Boris Johnson Zipline Photos, Video: 'It's Going Well So Far'

by NowPublic Staff | August 1, 2012 at 08:33 am

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London Mayor Boris Johnson Stuck on Zip Line

London Mayor Boris Johnson suffered an embarrassment that makes Jeremy Hunt's Olympic bell mishap look like nothing.

Boris Johnson was a special guest at the thousand-foot zipline attraction in Victoria Park. In other words, Johnson got to jump the queue, but he'd soon wish he didn't.

Partway across the zipline, Boris Johnson got stuck, and for the next five minutes he was an awkwardly dangling photo- and video op. Between calls for a ladder, Boris Johnson reassured the gathering crowd, "It’s very, very well organized. It’s going well so far. Right.”

Organization wasn't the problem. The problem was getting the zipline to actually work: apparently there was a problem with the wire's tension. The fact that Boris Johnson was waving two Union Jacks made the scene much more comical.

A spokesman for Johnson later remarked, "The judges will rightly be marking him down for artistic impression." You can see some Boris Johnson zipline videos below, as well as some photos. The videos include James Bond and "I Believe I Can Fly" remixes, as well as commentary by London artist Mark McGowan.