The prime minister’s behaviour is increasingly bizarre, but that’s nothing new – his traits always get worse when he is cornered
Boris Johnson’s bizarre insistence yesterday that he would not “undergo a psychological transformation” despite mounting fury at his mendacious and lawbreaking conduct gave us a rare insight into his tortured mind. The bags under his eyes, the ever-expanding middle, the sweaty goosey pink skin all bear testimony to a man who is increasingly uncomfortable with himself and his legacy.
There have always been flashes of instability – the frothing temper, the bizarre shrieking when under pressure – but as a narcissist these traits only get worse when he is cornered as he is now. I remember friends of Johnson telling me just before he became prime minister that there was concern in the family that he was simply not sufficiently mentally stable to cope with the relentless pressures and problems of running a country.
