Published 13:02 IST, May 14th 2020
Fact check: Did UK PM Boris Johnson call journalists for tea after recovering from COVID?
Fact check on a video which shows UK PM Boris Johnson welcoming reporters at his house allegedly after his recovery from Coronavirus. Here's the truth
Origin
A video circulating over Facebook showed UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson welcoming reporters and journalists with tea and snacks and his house. The Facebook user who shared the video claimed that he had invited the journalists over after having successfully beaten the Coronavirus. The video was then widely circulated over Twitter and WhatsApp as well.
The caption of the viral video read-- "Some reporters visited the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson after he recovered from his illness. His home looks like an old abandoned military hut with very old brick walls. The road is narrow and not tiled. Just like ordinary people, he is living in a narrow lane. The living room was too small so brought out the tea tray for the reporters. All the cups are different. He met them with disheveled hair and casual clothes, but with the confident smile of a Prime Minister."
Rating: Misleading
The video that was shared by the Facebook user was not fake but misleading since the video was nearly two years old and was shot in August 2018. This was recorded at a time when Boris Johnson was not even the Prime Minister of UK, let alone having to do anything with the novel Coronavirus pandemic which hit the world in late 2019.
The video was recorded back on August 13, 2018, when Boris Johnson had made certain anti-burqa comments and was then interrogated by the reporters at his place. Although he avoided all questions from the waiting journalists, he gave them tea and snacks. At the time, Boris Johnson served as the Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom.
The viral video has nothing to do with the UK Prime Minister's recovery from Coronavirus.
A video has gone viral on social media along with the claim that British PM Boris Johnson offered tea to journalists after recovering from the COVID19 infection. The claim is 'Misleading as the viral video is two years old.#Covid_19 #CoronavirusFacts https://t.co/IdS35TGCSZ
— newschecker.in (@NewscheckerIn) May 14, 2020
Updated 13:02 IST, May 14th 2020