The foreign secretary has been accused of “incredible insensitivity”
after it emerged he recited part of a colonial-era Rudyard Kipling poem
in front of local dignitaries while on an official visit to Myanmar in January.Boris Johnson
was inside the Shwedagon Pagoda, the most sacred Buddhist site in the
capital Yangon, when he started uttering the opening verse to The Road
to Mandalay, including the line: “The temple bells they say/ Come you
back you English soldier.”Kipling’s poem captures the nostalgia of a retired serviceman looking
back on his colonial service and a Burmese girl he kissed. Britain
colonised Myanmar from 1824 to 1948 and fought three wars in the 19th
century, suppressing widespread resistance.Johnson’s impromptu recital was so embarrassing that the UK
ambassador to Myanmar, Andrew Patrick, was forced to stop him. The
incident was captured by a film crew for Channel 4 and will form part of
a documentary to be broadcast on Sunday about the fitness of the MP for
Uxbridge and South Ruislip to become prime minister.The previously unbroadcast footage shows the diplomat managing to
halt Johnson before he could get to the line about a “Bloomin’ idol made
o’ mud/ Wot they called the Great Gawd Budd” – a reference to the
Buddha.[…]
A visibly tense ambassador stood by as Johnson continued: “The wind
is in the palm trees and the temple bells they say …” Then Patrick
reminded him: “You’re on mic,” adding: “Probably not a good idea…”“What?” Johnson replied. “The Road to Mandalay?”
“No,” said the ambassador sternly. “Not appropriate.”
“No?” replied Johnson looking down at his mobile phone. “Good stuff.”
Boris Johnson caught on camera reciting Kipling in Myanmar temple
Death By Catchphrase 