushroom he finds behind the stove and ends up in the hospital; Rachel herself almost chokes to death on a piece of eggshell As for her mother: ‘She was admitted to Maudsley Hospital with a case of OCD so severe that the doctors ended up trying, and failed, to cure it with an electric shock treatment, which was at least less violent than the other most fashionable therapy at the time, a lobotomy «
At the time, I thought this was all just a case of Rachel being a little over the top in her usual windy and self-deprecating way
But today’s frankly heartbreaking revelation that their father, Stanley, aside from being an absent father and serial adulterer, also once hit his wife Charlotte so hard that he broke her nose, cast an entirely different light on her memories
Suddenly, what seemed nothing worse than a slightly eccentric upbringing turns out to be a far cry from the glamorous, bohemian image of an unconventional but otherwise happy family that the Johnsons have always cultivated
And it shows, in a way Rachel never alluded to, the difficult family circumstances that characterized Boris’ early years Because Rachel is Right: As Tom Bower’s book details Today hui, these children would have been taken care of
This alleged incident, which will no doubt only serve to deepen the differences that already exist within the Johnson clan, is indeed of great concern And for once, it’s not just malicious gossip: the story comes straight from Stanley’s ex-wife Charlotte: « He broke his nose He made me feel like I deserved it An image emerges that is a far cry from the awkward but overall benign Stanley Johnson we know and love
That’s right, those overgrown toddlers that hurtle down our streets at 40 km / h on inflated skateboards: government approved
I’m no fan of the state of nannies, but do we really want to encourage these levels of suicidal stupidity?
Is this true? The broken nose incident has been confirmed by the family – but Stanley insists it was the only time he was violent and that it happened in the middle of an argument, and that it was accidental Boris and his siblings, it seems, were well aware of what was going on When he broke his nose, they were told their mother was hit by a car door But they weren’t stupid – far from it
It took incredible courage for Boris’ mother, now suffering from Parkinson’s disease, to decide to tell her story to biographer Tom Bower
It also shows, in my opinion, how difficult it must have been for her and the children that, 45 years later, she wanted to unearth memories that many might have thought would have been better. left buried in the mists of time Of course, an isolated act of domestic violence does not only affect those who are the direct recipients It can have a lasting impact on those around it, especially children
Knowing now that Boris could have witnessed such a traumatic event, and that his early years could have been characterized by such heartbreaking scenes, will inevitably prompt the Prime Minister’s most vehement critics to see him in a very different – and, I guess, a lot nicer – light
For young Boris, seeing his beloved mother being treated in this way by a father whom he also adored and idolized would only have engendered deep feelings of confusion and pain, made worse by the fact that when her parents divorced, the children were effectively left to fend for themselves
« We were abandoned as children after the divorce », says Rachel « We had to raise ourselves We had no home »
To what extent has all of this shaped the character of the man who now rules the country in this most trying time?
We are all, inevitably, products of our upbringing But this image of a troubled and unstable childhood is not just a stark reminder that such things can happen in any family, regardless of wealth and of style; it also perhaps answers some of the lingering questions about Boris himself and the true nature of this most mercurial politician
There is no doubt that the Prime Minister has faced an impossible challenge in recent months
There are many, both across the country and within his own party, who feel that the Boris they elected – the bombastic libertarian, the fiery go-getter, the man whose enthusiasm is contagious and indefatigable appetites have always inspired an army of followers – has been replaced by a completely different creature
Interestingly, his mother also believes that Boris ‘childhood influenced another undeniable aspect of his character: his attitude towards women and his infidelities in the series “Boris’ adultery,” his mother says, “is like his father’s pictured Boris Johnson as a young boy
Boris 2020 is very different from Boris 2019 And while this is largely understandable – after all, what man wouldn’t be changed in one way or another by contact with the Grim Reaper, the arrival new baby and having to deal with a global pandemic – many are seeing it as too slave of his scientific advisers, openly cautious, insufficiently maverick
A darker and more cautious individual, a man who suddenly doesn’t seem so sure of himself A man who sometimes stumbles over his words, who seems to turn to others for validation In short, not the « real one » Boris, the old Boris
But the question in my mind, having any idea of what he went through growing up, is to what extent Boris was ever « real »
I had a thought that might help: the current school term end date is Friday December 18
If this were to be moved to Friday, December 11, children could be isolated for two weeks from their huge annual bubbles – and safely spend time with their grandparents on Christmas Day
How much was Boris’ Boris-ness, so to speak, really him – and how much of an elaborate defense mechanism designed to disguise a much more subtle, nuanced, and complex personality?
Think, for example, of the now infamous incident where as a young boy he said he wanted to be ‘king of the world’
But if you’re a little boy whose life is chaos, who longs for control, who wants to make things right, who is desperate to help your fragile and sick mother, wouldn’t you want everything to be okay? ?
As her mother Charlotte herself says: “I have often thought that her role as ‘King of the world’ was a wish to make yourself unscathed, invincible, somehow free from your mother’s pains. disappearing for eight months «
Interestingly, his mother also believes that Boris ‘childhood influenced another undeniable aspect of his character: his attitude towards women and his infidelities in the series “Boris’ adultery,” his mother says, “is like his father’s «
Whether that’s true or not, I can’t say Whatever their flaws, both are unmistakably extremely charismatic alpha males and, as such, very attractive to women.
But it is certainly true that fathers inevitably shape the behavior of their children, and in particular that of sons
It must have been difficult for Boris to grow up with a father who not only made his mother very unhappy, but also made it clear through his actions that his family was not always his first priority.
Either way, there’s no doubt that it will be incredibly painful for the whole family, and Boris in particular, to relive those unhappy memories from so long ago, even though the revelation could represent a kind of fence for his mother
It’s the curse of all public figures that sooner or later someone finds that piece of dirty laundry that you had completely forgotten Boris, it has to be said, seems to have more than most
On this occasion, he can at least take comfort in the fact that, for once, it’s not his fault
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