"Leo Varadkar suggests we do the interview at his house in Dublin. It's unusual for politicians to invite you into their home, but Ireland is famous for its hospitality. The house looks impressively humble a tiny, unprepossessing terrace. A woman answers. Hi, I say. Does the taoiseach live here? No, she says. I start to panic. Our interview is due to start in two minutes."
"Ah, I forgot to tell her, he says. And actually she's right. I'm not the taoiseach. Varadkar resigned as head of the Irish government in April 2024. Accompanying Varadkar is his book publicist, Cliona. She says he would like to have something to eat and suggests she and I return in half an hour. We find a general shop that sells automated coffee and a bench of sorts and while away the half hour. Cliona tells me that Varadkar isn't like most politicians."
Leo Varadkar invited the interviewer to his modest terrace house in Dublin, creating an unexpectedly humble setting. A woman at the door denied that the taoiseach lived there, provoking initial panic. Varadkar then arrived and disclosed that he was no longer taoiseach, having resigned in April 2024. He arrived with his book publicist, Cliona, who suggested a short break for food. They waited at a shop that sold automated coffee. Cliona described Varadkar as unlike most politicians: candid, having left politics in his 40s, and notable as the first gay and Asian-background taoiseach. Varadkar later returned, youthful and smart-casual.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]