Boris says awesome things...

“Had London done it, I’m not sure we would have done the switcheroo with the girl with the braces.”

Fresh from a troublesome flight, Boris’s final answer to the collected media in Beijing on hid fact-finding mission this morning pleased Boriswatch no end – the old Boris is still lurking under the City Hall officialdom he is displaying so impressively. The main thing that struck me in his answers at the conference was the honesty that he showed. Rather than telling everyone that everything is fine and organised and glossing greatly over any potential cracks – as we are used to with high-end politicians – he candidly revealed the pressing matters that he and his team are hoping to iron out, including how on earth we can accomodate the extra traffic in London during the Games. He’s sharing the process and the concerns with the country, and that’s something I’m sure most of us will appreciate.
Inadvertently, China have dealt the London Games a blow – their exceptionally organised way and willingness to spend as much money as needed have left the London Olympic committee green with envy. London will have to run like clockwork just to avoid any poor comparisons with China’s immense efforts…

Dire days were expected when Boris came to be Mayor of London. “A dodgy campaign”, said many. “A fool who’s swindled the public”, warned others. My good friend Mark was even interested to see whether London’s transport system would still be functioning on the Monday after the result. But, as Andrew Gimson notes in The Telegraph this weekend, Boris’s foes must be severely disappointed.
Boriswatch, in all fairness, was hopeful but apprehensive. Boris’s two main personality prongs have always battled to gain control of the Boris bandwagon – the cheery, jovial wit who could charm the world but struggled to be taken seriously; and the intensely clever figure whose intellect had continually pushed him up the greasy political pole. Which would win?
Well, it sames that the intellect has won, which is great for Boris’s profile but does provide a little less column inches (don’t suppose you’ve noticed? Ed)
I had the privilege to visit City Hall a couple of months ago for a look around his office and a hearty discussion on Boris-based online adventures. His team were excited, enthusiastic and looking forward to the task ahead. They were, to put it sympathetically, sweeping out the cobwebs of the organically grown City Hall that existed under Ken Livingstone. There were departments doing virtually identical things. There was a culture of late arrivals and early departures in the working day. And there were many people who were firm Ken supporters, mainly because Ken gave them a job. This is all being spruced up, and City Hall will be much better value for money for Londoners. Londoners themselves, at least those who weren’t firm supporters before, seem to have warmed to the new administration too.
As the Telegraph’s article concludes, for a man who less than four years ago was sacked from his shadow front-bench post by the then Tory leader, it is a pretty astonishing comeback. Ken, it is whispered in Hall corridors, is certain to want to plan his own comeback in 4 years. Has the last 100 days changed his mind, do you think?

Here are some interesting Boris-related links found in the last few days:

• Lost rivers of London to resurface in Boris plan – Ooooh, good idea…
• I had to get on my bike to put light-jumping Boris in the frame – The journalist who caught boris light-jumping gives his account. Presumably, in order to achieve the journalistic masterpiece, he didn;t jump any lights himself?
• Boris Johnson pledges crackdown on London's illegal taxi touts – Boriswatch has NEVER hailed an illegal taxi. NEVER. Ahem.
• Cycling Mayor Boris 'at risk of terror attack' – Terrible news that Boris may be a sitting target on his bike.
• Wembley and Kingsbury Times – Mayor Boris exclusive interview – Boris gives his first local audio interview since winning as Mayor.
• Boris Johnson: All tanked up and ready to go | Mail Online – GQ's Dylan Jones on Boris's tenure as Motoring Correspondent, and visions of Boris in tank. In London.
• Dave Hill: Can Boris Johnson actually deliver for London? – Dave is not Boris's greatest fan. This article does nothing to dispel that view…
• Lost rivers of London to resurface in Boris plan – Ooooh, good idea…
• I had to get on my bike to put light-jumping Boris in the frame – The journalist who caught boris light-jumping gives his account. Presumably, in order to achieve the journalistic masterpiece, he didn;t jump any lights himself?
• Boris Johnson pledges crackdown on London's illegal taxi touts – Boriswatch has NEVER hailed an illegal taxi. NEVER. Ahem.
• Cycling Mayor Boris 'at risk of terror attack' – Terrible news that Boris may be a sitting target on his bike.
• Wembley and Kingsbury Times – Mayor Boris exclusive interview – Boris gives his first local audio interview since winning as Mayor.
• Boris Johnson: All tanked up and ready to go | Mail Online – GQ's Dylan Jones on Boris's tenure as Motoring Correspondent, and visions of Boris in tank. In London.
• Dave Hill: Can Boris Johnson actually deliver for London? – Dave is not Boris's greatest fan. This article does nothing to dispel that view…