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Unleashed

By: Boris Johnson
Narrated by: Boris Johnson
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Summary

THE UNMISSABLE, UNVARNISHED MEMOIRS OF BORIS JOHNSON

‘ABSOLUTELY, TOTALLY, MIND-BLOWINGLY EXPLOSIVE’ ED BALLS

'SENSATIONAL' DAILY MAIL

Boris Johnson has always been larger than life. Controversial, untrammelled by the normal rules of politics, his route to becoming Britain’s prime minister included a landmark career as a journalist, two terms as London’s mayor, leading the Vote Leave Brexit campaign and acting as foreign secretary. He won the largest Tory majority since 1987 when he went to the polls in December 2019 for a mandate to ‘Get Brexit Done’ – only to have his administration hit by the global Covid pandemic and toppled in a Tory putsch.

Unleashed is his account of his time in politics, and a book that shatters the mould of the modern prime ministerial memoir. Written in his inimitable style, it is honest, unrestrained and deeply revealing about the politician who has dominated our times.

This is his story of the fifteen years since he trounced Ken Livingstone at the polls to become mayor of London. Riots, tackling knife crime, bikes, buses, the London Olympics, and so much more. He writes about his role in Brexit, takes readers through all the big decisions and his reasons for taking them, and describes how he nearly died from Covid.

Underlying everything in the book is his view that the UK is an extraordinary country and should have an exceptional future. These are the reflections of a political leader who believes fundamentally in levelling up – that there are millions of people in Britain who do not have the present they need or the future they deserve, and that it is the first job of politicians to put this right.

It is all here. From soup to nuts, warts and all. As a journalist he was famed as a blurter of unsayable truths, and he has drawn again on this quality for the book. About people, policies, mistakes and triumphs. This is it – the reality as he saw it: unvarnished, unlocked, unleashed.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2024 Boris Johnson (P)2024 HarperCollins Publishers
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What listeners say about Unleashed

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From the horses mouth

Absolutely fascinating insight into the political era of Boris Johnson. He is not perfect, but I do believe that he has done his best. I hope, one day soon, he will be back to lead our, once great, party.

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2 people found this helpful

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Interesting & provoking memoir

The book is a good length and deals with the key elements of the Johnson administration, as well as prior political roles. Whilst the content and views expressed will be digested according to ideology, the delivery is very good. There are also several surprising stories shared.

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1 person found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars

We need him back!

Hearing this both asks the question as to why the media so relentless goes after him, but also answers it by detailing all the people from his past with an axe to grind. You'll see he was incredibly hard done by at the end and was probably one of the most intelligent and well meaning prime ministers we had. Seeing what an absolute mess Labour are making now, Boris would win the next election hands down, even under a reform UK banner.

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Brilliant orator, leader and visionary

I have always admired Boris Johnson but never realised the depth of his experience and knowledge of world affairs, politics and what makes a successful leader and country. I have learnt and been reminded of so much recent history, good and bad. Johnson's narrative is a wonderful combination of seriousness, humour, intelligence, compassion and humanity. I would recommend this book (particular as read by Boris himself) to anyone interested in how the world works. You will be surprised and rewarded.

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How frank it was.

I enjoyed finding out more about
BJ how he became mayor of London and prime minister of Great Britain.

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    4 out of 5 stars

Hilarious

Whether you love him or hate him, he is entertaining. He narrates his own story and obviously a lot of it is clouded with his usual bumptiousness and sense of his own greatness. It is not quite as gossipy as I would have liked and there is quite a bit of self justification but then all the political memoirs I have read are like that. It is definitely one of the most entertaining political biography I have ever read.

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Well read, easy listen

Fantastic insight into what it was like during his term. Really enjoyable relatable listen. Highly recommend

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A thoroughly enjoyable read

Nothing to dislike. It was nice to hear of his meetings with our much missed late Queen Elizabeth, in particular the genuine bond that they seemed to have and cherish.
Most importantly, the fact that Boris was reading the book himself, and outlining his own thoughts on his life experiences both personal and political made me more interested in listening and understanding the story behind his downfall; with friends like that, who needs enemies?
He hit the nail on the head in my view when he was speaking about the sharp decline of the party who treated him disgracefully, that a large chunk of the electorate, me included, had voted for BORIS to be prime minister, not the disaster that followed him.

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Enjoyable performance from a polarising PM

I was delighted when i saw the length of this title as I'm a real sucker for in-depth political memoirs, especially if well delivered as of course this is, But this will only re-enforce a listener's view of Johnson, it certainly won't change any minds, He's bombastic, garrulous and frankly for me very amusing, but he does come across (probably because it's the case) as a rather unserious politician, always looking for a wisecrack or funny gag. His regular use of the word "lefties" in a derogatory way is a good example of this,

He also for me goes into far too much detail about things not overly interesting, there are many many chapters on his time at the Foreign Office, and while some of it is interesting it does get tiresome.

How you view his account on Brexit depends i suspect on how you voted in the referendum; this listener completely agrees with him that the efforts to thwart Brexit from within the Conservative Party and the Establishment at large were a disgrace, others will feel the opposite.

There are some good gossipy anecdotes very well delivered, and his retelling of his interactions with Theresa May had me snorting with laughter.

Overall a jolly good use of a credit.

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8 people found this helpful

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Hugely entertaining read

Couldn’t put this down. Witty, revealing and with Boris’s charm and ebullience evident throughout. Whatever your views of his time in office this is a top read.

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3 people found this helpful