The other day, Boris Johnson lost his temper in perhaps the most Oxbridge way possible: telling Labour's Andrew Dismore to "get stuffed". Dismore had accused the mayor of lying and his frustration manifested itself in a very inoffensive statement, which doesn't really seem like the big deal everyone's made it out to be.But it did get me to thinking about all the other stuff people might have done when they've lost their temper, so I went to ask some people a question to help me find some answers: London, when was the worst time you lost your temper?
Kari: That would be Thanksgiving. I’m American, and that was the first time I ever brought my boyfriend home. I gave my mum the finger at dinner. It was completely unnecessary, but we hadn’t seen each other in a while and she really knows what buttons to push to make me angry.VICE: Uh oh. Did you regret it afterwards?
Yes. It just made a bad impression on everyone.I see. Do you think it's OK for a politician to lose their temper in a similar manner?
I think that everyone’s human, but people seem to believe that if you’re in a public role you have to be “on” like 24/7.Yeah, it's just not fair.
Khobir: I lost my temper in the workplace once. It was with my manager about three years ago.What happened?
There was a patient we were caring for, we got into an argument about what we should do with that patient and I told her to fuck off. Nothing happened afterwards. We were both pretty adamant in our views.Did you regret it?
I regretted letting myself get to that point. There would have probably been another way of dealing with it.Do you think it was OK for Boris Johnson to let himself get to that point?
I don’t know. It’s always a question of what happens afterwards. When someone gets annoyed, or whatever, it can either close off the response from the other person or – well, it depends; anger has usually been building up for a while and, when it comes out, it's a relief and the two people can then work from that point.True. Do you think Andrew Dismore and Boris Johnson can work it out?
No! Their egos are far, far too big.
Stephanie: That’s a good question. I think probably when I lost something precious. I’m usually rather a calm person.Do you think it’s OK for a politician to tell another politician to get stuffed?
No, definitely not. They should always be professional in a situation like that.Fair enough.
Zaythen: I usually don’t lose my temper very often, but when I do I need a good reason for it.Like what?
Probably a big family issue or something like that. I once lost my temper really badly when we had a big fight in my family when I was about 15.Any damage done?
I hurt someone else and I broke something.Are you filled with regret?
Yes, very much. That’s why I don’t lose my temper very often these days.
Nick: It was with my ex-girlfriend.Okay. What happened?
Basically, it was going really crap and I finished the relationship and went a bit nuts because she wouldn’t take no for an answer.Um, OK. Did you regret it?
I suppose so. I mean, I scratched my hands open and everything – not on her, obviously!I see. Is it OK for Boris Johnson to go a bit nuts too then?
It depends on how annoying the other guy is [laughs]. He’s only human in the end, and Boris is quite cool normally.Previously - Do You Think National Service Should Be Reinstated?
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Yes. It just made a bad impression on everyone.I see. Do you think it's OK for a politician to lose their temper in a similar manner?
I think that everyone’s human, but people seem to believe that if you’re in a public role you have to be “on” like 24/7.Yeah, it's just not fair.
There was a patient we were caring for, we got into an argument about what we should do with that patient and I told her to fuck off. Nothing happened afterwards. We were both pretty adamant in our views.Did you regret it?
I regretted letting myself get to that point. There would have probably been another way of dealing with it.Do you think it was OK for Boris Johnson to let himself get to that point?
I don’t know. It’s always a question of what happens afterwards. When someone gets annoyed, or whatever, it can either close off the response from the other person or – well, it depends; anger has usually been building up for a while and, when it comes out, it's a relief and the two people can then work from that point.
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No! Their egos are far, far too big.
No, definitely not. They should always be professional in a situation like that.Fair enough.
Probably a big family issue or something like that. I once lost my temper really badly when we had a big fight in my family when I was about 15.Any damage done?
I hurt someone else and I broke something.Are you filled with regret?
Yes, very much. That’s why I don’t lose my temper very often these days.
Basically, it was going really crap and I finished the relationship and went a bit nuts because she wouldn’t take no for an answer.Um, OK. Did you regret it?
I suppose so. I mean, I scratched my hands open and everything – not on her, obviously!I see. Is it OK for Boris Johnson to go a bit nuts too then?
It depends on how annoying the other guy is [laughs]. He’s only human in the end, and Boris is quite cool normally.Previously - Do You Think National Service Should Be Reinstated?