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SPEAKING IN TONGUES

What languages does Boris Johnson speak?

BORIS Johnson is the first prime minister to be born outside of the British Isles and he lived in three different countries.

But have any of the local lingos he may have picked up stuck with him?

Johnson lived in Brussels in during his childhood, where he managed to pick up French
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Johnson lived in Brussels in during his childhood, where he managed to pick up FrenchCredit: Reuters

What languages does Boris Johnson speak and where did he learn them?

Johnson was born in New York as his father was studying economics at Columbia University at the time of his birth.

He had both US and UK citizenship until he renounced his American citizenship in 2017 and lived between the two countries until he was five.

In 1973, Boris’ father Stanley had contracted employment in the environment directorate of the European Commission.

As a result, at the age of eight, Boris had first taste of Brussels as he was enlisted in a multilingual free school for children of the EU institution staff.

The school, The European School of Uccle was where he met future wife Marina Wheeler, and where the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen also went, a couple years Boris' senior.

It was during this time that he picked up French and in 1975, the MP and his siblings were sent to Ashdown House preparatory boarding school in East Sussex where is he said to have learnt Ancient Greek and Latin.

Boris went on to study classics at Eton and at Oxford, where had a first go at journalism running a satirical magazine.

Using his Belgian links and knowledge of French, the future PM went on to work at the Telegraph's Brussels bureau correspondent.

As well as Latin, ancient Greek and French, Boris is also said to have some grasp of Italian.

He studied ancient Greek and Latin at university in Oxford
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He studied ancient Greek and Latin at university in OxfordCredit: Reuters

Before becoming prime minister, he did various interviews with French news channels.

In , he's quizzed about what he'd do if he were mayor of Paris by TV channel Arte.

With his strong English accent and rusty vocabulary, he tries to explain how now he'd swim in the Thames now that it's been cleaned of "les bad stuff".

German Chancellor Angela Merkel bumps elbows with Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson before their bilateral meeting on July 2
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel bumps elbows with Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson before their bilateral meeting on July 2Credit: Reuters
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