Boris Johnson criticises plans to show hit Netflix show ‘Adolescence’ in secondary schools

With all the insanity of current events, one figure who had been blissfully absent from headlines was former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.  

“Had been”... because Johnson has decided to pop up once more and deliver a statement that has been described online as “pitifully shit.” 

Indeed, the controversial former Tory PM has criticised Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s welcoming of plans to air Netflix’s hit show Adolescence in secondary schools.  

The show follows how a father deals with the fallout of his son being suspected of murder, a perfectly filmed and nuanced drama that is hands down one of the best pieces of TV in recent memory.

Beyond its spot-on acting, the show has felt like a cultural wake-up call, as it has prompted a wider discussion about toxic masculinity and the influence of the so-called ‘manosphere’ on young minds who are faced with websites and online forums promoting misogyny and ultra-conservative models of masculinity that flirt with far-right ideologies. 

Starmer met with the makers of the show and stated that it was “really hard to watch” Adolescence with his own teenage children.  

It was then confirmed that Netflix would be making the series available to all UK secondary schools, in order to further enrich conversations regarding online behaviour and toxic influences.

Starmer welcomed the initiative, having described the show as “a torch that shines intensely brightly on a combination of issues that many people don’t know how to respond to”. 

Well, Boris Johnson, almost predictably, didn’t see the good in the initiative and called the show “tosh”.  

For those of you unfamiliar with that particular insult, “tosh” means nonsense or twaddle, a term first used in 1528 – possibly influenced by the word “tush”. Alternatively, it could be a variant of the word “bosh”, also meaning nonsense. Either way, it’s common upper-class vernacular that sounds completely out of step with current lexicon – which feels appropriate considering the terminally embarrassing and tone-deaf reaction from Johnson.

In his latest column for the Daily Mail, Johnson wrote that the show’s depiction of “incels” as the cause of teenage knife crime was “irrelevant” and said in reference to Starmer: “Who does he think he is, telling teachers what TV programmes to show the kids? According to the BBC – and if you can’t believe the BBC, what can you believe? – Starmer has personally mandated every classroom in the land to have formal showings of a four-part TV drama called Adolescence.” 

He continued: “In making this announcement with full prime ministerial authority amid the ancient solemnity of the Cabinet Room, Keir Starmer has perfectly encapsulated the fundamental flatulence of the Government, and its emetic finger-wagging mixture of humbug and wokery.” 

Johnson went on to say that he believes the move to show the series in school time demonstrates the government’s “cruel indifference to the real educational needs of children today,” adding: “In case you haven’t watched Adolescence I can save you the bother. It’s tosh - well-acted tosh.”

Also predictably, Johnson introduced race to his argument, saying that “unlike the teenage couple in this drama, the victims and perpetrators are disproportionately young black males.” 

The show’s co-creator Jack Thorne has already spoken out on this theory, saying: “It’s absurd to say that (knife crime) is only committed by Black boys. It’s not true and history shows a lot of cases of kids from all races committing these crimes.” Thorne also stated that the goal of the show was not about “making a point about race” but to make a point “about masculinity.” 

“We’re trying to get inside a problem,” he added. “We’re not saying this is one thing or another, we’re saying that this is about boys.” 

As one of his final comments, Johnson claimed that when it comes to “who is really doing more damage to the life chances of teenagers in this country” out of Starmer and influencer Andrew Tate, “the answer is Starmer, by a country mile”. 

Yes, that’s Andrew Tate, the self-described misogynist who personifies gendered violence, has pushed antisemitic and pro-terror content since October 7 Hamas attack and who has been indicted on charges of sex trafficking and rape in Romania in 2023. A model citizen whom domestic violence researchers in Australia called a “predator” who is “radicalizing young men". 

Faced with Johnson’s take, several people have gone online to comment, including broadcaster Richard Bacon, who branded Johnson’s observation “pitifully shit” and in another comment, labelled the former politician “an awful awful awful man.” 

Another X user pointed to mental health support for young people and claimed a “lack of support services due to Tory austerity” doesn’t exactly help, while one user stated, with reference to Johnson: “This bumbling wreckage was once Britain’s elected Prime Minister. Yes, people should watch (Adolescence), unless we want a whole generation of boys becoming Russell Brand” – another model citizen who has been charged with rape and sexual assault.  

This is not the first time that Adolescence has been targeted.  

After the series aired, far-right commentator Ian Miles Cheong took to X to allege the show was “based on real life cases such as the Southport murderer”, and went on to say they had “race swapped the actual killer from a black man/migrant to a white boy”. 

The attack referred to occurred last year when a Taylor Swift dance class led to three children being killed in a knife attack. 

Cheong went on to call the show “anti-white propaganda” - which for anyone who has actually watched the show is a laughable take. 

Elon Musk chimed in and continued fueling these erroneous claims, as Adolescence was first announced on 14 March 2024, and was already in production and being filmed before the Southport tragedy happened. 

During an appearance on The News Agents podcast, Thorne responded to the conspiracy theory: “They’ve claimed that Stephen and I based it on a story, and another story, so we race-swapped because we were basing it on here and it ended up there, and everything else. Nothing is further from the truth.” 

“I have told a lot of real-life stories in my time, and I know the harm that can come when you take elements of a real-life story and put it on screen and the people aren’t expecting it,” he continued. “There is no part of this that’s based on a true story, not one single part.”