Boris Johnson interview cancelled after embarrassing BBC error
The scheduled interview between BBC presenter Laura Kuenssberg and former Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been cancelled after Kuenssberg mistakenly sent her briefing notes to Johnson.
The interview, titled Boris Johnson: The Laura Kuenssberg Interview, was set to air on BBC One this Thursday. However, the BBC’s former political editor stated that it was “inappropriate” to proceed with the interview after accidentally sharing notes meant for her colleagues.
Kuenssberg acknowledged the incident as “embarrassing and disappointing,” but emphasized that “honesty is the best policy.”
The BBC confirmed that both parties agreed cancelling the interview was “the best course of action.”
Johnson, currently promoting his newly released memoir—recently serialised in a newspaper—is participating in various media interviews. Presenters typically work with a team of researchers to prepare interview briefs, which often include background information, controversies, and potential questions for the subject.
In a statement on X, Kuenssberg explained: “While prepping to interview Boris Johnson tomorrow, by mistake I sent our briefing notes to him in a message meant for my team.
“That obviously means it’s not right for the interview to go ahead.”
She continued: “It’s very frustrating, and there’s no point pretending it’s anything other than embarrassing and disappointing, as there are plenty of important questions to be asked.
“But red faces aside, honesty is the best policy. See you on Sunday,” she added, referring to her regular Sunday morning politics programme which will go ahead as normal.
Tomorrow’s interview with Boris Johnson won’t be going ahead. As Laura has explained, interview briefing notes meant for colleagues were inadvertently shared with him. This makes an interview tomorrow untenable. Under the circumstances, both the BBC and Mr Johnson’s team have… https://t.co/wW49KddRPL
— BBC News Press Team (@BBCNewsPR) October 2, 2024
