Tuesday, August 21, 2012

From the Lip: 20 Questions with John

Recently on the Farming Show I decided to deviate from the norm during my weekly Thursday interview with John Key.  We were at the height of the London Olympics and the last thing the punters out there were interested in was politics or politicians. 

So on a wing and a prayer, with all of five minutes preparation on my behalf, and giving the PM all of 15 seconds warning before we went to air, this is a transcript of our 20 quick-fire questions with a sporting theme.

[Jamie Mackay] Favourite London Olympic moment thus far? 

[John Key] Usain Bolt winning the 100m sprint.

[JM]   Favourite sporting moment of all time?

[JK]   All Blacks winning the Rugby World Cup.

[JM]  Favourite NZ sportsman, I’ve got a feeling this might be Richie?

[JK]    Actually, I think I’ll go with John Walker.

[JM]   Favourite NZ sportswoman?

[JK]   That’s a tough one, um, Val Adams.  She had a tough time in London but she’s still a great athlete.

[JM]  Favourite sportsman of all time?

[JK]   Roger Federer.

[JM]  What is your favourite sport to watch?

[JK]   Golf.

[JM]  Favourite sport to play?

[JK]   Golf!

[JM]  Were you any good at sport as a schoolboy?

[JK]   Good at squash.  Hopeless as a rugby player!

[JM]  What do you wish you were better at?

[JK]   Spelling and golf.  I think there’s a theme here!

[JM]  What is your biggest weakness?

[JK]    I’m too eager to say ‘yes’.

[JM]  Hypothetically, If you could pick one member of your cabinet to stand shoulder to shoulder with you in the trenches of Gallipoli, who would it be?

[JK]   Bill English, a good southern farmer, he’d get us through.

[JM] How about the member of your cabinet you could survive best with, and not strangle each other, if you were marooned on a desert island for a year?

[JK]   Steven Joyce.

[JM]  If you had to pick one member of the Opposition to have dinner with, who would it be?

[JK]   Shane Jones and we’d catch a movie afterwards!  Dinner and a show! [chuckles at his own one-liner]

[JM]  Your dream three dinner guests, dead or alive?

[JK]   John F Kennedy, Winston Churchill and, ah, um, Tiger Woods.

[JM]   What would you serve them for a main?

[JK]    Rack of New Zealand lamb, a side of fresh New Zealand crayfish a topped off by tempura Bluff oysters.

[JM]  Washed down by what wine?

[JK]   I’d start with a Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc and have a Stony Ridge Larose with the main.

[JM]  Who, on planet earth right now, are you most in awe of?

[JK]   Nelson Mandela.

[JM] What has been your worst moment as PM?

[JK]   The catwalk [giggles] as a personal stuff up, but on a serious note, obviously losing our guys in Afghanistan.

[JM] What has been finest moment as PM?

[JK]  The way people rallied around Christchurch.  On a personal level, winning in 2008, even though I wasn’t technically the PM, it was a euphoric night.

[JM]  Tell us about John Key, God willing you make it there, as an 80 year old.  Where will he be?  What will he be doing?

[JK]  Okay, I will have had the New Zealand superannuation pension for 15 years, having got it at 65. I will be shooting under my handicap in golf, going round regularly in 76.  I will be fully conversant with all my faculties and will continue to enjoy overseas travel to see the children, knowing Stephie, she will probably be in Paris, and I will be continuing my support of the All Blacks and the National Party.