London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Aug 05, 2025

Boris Johnson leads former prime ministers in heartfelt tribute to ‘Elizabeth the Great’

Boris Johnson leads former prime ministers in heartfelt tribute to ‘Elizabeth the Great’

Johnson laments that a ‘bright and shining light’ has ‘finally gone out,’ as every surviving British prime minister pays tribute to Elizabeth II.
Boris Johnson paid a heartfelt tribute to “Elizabeth the Great,” as a host of former prime ministers mourned the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

Johnson — who left office this week — said in a statement that it was the “saddest day” for the U.K. because the queen’s “bright and shining light” had “finally gone out.”

Queen Elizabeth II died in her holiday home in Balmoral, Scotland on Thursday at the age of 96 and after more than 70 years on the throne. She is succeeded by her eldest son Charles, who now becomes King Charles III.

Johnson saw the queen just two days before, when he resigned as prime minister and was replaced by Liz Truss, who gave her own tribute to the queen on the rain-soaked steps of Downing Street Thursday night.

He said that in the hearts of all Britons “there is an ache at the passing of our queen, a deep and personal sense of loss — far more intense, perhaps, than we expected.”

“She seemed so timeless and so wonderful that I am afraid we had come to believe, like children, that she would just go on and on,” Johnson said.

And he added: “As is so natural with human beings, it is only when we face the reality of our loss that we truly understand what has gone. It is only really now that we grasp how much she meant for us, how much she did for us, how much she loved us.”

The queen, Johnson said, “selflessly and calmly” embodied the “continuity and unity of our country.”

“This is our country’s saddest day because she had a unique and simple power to make us happy,” he said. “That is why we loved her. That is why we grieve for Elizabeth the Great, the longest serving and in many ways the finest monarch in our history.”

Johnson’s predecessor Theresa May said the queen had devoted herself “unreservedly to a life of service,” and was “respected and admired not only by her own people but far beyond our family of nations.”

The former Conservative leader added: “As our longest reigning monarch, Her Majesty witnessed tremendous change, moving adroitly with the times but always providing stability and reassurance. She was our constant throughout this great Elizabethan era.”

Fellow Tory David Cameron, in office between 2010 and 2016, said: “No matter how prepared one could be for this day, there are no words that can adequately express the sense of loss our nation will feel.” The queen, he said, had “been the constant in all our lives over the past 70 years. As our longest-serving monarch. her remarkable reign has lasted, for most people, our entire lives — we know nothing else.”

John Major, Conservative prime minister for much of the 1990s, told BBC News: “It’s very hard to take it in that that radiant smile, which lights up a room and lights up a country, is just not going to be … there anymore.” There would, he predicted, be “many tears shed tonight and over the next few days for her majesty the queen.”

Tributes came in too from the surviving Labour prime ministers who served the queen during her seven-decade reign.

Gordon Brown, the U.K.’s leader from 2007 to 2010, said that the “United Kingdom, the Commonwealth, and the entire world are joined together in mourning this evening.” Elizabeth II, he said, had “served this country to the last.”

Tony Blair, who served for 13 years as British prime minister, said: “We have lost not just our monarch but the matriarch of our nation, the figure who more than any other brought our country together, kept us in touch with our better nature, personified everything which makes us proud to be British. “
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Elon Musk Receives $23.7 Billion Tesla Stock Award
Texas House Paralyzed After Democrats Walk Out Over Redistricting
Mexican Cartels Complicate Sheinbaum’s U.S. Security Talks
Mark Zuckerberg Declares War on the iPhone
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
Tesla Seeks Shareholder Approval for $29 Billion Compensation Package for Elon Musk
Nvidia is cutting prices on its RTX 50-series graphics cards after sales slowed and inventories piled up
Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison Amid Ongoing DOJ Discussions
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
Matt Taibbi Slams Media for Role in Russiagate Narrative
Pilots Call for Mental Health Support Without Stigma
All Five Trapped Miners Found Dead After El Teniente Mine Collapse
Ong Beng Seng Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case Linked to Former Singapore Transport Minister
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
Italy Fines Shein One Million Euros for Misleading Sustainability Claims
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
Declassified Annex Links Soros‑Affiliated Officials and Clinton Campaign to ‘Russiagate’ Narrative
UK's Online Safety Law: A Front for Censorship
Nationwide Protests Erupt in Brazil Demanding Presidential Resignation
Parents Abandon Child at Barcelona Airport Over Passport Issue
Mystery Surrounds Death of Brazilian Woman with iPhones Glued to Her Body
Bus Driver Discovers Toddler Hidden in Suitcase in New Zealand
Switzerland Celebrates 734 Years of Independence Amid Global Changes
U.S. Opens Official Investigation into Former Trump Prosecutor Jack Smith
Leaked audio of Canada's new PM Mark Carney admitting the truth about the Net Zero agenda: "We're gonna make a lot of money off of this."
China Enforces Comprehensive Ban on Cryptocurrency Activities
Absolutely 100% Realistic EVO Series Doll by EXDOLL (Chinese Company) used mainly for carnal purposes
World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab: "In this new world, we must accept... total transparency. You have to get used to it. You have to behave accordingly. But if you have nothing to hide, you shouldn't be afraid."
Meet Mufti Hamid Patel, head of Office for Standards in Education in Pakistan
George Soros tells the World Economic Forum: "President Trump is a con man and the ultimate narcissist, who wants the world to revolve around him."
Hamas are STARVING the hostages.
Decline in Tourism in Majorca Amidst Ongoing Anti-Tourism Protests
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
Poland Begins Excavation at Dziemiany After New Clue to World War II‑Era Nazi Treasure
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Threatens Canada with Tariffs Over Palestinian State Recognition
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Trump Sues Murdoch in “Heavyweight Bout”: Lawsuit Over Alleged Epstein Letter Sets Stage for Courtroom Showdown
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
J.K. Rowling Limits Public Engagements Citing Safety Fears
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
×