Boris Johnson described Sue Gray investigation as 'an orgy of pain, abuse and humiliation', says ex-No.10 media chief

11 May 2023, 07:00

Boris Johnson hit out at Sue Gray's inquiry
Boris Johnson hit out at Sue Gray's inquiry. Picture: Alamy/Getty/LBC
Kieran Kelly

By Kieran Kelly

Boris Johnson described Sue Gray's investigation into lockdown-busting parties an "orgy of pain, abuse and humiliation", his former Downing Street director of communications has revealed.

Listen to this article

Loading audio...

Guto Harri, who was director of communications between February and September 2022 - the final months of Mr Johnson's time in No10 - said the ex-PM faced "real trouble" for the first time during the investigation.

Speaking on his new podcast Unprecedented: Inside Downing Street on Global Player, Mr Harri said: "Something was happening to Boris that he'd never had to deal with before. He was in real trouble. Big trouble.

"Conservative MPs in his words had become psychotic.

"The police were trawling all over Partygate and an inquiry led by an – until then, at least – obscure civil servant called Sue Gray, now a household name of course and a hero of the left, was planning what he described then as an orgy of pain, abuse and humiliation."

Listen and subscribe to Unprecedented: Inside Downing Street on Global Player

Mr Harri's new six-part podcast will reveal the inner workings of Government from his experiences at the heart of Mr Johnson's Downing Street operation during its final few months.

The tumultuous ending saw him try to cling on as he faced constant questions about his handling of Partygate and then a raft of resignations as his ministers felt they could no longer support him.

Listen and subscribe to Unprecedented: Inside Downing Street on Global Player
Listen and subscribe to Unprecedented: Inside Downing Street on Global Player. Picture: LBC

Mr Harri also reveals exclusive details about the breakdown in the relationship between former Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Mr Johnson, who had a "fundamental disagreement of policy".

Mr Harri reveals: "There was a moment where Boris blew up. Sadly, Rishi was not in the room. He needed to know but Boris just basically went, f*** this s***, man, f*** this s***. We need to clear out the Treasury.

"The Treasury is acting like a bank manager, not an engine of growth. We need Singapore-on-Thames. We need dynamism. We're not here to just manage the decline, we need the growth engine of the British economy to be humming.

Listen and subscribe to LBC on Global Player.
Listen and subscribe to LBC on Global Player. Picture: LBC

"And so, this tension was building and that was far more significant in the end, behind the scenes, than any row over Partygate or the trivial nonsense of everyday politics.

"This was a fundamental disagreement of policy that explains the fault lines that are still at the heart of the Conservative Party."

Read More: Boris 'squared up to Charles' in row over slavery says ex-No.10 media chief

Read More: Boris Johnson believed Partygate was a stitch-up by ‘psycho’ Sue Gray, claims former media chief Guto Harri

Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak
Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak. Picture: Getty

Recounting a conversation with Boris Johnson after Rishi Sunak resigned from his role as Chancellor last summer, Mr Harri said: "Rishi walked out. Didn't even tell Boris he was going to go. Basically, he went public with a resignation.

"And a few days later, Boris found a little video on the internet that expressed what he wanted to say to Rishi. He didn't send it, but he sent it to me and said, ‘thinking of sending this to Rishi.’

"Video plays: ‘you’re a c***.’ ‘So, there you have it. If you really want to know how Boris Johnson felt about Rishi Sunak in the immediate aftermath of his toppling and the great betrayal of all time as he sees it, there you have it."

Listen and subscribe to Unprecedented: Inside Downing Street on Global Player

More Latest News

See more More Latest News

Gemma Southall, 38, last seen in Norwich on Saturday.

Police launch urgent hunt for woman, 38, last seen in pink vest and flip flops missing since Saturday

Dame Judi Dench played M in several James Bond films

Who is Blaise Metreweli - the real life M and first female head of MI6?

Exclusive
Economic Secretary to the Treasury Emma Reynolds was flummoxed by questions about the Lower Thames crossing

Treasury minister unable to answer basic questions on £10bn Thames crossing in car crash LBC interview

Belinda Taylor, left, and Adam Harrison, right, died during a tandem jump on Friday.

Tributes pour in for 'selfless' mother-of-four and 'wonderful' skydiving instructor who died during tandem jump

An Air India flight takes off.

Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner flight forced to turn back with 'technical issue'

NATO Scramble RAF Typhoons Four Times In Seven Days To Intercept Russian Aircraft

RAF fighter jets scrambled six days in a row as fifteen Russian military aircraft intercepted

J.J. Spaun holds the U.S. Open trophy

JJ Spaun hails 'fairytale' victory as Robert MacIntyre’s US Open dream crushed

The trilateral Aukus partnership, believed to be aimed at countering China, involves building a new fleet of nuclear-powered attack submarines and co-operating in other areas of defence

Starmer has 'no doubt' Trump will back Aukus submarine deal despite ‘America First’ review

Falmouth youth fights for Transgender rights as Section 35 enacted repealing a Scottish Bill that would benefit the transgender community

Nearly 10,000 gender certificates granted as Gen Z applications soar

Israeli security personnel and first responders inspect an area hit by an Iranian missile strike on central Tel Aviv.

Israel-Iran LIVE: At least five dead and 287 injured in latest strikes on Tel Aviv as fighting enters its fourth day

Seven men who groomed two vulnerable teenage girls in Rochdale were found guilty of multiple offences last week

Starmer calls in 'Britain's FBI' to investigate grooming gangs after U-turn on national inquiry

Vance Boelter, 57, is suspected of fatally shooting the Democratic state representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark

Man suspected of shooting Minnesota politicians in 'targeted assassination' arrested after two-day manhunt

Firefighters work to extinguish a blaze after a missile launched from Iran struck Haifa, in northern Israel, on Sunday, June 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Rami Shlush)

UK warns against all travel to Israel as missile strikes continue into third night

Sources told US media that Israel had briefed the Trump administration on a covert operation to target Iran’s top political figure

Donald Trump rejected Israeli plan to kill Iran’s Khamenei amid spiralling Middle East tensions

A third of children’s sunglasses bought from online marketplaces including Amazon, AliExpress, Ebay and Temu do not provide the required protection and are unsafe, according to a Which? investigation.

Third of sunglasses sold online pose risk to children’s eyesight, Which? says

Belinda Taylor died in a skydiving accident

Family demand answers after ‘selfless’ woman dies in 'tragic' skydiving accident