The Riddle of Boris: has he actually read any Shakespeare?

Boris Johnson would like us to believe that he is well-versed in the words of Shakespeare. Rumour even has it that the Prime Minister was busy writing a six-years-in-the-making book on the iconic playwright’s work instead of attending Cobra meetings in the early days of the pandemic.

Shakespeare: The Riddle of Genius, in which Johnson sets out to “examine the psychology of Shakespeare’s characters” and “celebrate the playwright’s appreciation of women”, earned Johnson a cool £88,000 advance. Yet, one has to wonder, has the Prime Minister actually read Shakespeare?

Reflecting on his handling of the pandemic, it seems there are numerous lessons to be learned from the Bard of Avon, none of which Johnson seems to have taken note of. This is strange considering the depths of research usually required to write a book. With that being said, Johnson’s journalism career was awash with embellishment and fabrication – do we have reason to believe his work as an author would be any different? Perhaps if he had spent more time reading Shakespeare and less time trying to write about him, the last year and a half might have turned out differently.

If I were Boris Johnson, the first work of Shakespeare I would turn to would be Othello. Turning the pages he would likely be convinced of similarities between himself and the titular hero; Othello is a powerful leader, whose stories of adventure woo a younger woman, a relationship from which much trouble ensues. But if Boris is Othello, who is his Iago? You only have to tune into Parliament TV today to have a good idea…

Iago, once Othello’s right-hand man, is embittered by the promotion and celebration of others ahead of him. His loyalty to Othello quickly transforms into megalomania: “I follow him to serve my turn upon him”, he says. A leader well-versed in Shakespeare would surely not be so blind to treachery as to faithfully stick up for Dominic Cummings, only to be repeatedly stabbed in the back? The difference between Shakespeare’s play and the real world is, of course, that the play finishes with Iago’s declaration: “From this time forth I never will speak word.” Boris would be so lucky – Cummings might be a little harder to shut up.

For specific advice on the coronavirus crisis, Boris might turn to Romeo and Juliet. The plague plays a part in the miscommunication that leads to both Romeo and Juliet’s death; Friar John is meant to deliver Romeo a message about Juliet’s faux death only to find himself in a plague-infected house and quarantined. If authorities in the 16th century were able to put effective quarantine measures in place, surely, given the (unrealised) potential for a track and trace app, the same should have been easily accomplished in 2020.

Failing that, Johnson might have done well to take note of Lady Macbeth’s hygienic hand washing habits – “Out, damned spot! Out, I say!” Macbeth could also provide a vital warning of the dangers of over-ambition matched with a weak character and a bossy wife. And whilst Macbeth had divining witches, Boris had intelligent scientific advisors – both took from the prophecies what they wanted to believe and ignored the rest. Things didn’t end so well for either of them.

Finally (though I’d advise reading the full catalogue before finishing the book), I’d turn to Hamlet. Johnson, father of many and husband to a few, might find the protagonist of this play harder to relate to, since Hamlet hates women and wishes to ban marriage. But the play still contains a valuable lesson. The character Laertes is setting off for Paris when his father advises: “Neither a borrower nor a lender be; / For loan oft loses both itself and friend.” This would be one to share with Matt Hancock and the friends and neighbours that found themselves handed lucrative PPE contracts; do not borrow from or lend money to a friend, or you might lose both the money and the friend – or face a public enquiry. 

In Johnson’s defence, the infamous “let the bodies pile up” comment, does sound straight out of Macbeth, so maybe he has read the Sparknotes. But then again, with Hancock spewing out phrases like Britain should “carefully replace the shield of restrictions with the sword of vaccinations”, maybe they both just watch Game of Thrones.