BBC Cancels Boris Johnson Interview After Mistaken Disclosure of Briefing Notes

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has cancelled a much-anticipated prime-time interview with former Prime Minister Boris Johnson following an unexpected mishap involving the show’s presenter, Laura Kuenssberg. The renowned BBC political presenter inadvertently sent her briefing notes to Johnson in a message that was intended for her production team. The notes, presumably highlighting the broad topics and potential questions for the interview, were never meant for Mr. Johnson’s eyes.

This interview, scheduled for Thursday at 7:30 pm on BBC One, was to mark Johnson’s first significant media appearance since resigning from office. He was anticipated to address salient issues such as Brexit, the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic during his tenure, and other key government directives. In her explanation, Kuenssberg referred to the incident as “embarrassing and disappointing,” and concluded that “it was not right for the interview to go ahead.”

Kuenssberg, who has previously dealt with matters relating to Johnson in her BBC Panorama episode “Partygate: Inside the Storm” and her series “State of Chaos,” expressed her regrets on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. “There’s no point pretending it’s anything other than embarrassing and disappointing,” she wrote, emphasizing that “honesty is the best policy.”

In a statement, a BBC spokesperson confirmed that both the corporation and Boris Johnson’s team mutually agreed that the unintended sharing of notes rendered the interview “untenable.” As a result, the interview has been officially cancelled. While a spokesperson for Mr. Johnson refrained from commenting on the situation, it is understood that the former Prime Minister is actively promoting his forthcoming memoir, which has recently been serialized in a major newspaper.

Other media personalities have shown interest in stepping in for Kuenssberg, with several volunteering through social media. These include former Sky News political editor Adam Boulton, Alastair Campbell who served under Tony Blair, and Channel 4 presenters Krishnan Guru-Murthy and Cathy Newman.

As the broadcast slot became available, the BBC announced that it would return the usual episode of the soap opera “EastEnders” to its 19:30 BST time slot. Meanwhile, it has been reported that Johnson is still scheduled for a separate interview with BBC journalist Matt Chorley on Radio 5 Live next Tuesday.