Boris Johnson’s sister Rachel says she hopes that Carrie Symonds will be a guest on her ‘Difficult Women’ podcast – but insists that her future sister-in-law is ‘delightful’
- Rachel Johnson, 55, said she sees being called ‘difficult’ as a ‘badge of honour’
- Added it’s not ‘insult’ because unless you’re ‘difficult’ you’re seen as ‘pushover’
- Appeared on Loose Women and said Carrie may appear on LBC at ‘some point’
Boris Johnson‘s sister Rachel has said that she hopes that Carrie Symonds will be a guest on her ‘Difficult Women’ podcast at ‘some point’ – but insists that her future sister-in-law is ‘delightful.’
The LBC presenter, 55, who has a new podcast called ‘Difficult Women,’ appeared on ITV’s Loose Women today via video link and was asked by presenter Penny Lancaster whether she would consider her brother’s fiancée Carrie Symonds as a future guest on her show.
‘Carrie is delightful – and thank you for asking!’ said the Prime Minister’s sister, Rachel. ‘Listen, media organisations all over the globe want to interview Carrie.
‘I am sure she will do a LBC podcast at some point. It may be Nimco Ali’s, or it may be mine. That is up to Carrie to decide.’
The Prime Minister’s sister Rachel Johnson (pictured) has told how she sees being called ‘difficult’ a ‘complete badge of honour.’ Pictured, with Boris Johnson at the Methodist Central Hall, London on 6 May
During the segment of the show, Rachel also explained how she is embracing the term ‘difficult.’
‘I think being called “difficult” is a complete badge of honour,’ she said. ‘It’s not an insult at all. Unless you’re called difficult you’re seen as a pushover and all of the woman I’m interviewing for my LBC podcast series have, or have been, or have had to be difficult to get anything done.
‘I called the podcast “difficult women” in honour of Theresa May because as you will all remember, Ken Clarke said off mic during an interview, I think it was on Sky News, “Ah Theresa May, bloody difficult woman.”
‘And so of course, the first person I wanted to launch my podcast was Theresa May – but true to Ken Clarke’s description, she turned me down. She was a bloody difficult woman about it!’
The LBC presenter (pictured) also said she’s sure Carrie Symonds will do an LBC podcast ‘at some point’ – but added it’s up to her who it will be with
Rachel (right) said she’s ‘always encouraging’ her daughter to be a ‘difficult woman’ and praised Janet (pictured, left) for being a fantastic role model’
Speaking of who she has interviewed so far, Rachel explained: ‘Sasha Swire, who you’ll remember wrote that explosive ‘Diary of an MP’s Wife,’ she gave us an audio explosive which was great.’
‘Iain Dale, who is another presenter at LBC complained that he’d asked her three times. She’d had endless bids but I wheedled my way in. She came into the studio and she gave a cracking podcast.’
She continued: I’ve interviewed Brenda Hale, she of the famous spider brooch, who said that my own brother acted unlawfully in probing parliament back in 2020 in order to ‘get Brexit done.’
Rachel said ‘you’ve got to be “difficult” which simply means asking for that the man is getting’ (pictured with presenters on today’s show)
Presenter Kaye Adams went on to say to Rachel that it’s interesting because when we’re talking about older women, we’re quite happy to adopt ‘difficult’ woman as a term, but that when when you get to younger women, maybe they’re not as comfortable.
‘I think you’ve got a daughter of 26 – would you be saying to her – “be a difficult woman,” she asked.
Rachel replied: ‘I’m always encouraging her to be a difficult woman…I think Janet is a fantastic role model in this.
‘She doesn’t take prisoners, she probably asks for pay rises. My daughter, aged 26, 45 after the equal pay act, she still doesn’t ask for a pay rise. Yet the man who joined the company at the same time has probably asked for three.’
‘It still happens. You’ve got to be “difficult” which simply means asking for that the man is getting.’