W1A: Michael Gove gets trapped in a lift

It seems the government reset isn’t going exactly to plan. Michael Gove, Boris Johnson’s trouble-shooter, was due to appear on Radio 4’s Today programme in the coveted 8:10 a.m slot this morning to explain how he has finally solved the long-running cladding crisis as part of his housing brief. 

But what should have been a moment of triumph turned into an episode of farce. For, in scenes straight out of W1A, the Minister for Levelling Up appears to be unable to, er, go up a level, as he spent more than half an hour trapped in one of the Corporation’s lifts. An embarrassed BBC presenter Nick Robinson was forced to explain the unfolding drama live on air as Gove’s interview was pushed back.

For his part, the minister took it in good humour, offering to conduct the interview over the phone as red-faced Beeb staff worked to free him. Fortunately, Gove has just been released, having resembled a David Blaine creation circa 2003 – much to the amusement of watching BBC journalists.