Revelations about Boris Johnson’s childhood and messy romantic life in Tom Bower’s biography “Boris Johnson: The Gambler” have filled in a graphic background to what was already known or suspected. And it helps flesh out and give a context to his birth chart.
His father Stanley – a Sun Mars in Leo square Uranus – was not only an emotionally distant and mainly never-there father and a serial womaniser, he was also violent towards his first wife. She claims he broke her nose in an altercation, which he said she deserved. She ultimately ended up in a mental hospital with depression for eight months. Boris was sent off to preparatory school aged ten and then Eton, compounding his unhappiness and sense of alienation. When his father was home, he instilled a dog-eat-dog, cut-throat desire to win arguments at any cost in his children, setting them up in competition with each other.
Stanley Johnson, 18 August 1940, has an incredibly fixed as well as angry and competitive chart with Saturn Jupiter and Uranus in Taurus and Pluto Mercury in Leo as well as his Sun Mars – nothing will budge him. Boris is the polar opposite with his jitterbug four Gemini planets, Uranus Pluto in Virgo and Saturn in Pisces.
Evidently the only stable parenting figure in Boris’s early childhood was a grandfather which explains his two 8th house planets.
What I hadn’t really concentrated on before now since it is out-of-sign is Boris’s Grand Trine of Scorpio Moon trine Saturn trine Node, Venus Sun in Gemini, formed into a Kite by Saturn opposition Uranus. Moon Saturn is depressive (as is Saturn opposition Pluto), an indication of a less than warm and nurturing childhood. Moon trine Venus hints paradoxically at an affectionate connection to women figures in his life. Bower comments again and again that “only a woman could ever be his confidante.” And yet as Jennifer Arcuri, one of his recent mistresses, also comments he had a blind spot inherited from Stanley: ‘An inability to take women seriously.’ His intensely emotional and highly sexual Scorpio Moon is tied into his chart in a highly complex and contradictory web, trine Saturn and trine Sun Venus, as well as sextile Uranus and tied into his Neptune and Jupiter by more minor aspects.
He comes across as exceptionally lonely with no real friends, only a conveyor belt of passing romantic affairs. His second wife for 25 years Marina was the one mainstay of his life, who kept him grounded, through endless affairs and wayward pregnancies. The affair with Carrie Symonds, according to those close, would have fizzled out had Marina not decided that she’d had enough and much to his horror filed for divorce. Jennifer Arcuri (admittedly hardly a detached observer) commented of Carrie: ‘Boris got caught by a flirtatious minx. She’s controlling him.’
Boris’s attitude to men/father figures is all wrapped up in his Saturn opposition Uranus Pluto square Mars. Mars Saturn reflects cruelty and anger; Mars Pluto ruthlessness and black rage; Mars Uranus is explosive.
His relationship chart with his father has a volatile, high-wire, needs-space Mars conjunct Uranus in a can-be-fanatical square to Neptune; with a power-struggling for the upper hand Jupiter square Pluto; and a chilly Saturn square Mercury, Venus.
The tensions in the wider Johnson family, laid bare in Bower’s book, make clear how Boris’s grown up children from his marriage expressed their contempt for his behaviour when the divorce happened, siding with their mother.
Two minor points. One is that Rachel, Boris’s sister evidently refuses to condemn her father. Born 3 September 1965, she has a prominent Sagittarius Moon probably square Saturn opposition Pluto, Uranus Sun in Virgo. Which validates the notion that Sag Moons tend to airbrush out what they don’t want to see. [Ever since Solaia pointed it out I have found countless examples.]
The other is another comment from Jennifer Arcuri who seems, contrary to appearances, to be perceptive. ‘She saw him as an introvert, a depressive who enjoyed solitude, and someone who needed to be alone. Paradoxically, particularly on those days of his greatest public successes, he could decline into an intense depression.’
Which might explain his astrology when he won the last election when all his chart indicated was negativity. Ditto Cummings. A psychological trait to ponder – and to keep in mind for election predictions.
He’s undoubtedly a talented if anguished man, which latter need not prevent him from making a considerable impact. His leaving-a-legacy-for-history 17th Harmonic is strong; as is his 15H = a magic number in numerology which rules alchemy, black magic, need for erotic experiences, actors and eloquent speakers. It is a “tricky” number, not always lucky, and sometimes it can be associated with illness. His 7th harmonic is also marked which suggests a seeking soul who needs peace and can be cold and self-centered. His can-be-self-defeating 10H and 16H are also notable.
Boris and trump seem alot like brothers,with the stuff about trump and covid,and how he dealt with his father,and family,and now seeing this stuff about Boris,his father,family,and covid,and since their Chiron’s are very close,just 18+ years apart,did Stanley Johnson ever cross paths with Fred trump,since it seems the saying like father like son seems scary in these 2 government officials trump,and boris kept away from politics,since it seems politics has brought out the worst in Donald,and boris,and seems to have caused the u.s.,and u.k. to start sinking like the titanic ,hopefully here in the states harris,and biden get in without crazy trump doing more before he,and pence leave,if they leave,and somebody over in the UK brings back common sense in government,and the irony of bringing up the titanic is that a exact replica of the original we be launched in2 years,amazing how certain of humans keep repeating phases of the past,even if history told us of errors past,some of us like trump don’t believe consequence’s apply,maybe some of us feel we should be Looney tunes character willie e coyote in real life,instead of retiring from this crazy stuff,maybe Richard Dawkins was right that some of us have a stupid,selfish gene in our DNA,hopefully we find a way to fix it,or we might not see the future as a species that lives beyond our earth,but hopefully the future is brighter,and not darker.
It’s been my own experience that siblings in a family can have quite a different perspective on their parents. So I can understand Rachel having a different view of things. I was born overseas in the Southern Hemisphere while my sisters were born in the states, so my natals look very different house-wise than my sisters’ do, though we three are only four years apart. I also have my moon mid-Scorpio, ouch! Though mine is in a tight conjunct with Venus. Agree that schlubby Boris is *not* cut out for politics, though I can see the father’s influence there perhaps reflected in Boris’s Capricorn South Node. With his stack-up from early Gemini to early Cancer in the 9th, assuming birth time is accurate—especially also with Mercury in Gemini—maybe a glib TV presenter or traveling journalist was a better fit? Saturn in Pisces 5th seems so drab. It’s like he sees a beautiful vista and then builds an ugly skyscraper that blocks the view.
I agree with Jane that politics isn’t Johnson’s ideal career, and journalism better. I had a varied and satisfactory career in that field with three planets in Gemini. However four planets there looks too much of a good thing, it needs boundaries. Johnson was indulged as a journalist and allowed to say whatever he liked whether true or not. Like Michael Portillo, the former, controversial Defence Secretary (also four planets in Gemini, Moon in Scorpio), Johnson is perhaps more suited to television. A research/presenting niche such as Portillo found making his railway programmes, within the disciplines essential to TV production, could be a wiser use of Johnson’s talent for connecting with audiences.
And I agree with you, Michael! I’m not a Boris fan, but do recall a very entertaining series he made about the Roman Empire and it’s history. I was surprised by how entertaining it was. At the time he compared the Roman Empire to the EU in a number of ways…..perhaps the Saturn, Moon, nodes and Cancer MC aspects might also point to an affinity with history, as well as the classics he obviously loves. It’s interesting what you say about his being indulged as a journalist. His whole life pattern seems to be one of either adoration and indulgence, or misery and being rather lost. There are the Gemini Twins in a way, in essence.
Thanks Majorie for a insightful read.
Thanks Marjorie
Boris has an extraordinary chart for a politician with no cardinal planets or fire planets.
The astrology perhaps explains the way he abandoned his bid to become PM after Cameron resigned. I thought that he was happy to get out of the responsibility at that time. Similarly, on resigning as Foreign Secretary thought there was an element of relief in that, and the fact that others resigned before him showed him the way. Others have interpreted these as master strategic strokes but I wonder whether this was apprehension of taking on the role and/or weariness with playing the part he has invented for himself.
Whatever he will have Saturn, Jupiter and at length Pluto squaring his moon which with the other aspects does not look comfortable.
Thank you, Marjorie. As a Scorpio moon, I know how intense and painful this moon can be and I can quite see how Johnson uses his various ‘personae’ to hide behind as Jane said in her post below.
Thanks Marjorie This is very illuminating- one could even feel somewhat sorry for him! One query I do have is regarding the moon in Sagittarius comments. Is the airbrushing more likely to happen if natal planets are in hard aspects to the moon? I’m asking as a moon in Sag. as I really don’t think that I do this so can only think that there must be other aspects mitigating this.
I have Moon in Sag., opposed by Saturn and squared by Pluto (It’s a t-square). I believe this formation keeps me grounded, though I try always to stay optimistic. Without Saturn or Pluto I’d be “flying” all over the place.
That’s interesting dunyazade. My saturn and pluto are sextile and tri the moon so don’t know if that is relevant. However my mars in scorpio might have some bearing. Just shows how important a whole chart reading is.
Thanks Marjorie. A very complicated man, who seems to have been shaped or influenced by his father more than his siblings. He also has two half siblings, but they keep a very low profile. The Saturn aspects and their meaning seem to be emerging more visibly as time goes by – which is appropriate for Saturn I suppose. It seems to me that, despite his obvious ambition, politics isn’t his ideal career. And I’m setting aside any thoughts about how he is doing in that career, or my personal opinions about that! Media, writing, and communications seem like a more natural fit for his 9th house Gemini planets. A Scorpio Moon, and 12th house Pluto in a Mercury-ruled sign add to that introverted picture. I suspect much of his over the top ebullience, clowning, and so on were developed early on as some kind of coping mechanism. Not to say they are not part of his personality, but perhaps not such an obvious ‘brand’ identity.
Wow sounds a lot like Gemini Trump