Unprecedented

In a 'winner-takes-all' politics, there must be losers. Then-PM Boris Johnson had managed to swerve the many scandals that came his way, and it seemed as if nothing could stop him.

His supporters couldn't get enough of his tenacity, his opposition were delirious with dismay.

But the walls were closing in. The way his reputation within the Conservative party was written started to change and it became clear that there was undeniable desire to distance the wider party from the Johnson narrative.

Guto Harri talks us through the final days of Boris Johnson as Prime Minister and gives us the inside track of what was really going on behind closed doors in possibly the most chaotic and unprecedented period in recent UK politics.

Archive credits 

1. tomcardy1 / ‘A special song just for you’ / YouTube

2. LBC / Global

3. Parliament Live TV

4. PA Media

5. Channel 4 News 

7. BBC News 

8. Sky News

Even those closest to Boris thought he was a Remainer. He liked to flirt with Eurosceptic views but had always been open about the benefits of remaining a member of the European Union.

And then Guto gets a call from Boris's sister - "Boris is about to do something really stupid, you're the only one in the world I can think of who can stop him."

Boris joined forces with Vote Leave and supported Brexit. But did he really understand the world he'd be drawn into?

From the questionable promises made, to the tribe of people he became stuck with, Brexit propelled Boris Johnson to become the Prime Minister - but it was a house built on sand.

Guto takes us through this unique, unrepeatable, and fast-moving time. He takes us into Number 10, a peek behind the curtain to see what really happened in a period that encapsulated Boris's rise to the very top of Government, to the chaos and scandals that would ultimately be his downfall.

Archive credits

1. PA Media

2. LBC / Global

3. 10 Downing Street / YouTube

4. Parliament Live TV

5. The Commonwealth / YouTube

6. Politics South East / BBC Sunday Politics

7. European Parliament Multimedia Centre / europa.eu

"I asked him whether he thought he was going to die.” What was going on behind closed doors when it looked like Boris was close to the edge?

Guto Harri, a trusted advisor to then PM Boris Johnson explains his account of what went on behind the shiny black door of No.10 Downing Street. By the time Guto arrived, COVID had ravaged the UK, thousands had died and many more had their lives turned upside down. And Boris nearly lost his.

The UK was tumbling out of a pandemic and into a cost-of-living crisis. The country needed a leader firing on all cylinders, and the Downing Street PR machine were desperate to prove Boris had bounced back from his bout of the disease. And then Boris gives a speech to business leaders… about Peppa Pig World.

Archive Credits: 

1. Good Thinking TV 

2. LBC / Global 

3. Parliament Live TV

4. The News Agents / Global

5. CNBC

6. BBC Newsnight / BBC News 

7. Bloomberg TV

8. BBC News 

9. PA Media 

10. U.S. Department of State / YouTube / 23 April 2020 

11. LBC News / Global

12. 10 Downing Street

13. ITV News

14. Sky News 

15. Beth Rigby Interviews… / Sky News 

16. Fabian Society / YouTube

"There's only one word that describes the parties held at number 10 during lockdown. It's not Partygate; its Clusterf**k" 

Guto Harri, a trusted advisor to then PM Boris Johnson explains his account of what went on behind the shiny black door of No.10 Downing Street. As the evidence against the PM mounted and the country's love/hate relationship with him increasingly turned to anger and disgust, Guto gives us exclusive access to what was happening inside No.10. 

Why did Boris deny the parties took place? What did he think of Sue Grey and was there ever a route for him to cling on to his position? 

As the walls closed in and the PM faced criminal proceedings, no-one knew how this would play out. This is Unprecedented. 

Archive Credits:

1. PA Media

2. LBC / Global

3. Parliament Live TV

4. BBC News

5. The News Agents / Global

6. ITV News

7. Sky News

8. The Telegraph

9. The Guardian

February 24th, 2022. The unthinkable happens.

Guto Harri is woken by a call from the Military Attaché explaining that Russia has just invaded Ukraine. Within a matter of minutes Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Zelenskyy are on the call.

"Are you ok? Do you have good people around you?" Boris asks.

"I'm fine. But you never know, when Russian Special Forces are moving in on your

city. I just hope this isn't the last time we speak to each other" Volodymyr replies.

And then the line went dead.

What happens next touches every nerve. Innocent civilians and children killed, schools and hospitals bombed, the biggest refugee crisis in Europe since WWII.

And among it all, a political grapple to understand what is happening and what Europe can do to restore peace and save lives. All the while facing down a nuclear superpower with an itchy trigger finger.

Guto Harri was Boris Johnson’s Communications Chief during one of the most chaotic periods in British political history. He was in the room when the big decisions were made. Join him as he opens the shiny black door to 10 Downing Street and takes you inside.

For this episode, it was a leadership moment like no other. Europe was looking down the barrel of a smoking gun. The UK had to respond. One false move could trigger another World War. It was unprecedented.

Archive Credits:

1. Good Thinking TV

2. LBC / Global

3. Parliament Live TV

4. BBC News

5. The News Agents / Global

6. ITV News

7. Sky News

8. United Nations / YouTube

9. The White House / YouTube / 24 February 2022

10. NATO News / YouTube

11. Office of the President of Ukraine / YouTube

12. PA Media

13. @warukraine9707 / 'God save The Queen - Ukrainian soldiers thank for help' / YouTube

14. 10 Downing Street

15. U.S. Department of State press conference / Facebook

16. U.S. Department of Defense / defense.gov

17. NBC News

18. Reuters

19. Channel 4 News

20. I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! / ITV / Lifted Entertainment

Boris Johnson could have been one of the most successful politicians of our time, but the shortcuts he took to get to Downing Street set him up to fail. In this episode, the rise of Boris and the mess he got himself into. Hear what he really thinks of Rishi Sunak, Sue Gray and his own MPs.

Guto Harri was Boris Johnson’s Communication Chief during one of the most chaotic periods in British political history. He was in the room when the big decisions were made. Join him as he opens the shiny black door to 10 Downing Street and takes you inside.When he first walked over the Number 10 threshold, things weren’t normal. A set of circumstances, scandals and chaos that will never be repeated. It was unprecedented.

Archive Credits:

1. Good Thinking TV

2. LBC / Global

3. Parliament Live TV 

4. PA Media

5. UK Supreme Court Live / 24 September 2019

6. BBC News

7. Mumsnet 

8. Downing Street Press Conference / February 2022 

9. The News Agents / Global  

10. AP Archive / ‘Conservative Boris Johnson wins London Mayoral elex’

11. The Dame Edna Treatment / ITV / Tiger Aspect Productions

12. Have I Got News For You / BBC / Hat Trick Productions

13. BBC Newsnight 

14. Out4Marriage / ‘Boris Johnson (@MayorofLondon) is Out4Marriage!’ / YouTube 

15. Pride In London / ‘A Message from the Mayor of London - Boris Johnson | Pride in London 2014’ / YouTube 

16. On Demand News / ITN Productions

17. tomcardy1 / ‘A special song just for you’/ YouTube

Brexit, Covid, Partygate, lockdowns, leaks, the war in Ukraine, a cost-of-living crisis and the scandals that plagued our politics. Guto Harri was in the room when the big decisions were made. In this podcast, expect unprecedented access behind the shiny black door of Number 10 Downing Street, during one of the most chaotic periods in British political history.  

Guto was Boris Johnson’s Communications Chief. When he first walked over the Number 10 threshold, things weren’t normal. A set of circumstances, scandals and chaos that will never be repeated. It was unprecedented. 

Episode 1 is available from May 11th on Global Player, and available May 12th everywhere else.