Hardly the outsider that he likes to style himself as either.

Just going to find out what the court of public opinion thinks - I’m deeply aware that if Cummings isn’t driving policy it could be somebody worse, so rather mixed feelings.

I thought the government ran the country not the advisor however he appeared to suggest he was so important that he had to return ASAP because everything would grind to an halt.
I notice still no apology because it was something anyone would do and anyway it was the fault of the press. I notice that all appeared to recover quickly and I didn’t hear any mention of any tests being undertaken. The eye excuse was pure genius for a reason to drive over30 minutes to a beauty spot. They apparently only stopped there because his son needed to go to the toilet but no, what they actually all did was get out sit on a bench which I believe was not allowed and then went for a walk before driving back to his brick shack.

So what occupations do you deem working class enough. We have left leaning posters on here trying to make out his parents are one step from royalty and that's the best you can come up with? His mother was a teacher and his father worked for Laings... Why are posters twisting the truth (lying), something all the working class heroes on here are fond of accusing others of.... Hypocrites

It's his wife's family who are more 'one step from royalty'.

I just find the whole self-styled 'weirdo misfit' thing a complete lie.

Handy Bozo had some specs in the top pocket of his suit.

That's my feeling too.

Whatever else Cummings is, he does have talent. In a way, although I'd accept that I'm in the minority but he did face the music from the press and refused to bow to the pressure and apologise.

They couldn’t find a fridge in time to fit in the garden.

So he married well. Another "crime" to you lot on here. For God's sake lose those chips on your shoulders.

I'm just always staggered when I see people cheering him on as their anti-establishment hero. He's as establishment as they come. I bet you're a big fan. I bet you believe he's got the country's best interests at heart.

Well, he’s clearly not working class - and as far as I know he doesn’t pretend to be.

What raises an eyebrow is his self-image as an ‘outsider’. Now, the UK social system is a many layered onion, and outsider may be a relative term. However, privately-educated, Oxford graduate, married someone whose father owns a castle is hardly the most unconventional route to power in this country.

In fairness, it isn’t where you’re from, it is where you’re at. Tony Benn was no less a socialist for inheriting a title (until he renounced it. Sidenote - I just read up on his family history, which wasn’t what I’d imagined at all). So, is he (Cummings) any sort of radical (left or right or some sort of geek third way)? I dunno, but there are signs his search for talent is traditionally narrow - what do you think ‘great University’ is code for? At most, I suspect it is Russell Group, and two of them in particular. I happened to be reading Neuromancer when Cummings put out his call for people like characters in a William Gibson novel. Anybody expecting a Rastafarian pilot, a sex-worker turned mercenary or an amphetamine-using hacker will then have been dismayed on a couple of levels to find the gig had gone to Andrew Sabisky.

Anyway, the key lesson for me is that nobody should ever get noted dissembler, liar and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson to give them a character reference or alibi. Few things could set your defence back more. Which is kind of reassuring, actually.

INOUT
The mob are absolutely obsessed with where someone comes from and how wealthy they and their family are:
- If they're Tory they *must* be linked with wealth, privilege, entitlement and ideally aristocracy. And must therefore be immoral and wicked.
- If they're Labour/left-wing any link to the above must be ignored and/or justified.

These 'working class heroes' on here are absolute hypocrites. I've stated it several times - not a sniff of outrage when Labour MPs break lockdown. No comment on the thousands massing to parks and beaches [i(outbreak at Weston? - well feck me, never saw that coming last week)[/i. Not a single one of them dared respond when asked directly about the ****** member of this forum who boasted repeatedly of breaking the lockdown rules.

Yet a man with a sick wife and autistic young child takes his family into isolation during a pandemic and he may as well have walked into St Thomas's and slashed the ventilators keeping CV19 patients alive.

A glance at the last few pages tell you, all they're good for is unfunny one-liners. I do give Mild Rover his dues - he's certainly one of the more intelligent and reasonable of the mob. The rest should spend their time on Twatter, they'd be right at home. In fact they probably are.


You're about as wrong as you could be. I've never seen anyone 'cheering him on as their anti-establishment hero'. It doesn't happen, at least not to any significant degree. And as it happens, if you'd paid attention today you'd have heard pretty much every journalist talking of how Cummings isn't that popular in Whitehall for precisely the fact he rejects much of the establishment, doesn't cosy up to it (including many Tory MPs) and doesn't do things 'the proper way'. There are more than enough press articles on his unorthodox and blunt methods - go and google them.

I have no particular feelings for Cummings. He seems very good at what he does. But if you're going to jump on the witch-hunt bandwagon at least get your facts right.

Just out of interest, Cronus. Have you read Cummings' wife's account of the 'ordeal' in the Spectator? This is the sort of thing that I find sinister. It just adds weight to these sorts of people protecting their own interests, without a care for anyone else.

Kinnock and Jenrick were gotcha'd visiting their folks, presumably with shopping/supplies. You could argue that they drove unnecessarily to do so, but it was just tabloid fodder - "Be outraged about this, readership". There was a bit of muck throwing from each side, an apology, and life carried on. Hell, I bet most of us have been dropping shopping off for family.

With Cummings it's just a mess of lies and dishonesty. If he'd have held his hand up and said, "yep, guilty", I don't think there would be anywhere near the fuss there has been.

Check out the Spectator article. Tell me if it tallies up with Dom's story. What was the purpose of this article, other than to deceive?

I suppose that he could have gone the other way down the A1 to test his driving, maybe to Wallsend or somewhere like that but, no, he went to the rather nice Barnard Castle, felt sick, so sat by the river for 15 minutes or so. How very convenient.
If he'd stayed in London, he wouldn't have had to "test his driving".

Btw, does his wife not drive or did we miss something there ??

He's had 4 weeks to come up with that story and his wife is a writer.

If they put his "sketch" on an 80's comedy show, everyone would have thought, "I'm not falling for that, he's having a fecking laugh"

"My son needed the toilet, so we parked up at the side of the road and went for a stroll, only about 15/20 minutes and then we were on our way.", sounds lovely Dom.

The mob? Seriously?

Cronus, RLFans very own Quentin Letts.


Yes, his wife drives. Which makes his ridiculous lie even more ridiculous.

At least we of the left know that his son is not autistic, that was posted and removed from a questionable account. We also know that the story was largely constructed to fit the known reports. Who would go out on a 30 minute drive to test your eye sight and also take his son who he was so concerned about. Then when arriving at a suitable spot he suddenly felt sick and needed to walk to a bench and sit by the river for 15 minutes. He quickly recovered but on his 30 minute drive back his son wanted the toilet so they all got out and to celebrate the son’s successful expulsion decided to celebrate the fact by playing in the woods.
I am at least not that gullible but I suppose you on the right would accept whatever he or Johnson spouted, I bet you still believe he is going to employ 50,000 NEW nurses and build 50 new hospitals.

If this was going on in some tin pot African dictatorship, the right would be tutting with disapproval. Here in the UK they celebrate it.

Just imagine if this was a Labour adviser, according to the Sun Cummings completely put the matter to bed and showed the press up.
I suppose while they have enablers like some on here they will just carry on knowing full well they will accept whatever they say. I bet they would believe the earth to be flat if Johnson said so because his reputation for honesty is so well known.
I expect a list of abuse to try to get the thread shut down which appears to be their modus operandi.

Correct, it worked on the other thread

Flashman would be all over it like a rash if he wasn't such a fawning little Tory-boy and Cummings new No.1 fanboy.
I just told the truth instead of weaving a web of bull because my bumbling boss can't go it alone.

I have no feelings one way or the other about the bloke. Certainly never thought of him as some kind of hero or cheered him on. Just defending him of the "crime" of marrying a woman whose parents live in a mansion.

Oh dear - more holes in his STORY than a sieve ?
Even I would have let the wife drive if I felt so dodgy

Whatever this government does won’t gain any praise from the left wing cabal that dominate this foroum. The Majority of the main stream press including the daily mail And journalists hate Johnson with a passion. Whilst the London establishment can’t get over the fact he won A comfortable majority at the last election. So all the tricks of the trade will be brought into action to bring down Johnson. Just when you think the press has reached rock bottom they even surpass that with sky news turning up at Cummings elderly parents house this morning. As for alaister Campbell jeering from the sidelines and egging the mob on is disgraceful, bearing in mind his weapons of mass destruction lies. This eventually gave a green light to the blood bath in Iraq thus destabilising the Middle East. Let’s also not forget his part in hounding dr Kelly to death.
Sadly I don’t think we even seen the beginning of the popular press hatred for Johnson, every blip/set back in the Brexit negotiations will be cheered to the rafters .

Staggering. Simply staggering.

My trust in this Johnson led government was gossamer thin from the start. I knew he was a career liar, but the fact he wanted to be popular suggested there was some outside chance that his 'bringing the nation togther' routine held a bit of credibility, albeit a very tiny, microscopic bit of credibilty. Do you honestly think you're getting to get left leaning folk now thinking "hey, I like what these Tories are doing"? You're deluded.

How did the same press treat Corbyn ?
Also, what about the death threats to members of the clergy who have dared to criticise Cummings from the right wing mob ??

Just a bit of balance.

Btw, do you believe Cummings version of events ? a trip to test his ability to drive, when his wife had felt "better" since the fires Tuesday - around 10 days before they headed home to London.
You may not believe that you have been taken for a fool and that's ok but, plenty of other people believe that they have seen the two finger gesture coming their way.

Right now, Cummings has stuffed the government message and people will now largely please themselves, just as Boris's right hand man did.
Remember, Boris poured scorn on the rumours of the Barnard Castle "test drive" on Saturday but, low and behold, it was true.

Btw, the press are still in love with Blue Eyed Boris of he would be getting a whole load more scmidt from the press than he's currently getting.

Balance? Don’t recall anybody parking a van with a large tv screen outside corbyns house. Nor do I recall Corbyns neighbours being encouraged to hurl abuse at him when he walked don the street. Balance? Any veiws on Kinnocks visit to his parents. Any veiws on the odious campaign from Campbell. As for the press in love with Boris Johnson, you must be viewing a different press. The bbc plus sky news along with channel 4 have for months campaign aggressively against Johnson.