中國網(wǎng)站品牌欄目（頻道）
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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) |
根據(jù)周六的一項調(diào)查，倫敦市長伯里斯因為成功舉辦了奧運會而讓英國民眾印象深刻，現(xiàn)在有近四分之三的英國人希望他出任首相。 這位48歲的前國會議員曾說過，他成為首相的幾率就像被飛盤砸掉腦袋或找到貓王的幾率一樣渺小，然而這次他卻由于宣傳奧運會的出色表現(xiàn)而廣受贊譽。 這項為立博博彩公司開展的全國性調(diào)查顯示，71%的應(yīng)答者稱他們希望伯里斯成為首相。 立博博彩公司現(xiàn)在對伯里斯四年內(nèi)再次當(dāng)選市長提供2比1的賠率，2030年前成為首相提供3比1的賠率。 然而頂著一頭亂蓬蓬金發(fā)的市長卻極力否認自己對一把手的位置有任何興趣，并徒勞地試圖平息愈演愈烈的猜測，即他有一天也許會追隨同為保守黨人的戴維?卡梅倫的腳步。 上周早些時候他訴苦道：“我到底要怎么做才能讓這個新聞饑荒期的無聊故事不再傳下去？怎么可能會有人選一個被高空飛索卡住的傻帽來當(dāng)首相？” 他指的是上周他在參加一個宣傳活動時，由于滑輪卡住，他在眾目睽睽之下被吊在150英尺（46米）高空中幾分鐘之久，手里還攥著英國國旗。這一場景被錄了下來。 一些政治觀察家們指出，善于自嘲的約翰遜也許是唯一一位碰上如此不幸事件仍能保持其尊嚴完好無損的英國政治家。 在2008年的選舉中約翰遜當(dāng)選了倫敦市長，并宣布辭去國會議員。要成為首相，他首先需要再次參選國會議員。盡管多數(shù)人都相信他的公共號召力，但很多評論者稱他糾纏不清的私人生活將會是他成為首相的一大障礙——如果他有機會當(dāng)選的話。 立博公司的亞歷克斯?多諾霍在一份聲明中指出：“他每犯一個錯誤似乎都只會增加他的魅力。他的行情隨著奧運會的進行漲到前所未有的高度?！?/p> “現(xiàn)在的賠率顯然反映了他可能很快就會在政界繼續(xù)高升?！?/p> 立博公司認為這位頻頻失態(tài)的市長在周日的奧運會閉幕式上可能還會失態(tài)，并以33比1的賠率打賭市長會在給下個主辦城市的奧運旗幟交接儀式上把里約熱內(nèi)盧市長撞倒。 相關(guān)閱讀 （中國日報網(wǎng)英語點津 陳丹妮 編輯：Julie） |
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Vocabulary: decapitate: 斬首 frisbee: （投擲游戲用的）飛碟，飛盤 silly-season: 新聞缺乏時期（指七、八月） pulley: 滑輪 self-deprecating: 自貶的，自嘲的 gaffe: 失禮，失態(tài)（尤指社交、外交上的出丑） faux pas: 失禮 |
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