An interview with former prime minister Boris Johnson, set to promote his upcoming memoir, has been cancelled by the BBC after presenter Laura Kuenssberg accidentally sent her briefing

notes to Johnson.

The special programme, scheduled to air on Thursday evening, had been highly publicized. Kuenssberg, who hosts the BBC’s Sunday politics show, admitted the error, describing it as "embarrassing and disappointing." She explained on X (formerly Twitter), "I was preparing to interview Mr Johnson and accidentally sent our briefing notes to him in a message meant for my team."

Acknowledging the mishap, Kuenssberg stated, "It’s obviously not right for the interview to proceed," and added that the situation was "frustrating" as there were "plenty of important questions to ask." However, she concluded, "Red faces aside, honesty is the best policy."

The 30-minute interview was intended to be Johnson’s first in a series of media appearances promoting his new memoir, Unleashed, due for release on 10 October. A BBC spokesperson confirmed that due to the circumstances, both the broadcaster and Johnson's team agreed not to proceed with the interview, deeming it "untenable."

Johnson’s publishers have billed the memoir as providing significant cultural and political insights, sparking widespread conversation. In excerpts already released, Johnson expressed uncertainty over whether the COVID lockdowns he imposed were decisive in managing the pandemic and shared a bizarre plan he considered to raid a Dutch warehouse for vaccines, which he admitted was "nuts."

Additionally, Johnson accused current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of orchestrating the end of his political career, comparing it to Brutus' betrayal of Julius Caesar. He also revealed that Buckingham Palace had asked him to give Prince Harry a "manly pep talk" in an effort to persuade him to remain in the UK.

While the BBC interview has been cancelled, Sky News will air an interview with Johnson next week, conducted by presenter Wilfred Frost. Photo by EU2017EE Estonian Presidency, Wikimedia commons.