One is always grateful for the Boris's of the political world when they appear on stage, not least because they break the usual eye-stabbing tedium of it all. For the benefit of my foreign readers, the particular Boris I have in mind is Boris Johnson, currently Mayor of London, and shortly to re-enter Westminster as an MP taking with him, I guess, his briefcase (if he can remember where he left it) and a dagger with which to stab 'Dim Dave' firmly between the shoulder blades. Of course, as this mini-montage of photos indicate, Boris is an absolute bona fide eccentric, so the dagger might well turn out to be made of rubber - you never know with Boris!
Of course, it's true to say that you can never tell anything about politicians not least because most of them have the charisma and eloquence of a speak-your-weight machine and possibly the brain power of one as well. But there are occasional exceptions - one thinks of Winston Churchill - who have much to say and no hesitation in saying it. The problem then is sorting out exactly what was said and what was meant. And words (as any blog-owner will tell you!) are almost certain to come back and bite you in the arse! Churchill, for example, had his faithful followers but also a huge gallery of enemies who never ceased to accuse him of failing to live up to his own words. Thus it is with Boris.
He delights in playing the buffoon but you would need to be purblind not to sense the guile and intelligence that lies behind it. Also, the sheer, naked ambition! Nearly all MPs want to be prime minister but most recognize that their chances are vanishingly tiny. But some some never do and spend their waking days and sleepless nights driving towards it. Boris is such a one. Whether he makes it or not I do not know. Whether he will be any good if he gets the job I also do not know. In the meantime, let's all just sit back and watch and enjoy one of the greatest Falstaff's of our age!
