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The UK's new Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has made several visits to Somerset over the years.

Despite being born in New York, the new Conservative party leader spent a large part of his childhood at his family's farm in Exmoor, Somerset.

The 500-acre farm in Nethercote, near Winsford in West Somerset, is still owned by the Johnson family and he has often spoke of his pride of growing up "on a Exmoor hill farm".

Since moving away from home to become a journalist, Mayor of London, Uxbridge and South Ruislip MP and now Prime Minister, he has returned to Somerset several times.

Somerset Live has dipped into its archives to explore the times when the country's newest Prime Minister visited the county.

Boris slams plans to 'regulate vacuum cleaners'

During his stint as Mayor of London, he was the guest of honour at the Royal Bath and West Showground in September 2014.

The Western Gazette reported how he gave a "rousing speech" to party members and "ridiculed" apparent plans by the European Union to restrict the power of UK vacuum cleaners.

Boris Johnson quipped: "We alone in Britain should be able to decide how vigorously or how hard we vacuum our carpets."

He also spoke about how he was brought up in Somerset in a house with no central heating and just one fire for warmth.

Following Johnson's speech, future Somerton and Frome MP, David Warburton, called him a "terrifically amusing and entertaining guest".

He said: "I was very pleased to see he went round every table and spoke to everyone in the room.

"Like me, I'm sure they found him great to talk to. He is a terrifically amusing and entertaining guest."

Motorists take "a gigantic dogleg to get here" - Johnson urges dualling of A358

(Image: John Snelling)

In a tour of Somerset in April 2015, he said he could think of nothing better than dualling the A303 and the A358 towards Taunton in order to improve access to South West.

Mr Johnson discussed the impact of booming businesses in the South West in helping to kick-start the economy would help pay for the improvements to take place.

He also criticised Labour's announcement that the party would delay any plans to fund the upgrades to the A358.

He said: "What could be better for the local economy than the dualisation of the A303 and the A358?

"Yet there is a party presenting itself for this election that seems to think that doing this is totally wrong.

(Image: John Snelling)

"This is a region that has the potential to be an economic powerhouse and it would be wonderful for the South West to be able to have that.

"I've travelled this way many times. I used to come down the A303, then it was the A303 and the A358 and then the M4 and the M5 were built, but to get here you need to take a gigantic dogleg.

"Why should you need to take a dogleg around Bristol to get from London to the South West when you can dual the A358 and the A303?

"Not carrying out this work would make no sense."

"Burnham is a great, great resort" - Boris enjoys trip to seaside during General Election

(Image: SWNS)

Boris Johnson made a flying visit to Burnham-on-Sea in April 2015 to support the area's Conservative party candidate, James Heappey.

Here he met residents, enjoyed an ice cream before going for a ride on one of the hovercrafts at BARB Search and Rescue.

Mr Johnson appeared to enjoy his trip to the seaside, calling it a "traditional British experience".

He said: "Burnham is a great, great resort and I can see why people want to come here, but there is risk and the team at BARB do a fantastic job.

(Image: SWNS)

"I have been to this area many times but I have never been on the beach at Burnham, this is a classic example of a great English coastal resort.

"I did really enjoy it, it was a great experience and I understand a bit more about the hovercraft."

Then-Liberal Democrat leader, Tim Farron, copied Johnson's seaside trip and visited Burnham-on-Sea during the 2017 General Election to show his support for Tessa Munt.

Johnson returns home to take part in family cricket match

(Image: Rob Tibbles/Apex)

The Old Etonian visited Exmoor for a cricket match celebrating the 70th birthday of his father Stanley, who lives in the area.

A Johnson family XI took on local side Winsford, of whom Stanley is president, with Boris taking on umpiring duties as his family side went in to bat.

The Western Daily Press reported how he was on "typically energetic form" in "batting vigorously and bowling". He also took part in officiating.

The team was captained by Boris' brother Jo as six of Stanley's children and 11 grandchildren came down to celebrate the birthday.

Boris is known to be a big cricket fan, but he once admitted to the BBC's Test Match Special that he is "basically useless" despite having bowled for a House of Commons XI.

Boris Johnson gets grilled by child in school visit

Fresh from an appearance at the Oaktree Arena in Highbridge, former Foreign Secretary visited the King Alfred school on June 28.

He took a tour of the school with James Heappey and met with the school's headteacher, Nathan Jenkins, Neville Coles, executive principal of The Priory Learning Trust, and students from the school's Jill Dando News Centre.

The former Foreign Secretary was then grilled by a young schoolchild who asked him a series of questions about the most famous person he has met or the good news he would share as Prime Minister.

Boris Johnson stated The Queen was the most famous person he had met and also promised £4.6 billion in funding "for every primary and secondary school" and remarked "King Alfred will certainly be in line for the increase."

(Image: King Alfred school/Neville Coles)

The Conservative MP was asked what he would do to tackle the school's "growing seagull problem", in which he replied "hawk noises".

He said: "We're not going to harm them. We're not going to shoot them. We are not going to even catch them in nets.

"We are not going to get them in quick line.

What we are going to do is use is ultra high-pitched sonic disturbances designed to intimate the noise of hawks.

"We're going to use brilliant West Country developed hawk noises to scare them off."

In an interview with Sky News at the school, he defended using offensive terms as "satire" and claims they were taken out of context.

Trance-like states, 'red eye bongs' and nudists - What the Prime Minister experienced at Glastonbury Festival

In 2000, Boris Johnson preformed at Glastonbury Festival at the invitation of left-wing activist Billy Bragg.

While "boondoggling off the BBC", Boris performed in the Poetry tent at the festival in June 2000 to a sizeable crowd, and he said he felt "at home" at the music festival.

During his visit, the politician, who was editor of The Spectator at that time, perused a tent selling "red-eye bongs", had a henna tattoo drawn on his arm, and mingled with nudists.

After witnessing somebody "selling mushrooms" at the festival's Stone Circle, Boris also labelled Glastonbury Festival "a capitalist extravaganza".

You can read more about Boris Johnson's Glastonbury Festival experience here.

Did you meet Boris Johnson in Somerset? Do you have a memory of him to share? Got an issue you want us to investigate?

Get in touch: Email michael.taylor@reachplc.com, tweet @JournoMikeT or call 01935 709742

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