Nadine Dorries: Everyone is comparing culture secretary interview to a Catherine Tate sketch

‘Nadine Dorries choosing to appear as Catherine Tate on Channel 4 News. Baffling. What a time to be alive,’ joked one viewer

Footage of culture secretary Nadine Dorries struggling to defend Boris Johnson in an interview has gone viral, with many comparing the clip to a Catherine Tate comedy sketch.

Dorries was interviewed by Channel 4 after the prime minister attempted to distract from the partygate controversy by making false claims against Labour leader Keir Starmer.

Johnson accused Starmer of failing to prosecute paedophile Jimmy Savile when he was head of the Crown Prosecution Service. He made the claims in the House of Commons as he retaliated to Labour criticism over the Sue Gray report into parties held in government during lockdown.

Channel 4 News presenter Krishnan Guru-Murthy interviewed Dorries, asking her why Johnson had spouted “fake news” and an “old meme repeated by conspiracy theorists” in his attack on Starmer.

In a hilarious exchange, Dorries repeatedly shook her head and rolled her eyes, insisting: “I don’t know, I don’t know the details.”

By the end of the interview, she was left repeating the phrase: “The prime minister tells the truth”.

Many have compared Dorries’ mannerisms in the interview to those of Tate’s comedy character Lauren, a school girl whose catchphrase is “Am I bovvered?”

The comedy character was first introduced to audiences in 2004 on The Catherine Tate Show.

She was a teenager with a grumpy attitude who, when feeling angry or embarrassed, replied with defensive responses such as “Am I bovvered?”, “Do I look bovvered?” and “Are you disrespecting me?”