It’s not quite true that Biden gave Boris a bespoke bike and got a framed Wikipedia photo in return
by Rashmee
Posted on June 14, 2021
/ BLIMEY BLIGHTY Britain may be much poorer for Brexit but it’s not so broke it can’t give the American president a decent gift. Social media has been in a stew about the supposedly cheapskate present given by Boris Johnson to Joe Biden when he met him at the G7 summit in Cornwall. The British prime … Continue reading “It’s not quite true that Biden gave Boris a bespoke bike and got a framed Wikipedia photo in return”
Read MoreBoris and that ‘special relationship’
by Rashmee
Posted on June 11, 2021
/ LANGUAGE Boris Johnson, it turns out, isn’t overly fond of the phrase “special relationship”. There’s no accounting for tastes and Mr Johnson’s career as a wordsmith means it’s worth paying some attention to why he doesn’t like the phrase. As a journalist out in the field — Brussels, headquarters of the European Union — … Continue reading “Boris and that ‘special relationship’”
Read MoreThe Churchill Factor
by Rashmee
Posted on June 10, 2021
/IT’S THE BUSINESS Seven years ago, Boris Johnson published ‘The Churchill Factor’, a book that one erudite reviewer described as “a self-aggrandising pot-boiler”. Today, he gets to channel his hero alongside US president Joe Biden. In a somewhat self-regarding reprisal, Mr Johnson will play Churchill to Mr Biden’s Roosevelt as the two men sign a new … Continue reading “The Churchill Factor”
Read MoreBoris Johnson and that honeymoon
by Rashmee
Posted on June 7, 2021
Sometimes, it’s hard for a newly married prime minister to feel the love / BLIMEY BLIGHTY Boris Johnson, Britain’s prime minister is recently married, a new dad and has impressive public approval numbers. But his own party seems to be increasingly out of love with him. Britain woke to a bright beautiful June day with … Continue reading “Boris Johnson and that honeymoon”
Read MoreCarrie Symonds made an honest man of Boris Johnson
by Rashmee
Posted on May 30, 2021
/ TRAVELS IN MY MIND On Bank Holiday weekend, Britain woke to the news that its prime minister had made an honest woman of Carrie Symonds. Or, for those who bristle at the imputation that an adult woman needs to be made whole and honest in some way merely because she lives with someone, on … Continue reading “Carrie Symonds made an honest man of Boris Johnson”
Read MoreWhat’s a cautious hug? It depends on where in Britain you are
by Rashmee
Posted on May 17, 2021
/ BLIMEY BLIGHTY From today, May 17, Covid-19 rules across Britain will be a patchwork — relaxed, marginally relaxed, marginally uptight and fairly uptight. Pubs and restaurants in England and Wales will welcome customers indoors for the first time in ages. People in England will be allowed to give friends and family cautious hugs and … Continue reading “What’s a cautious hug? It depends on where in Britain you are”
Read MoreVoters reward Boris but what about the fog of Brexit Newspeak?
by Rashmee
Posted on May 14, 2021
/ LANGUAGE The May 6 elections in England showed something interesting. People want to be team-players. In a pandemic, they want to support their government, particularly when it has tried to do what it can to keep them safe. Accordingly, Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party gained approbation — and votes — because its government overcame its … Continue reading “Voters reward Boris but what about the fog of Brexit Newspeak?”
Read MoreBrexit or not, Northern Ireland new troubles are criminal not political for now
by Rashmee
Posted on April 19, 2021
/ BLIMEY BLIGHTY Days of recent unrest in Northern Ireland have caused everyone to have horrible flashbacks. It’s been 23 years after the Good Friday agreement ended decades of violence. Even though the recent incidents aren’t the old “Troubles”, as they used to be called, this new streak is profoundly troubling. A bus hijacked … Continue reading “Brexit or not, Northern Ireland new troubles are criminal not political for now”
Read More‘Global Britain’. Slogan or strategy?
by Rashmee
Posted on March 1, 2021
/ BLIMEY BLIGHTY This month, the British government will publish a review of ‘Global Britain’, its ambitious branding strategy. Twelve weeks after Brexit finally happened, ‘Global Britain’ remains an aspiration, possibly an audacious one. How can Britain claim it wants to be “global” when it has left the biggest trade and cooperation agreement in its … Continue reading “‘Global Britain’. Slogan or strategy?”
Read MoreVaccination success may be a shot in the arm for Britain in another key way
by Rashmee
Posted on February 22, 2021
/ BLIMEY BLIGHTY Simon Kuper wrote an important piece in the Financial Times (paywall) the other day about the pandemic-induced chance for success thrown up for Brexit Britain. I hope Boris Johnson and his advisers read it. “What national strengths does Britain’s vaccine success reveal?” he asked, “Is there a model here for Brexit Britain?” … Continue reading “Vaccination success may be a shot in the arm for Britain in another key way”
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Rashmee has lived and worked in several countries in the past decade, including Afghanistan, India, Haiti, Tunisia, the UAE, US and UK