中国网站品牌栏目（频道）
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 Mayor of London Boris Johnson recites a poem at the opening of the 124th IOC session at the Opera House in London July 23, 2012. |
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Impressed by his success in hosting the Olympic Games, nearly three-quarters of Britons now want London mayor Boris Johnson to become prime minister, according to a survey on Saturday. The 48-year-old former member of parliament who once said he had as much chance of becoming prime minister as being decapitated by a frisbee or finding Elvis, has been widely acclaimed for his role in promoting the Games. In the UK-wide survey conducted for Ladbrokes bookmakers, 71 percent of respondents said they would like him to become premier. Ladbrokes is now offering odds of 2/1 that he is re-elected mayor in four years' time and of 3/1 that he becomes prime minister before 2030. The blond, mop-haired mayor vigorously denies any interest in seeking the top job and has sought in vain to quell growing speculation that he might one day follow in the footsteps of fellow Conservative politician David Cameron. "What do I have to do to make this silly-season story go away?" he wailed earlier this week. "How could anybody elect a prat (fool) who gets stuck in a zip wire?" He was referring to footage of him on a 150 feet- (46-metre)-high wire at a publicity event last week when he was left dangling over a crowd of people for several minutes, clutching a Union Jack flag, as the pulley from which he was suspended got stuck. Several political observers have noted that the self-deprecating Johnson is perhaps the only politician in Britain who could escape from such a mishap with his dignity intact. To become prime minister, Johnson would first have to stand for election to parliament again, having left to become mayor in 2008. While few doubt his public appeal, many commentators say his tangled private life would be an obstacle to his ever becoming prime minister. "Each blunder only seems to add to his charm," said Ladbrokes' Alex Donohue in a statement. "His stock is at an all time high following the Games. "The odds now clearly reflect the fact that he could soon be moving on up in the world of politics." Ladbrokes believes the gaffe-prone mayor could still commit a faux pas during Sunday's closing ceremony and is offering 33/1 that he knocks over the mayor of Rio de Janeiro with the Olympic flag at the ceremonial handover to the next host. (Read by Rosie Tuck. Rosie Tuck is a journalist at the China Daily Website.) (Agencies) |
根据周六的一项调查，伦敦市长伯里斯因为成功举办了奥运会而让英国民众印象深刻，现在有近四分之三的英国人希望他出任首相。 这位48岁的前国会议员曾说过，他成为首相的几率就像被飞盘砸掉脑袋或找到猫王的几率一样渺小，然而这次他却由于宣传奥运会的出色表现而广受赞誉。 这项为立博博彩公司开展的全国性调查显示，71%的应答者称他们希望伯里斯成为首相。 立博博彩公司现在对伯里斯四年内再次当选市长提供2比1的赔率，2030年前成为首相提供3比1的赔率。 然而顶着一头乱蓬蓬金发的市长却极力否认自己对一把手的位置有任何兴趣，并徒劳地试图平息愈演愈烈的猜测，即他有一天也许会追随同为保守党人的戴维•卡梅伦的脚步。 上周早些时候他诉苦道：“我到底要怎么做才能让这个新闻饥荒期的无聊故事不再传下去？怎么可能会有人选一个被高空飞索卡住的傻帽来当首相？” 他指的是上周他在参加一个宣传活动时，由于滑轮卡住，他在众目睽睽之下被吊在150英尺（46米）高空中几分钟之久，手里还攥着英国国旗。这一场景被录了下来。 一些政治观察家们指出，善于自嘲的约翰逊也许是唯一一位碰上如此不幸事件仍能保持其尊严完好无损的英国政治家。 在2008年的选举中约翰逊当选了伦敦市长，并宣布辞去国会议员。要成为首相，他首先需要再次参选国会议员。尽管多数人都相信他的公共号召力，但很多评论者称他纠缠不清的私人生活将会是他成为首相的一大障碍——如果他有机会当选的话。 立博公司的亚历克斯•多诺霍在一份声明中指出：“他每犯一个错误似乎都只会增加他的魅力。他的行情随着奥运会的进行涨到前所未有的高度。” “现在的赔率显然反映了他可能很快就会在政界继续高升。” 立博公司认为这位频频失态的市长在周日的奥运会闭幕式上可能还会失态，并以33比1的赔率打赌市长会在给下个主办城市的奥运旗帜交接仪式上把里约热内卢市长撞倒。 相关阅读 （中国日报网英语点津 陈丹妮 编辑：Julie） |
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Vocabulary: decapitate: 斩首 frisbee: （投掷游戏用的）飞碟，飞盘 silly-season: 新闻缺乏时期（指七、八月） pulley: 滑轮 self-deprecating: 自贬的，自嘲的 gaffe: 失礼，失态（尤指社交、外交上的出丑） faux pas: 失礼 |
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