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Politics
Liam O'Dell
Jan 26, 2022
Boris Johnson was 'ambushed with a cake', claims loyal Tory MP
Channel 4 News/Twitter
We’ve seen several Conservative MPs rush to defend Prime Minister Boris Johnson this week amid reports of yet another lockdown party, but one Tory’s explanation for the alleged rule-breaking birthday party in No 10 takes the biscuit – or rather, cake.
Speaking to Channel 4 News’ Cathy Newman on Tuesday, the Northern Ireland minister Conor Burns defence of the PM caused people to more than raise their eyebrows. First he said people can “characterise these things in different ways”.
He said: “My understanding of that, from what I know of it, and I know as much as you do or your viewers as home know, the prime minister was out on a visit. He came back, he was working in the cabinet room.
“People came in and presented him with the cake on his birthday, they sang ‘happy birthday’, he was there for about 10 minutes.
“It was not a premeditated, organised party in that sense, that the prime minister himself decided to have sent out…”
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The Channel 4 News presenter interjected: “Well invites were sent out.”
“Well he, as far as I can see, he was in a sense, ambushed with a cake. They came to his office with a cake, they sang ‘happy birthday’, he was there for 10 minutes,” Mr Burns added.
The bizarre defence has since trended online, with the hashtag #AmbushedWithCake surfacing on Twitter.
He has done Boris in here \n\n: tomelwes (IG)pic.twitter.com/7FulHKas4V— LADbible (@LADbible) 1643127660
Help I\u2019m being ambushed with a cakepic.twitter.com/TI5Yk5K4ba— James Felton (@James Felton) 1643138273
The Downing Street staff clearly put a lot of thought into my surprise birthday cake. \n#ambushedwithacakepic.twitter.com/mw2Pnn89X3— Parody Boris Johnson (@Parody Boris Johnson) 1643145701
I was at a party where they gave me a cake with candles and sang happy birthday to me, but I didn't realise it was my birthday party. \n#ambushedwithacakepic.twitter.com/biobmRyPyD— Asphalt_World \ud83d\udd30 (@Asphalt_World \ud83d\udd30) 1643143182
\u201cSo what was the excuse for this one?\u201d\n\n\u201cThey\u2019re saying he was \u2018ambushed with cake\u2019.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo it wasn\u2019t a premeditated party then.\u201d\n\n\u201c\u201d\n\n#PartyGate #ambushedwithacakepic.twitter.com/m7DUzFibSe— Carrie (not Princess Nut Nuts) \ud83d\udc99\ud83c\uddea\ud83c\uddfa\ud83d\udca8\ud83e\ude81\ud83c\udfc4\ud83c\udffb\u200d\u2642\ufe0f\ud83e\udd8b (@Carrie (not Princess Nut Nuts) \ud83d\udc99\ud83c\uddea\ud83c\uddfa\ud83d\udca8\ud83e\ude81\ud83c\udfc4\ud83c\udffb\u200d\u2642\ufe0f\ud83e\udd8b) 1643145953
Police pictures of the latest seizure of offensive weapons.\n#ambushedwithacakepic.twitter.com/p4v58TdGfz— ian campbell (@ian campbell) 1643183417
Spotted Cressida Dick #ambushedwithacakepic.twitter.com/Q9QkO2MNC5— John Prescott (@John Prescott) 1643141581
This is it. British politics has peaked. Dissolve Parliament and call it a day.pic.twitter.com/6y9SXknauU— Alan White (@Alan White) 1643139175
Never trust a cake. Ambushing bastards.— Gary Lineker \ud83d\udc99 (@Gary Lineker \ud83d\udc99) 1643147724
Am hearing the getting ambushed by a cake defence is Flan B.— THE SECRET TORY (@THE SECRET TORY) 1643140454
\u201cNow tell them the PM was ambushed with cake\u201dpic.twitter.com/inHBCE2QoT— Rachel Love-Howseman (@Rachel Love-Howseman) 1643139306
\u201cAmbushed by cake\u201d pic.twitter.com/J7MvytUQE4— Jack Monroe (@Jack Monroe) 1643141224
pic.twitter.com/v31knBcyAy— Captain Howdy (@Captain Howdy) 1643142633
Tonight I was ambushed by a Chinese takeaway.— Jess Phillips MP (@Jess Phillips MP) 1643149468
I once saw Ambushed By Cake support Jimmy Eat World at the London Astoria— Greg Jenner (@Greg Jenner) 1643139242
Meanwhile, Commons leader Jacob Rees-Mogg went viral himself with similar cake comments later that evening, when he said he prefers the term ‘ambuscade’ over ‘ambush’ – remarks which have been branded “pompous” and “patronising”.
Not least because ‘ambuscade’ and ‘ambush’ mean the exact same thing.
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