The BBC has cancelled an interview with Boris Johnson after presenter Laura Kuenssberg accidentally sent the former prime minister her briefing notes.
The presenter of the BBC’s flagship Sunday political interview show said she sent Johnson the notes “in a message meant for my team”.
Kuenssberg, who was the BBC’s political editor between 2015 and 2022, said it was “embarrassing and disappointing”, adding the error meant it was “not right for the interview to go ahead”.
Johnson, who was prime minister from 2019 to 2022, has an upcoming memoir, Unleashed, that will be published next week.
Kuenssberg previously investigated his government in Panorama – Partygate: Inside the Storm, and looked back at the recent Conservative years in a three-part BBC Two series, Laura Kuenssberg: State of Chaos.
In a post on X on Wednesday evening, Kuenssberg wrote: “While prepping to interview Boris Johnson tomorrow, by mistake I sent our briefing notes to him in a message meant for my team.
“That obviously means it’s not right for the interview to go ahead.
“It’s very frustrating, and there’s no point pretending it’s anything other than embarrassing and disappointing, as there are plenty of important questions to be asked.
“But red faces aside, honesty is the best policy. See you on Sunday.”
A BBC spokesperson was reported as saying the inadvertent move made Thursday’s interview “untenable” and that both the BBC and Johnson’s team had agreed to cancel the interview.
The interview was due to be broadcast on Thursday evening.
A spokesperson for Johnson declined to comment.