The former PM had a close run-in with one of the world’s largest birds while taking a holiday in the US with his family, and could be seen swearing and reeling in shock on video
Boris Johnson has been captured on camera squawking in pain as he’s bitten by an ostrich through his car window.
The disgraced former PM’s wife Carrie Johnson posted a hilarious clip this morning showing him swearing and yelling in pain after the flightless bird walked up to their car during a trip to a wildlife park in Texas. In the video, which Mrs Johnson uploaded to Instagram, the ostrich can be seen walking towards the car while her husband cuddles with one of their children, who excitedly exclaims as it approaches.
But the cute family scene turns ugly in less than a second after the ostrich pounces, with Mr Johnson heard shouting “ow” as it appears to lightly peck at his hand. He can then be heard swearing in the background as his son chuckles. Mrs Johnson shared the video saying it was “too funny” not to post.
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The encounter with the bird is the latest in a long-line of animal gaffes, with Mr Johnson having previously royally messed up with his dog during an ill-fated visit to Buckingham Palace while he was still Prime Minister. In 2020, not long after he was discharged from hospital following a near-deadly bout with Covid, royal biographer Robert Hardman said the late Queen Elizabeth II allowed him to use the Buckingham Palace gardens for walks with Mrs Johnson’s dog Dilyn.
But after accepting the offer and taking the pooch for a gentle walk around the royal residence, Dilyn killed a gosling. Writing in Queen of Our Times: The Life of Elizabeth II, the author added that the famously good-humoured monarch had a hilarious 10-word reply to the incident.
Mr Hardman wrote: “When the then Prime Minister Boris Johnson was out of hospital after ending up in intensive care during the first Covid lockdown, the Queen was characteristically thoughtful.
“She told him he was welcome to use the gardens of Buckingham Palace for walks with his wife, Carrie, and baby son, Wilfred (the monarch herself was shielding at Windsor).
“During one such walk, to Johnson’s horror, Carrie’s Jack Russell, Dilyn, attacked and killed a gosling near the palace pond. He decided that it would be best to say nothing at all, forgetting that nothing went unnoticed by the boss at Buckingham Palace.
“At their next encounter, the Queen nonchalantly talked about walking in the palace gardens before adding crisply: ‘I gather Jack Russells don’t go very well with goslings.’ That was the end of the matter.”