Boris Johnson's dad just suggested the British public were illiterate on live TV

Boris Johnson’s father has accused the British public of illiteracy during a startling television appearance in which his son was compared to Pinocchio.

Stanley Johnson was angered by the use of the nickname when Victoria Derbyshire mentioned its usage by a viewer in reference to the Prime Minister. Clearly rattled, Johnson senior said:

That requires a degree of literacy, which I think the Great British public doesn’t necessarily have.

He added, "They couldn’t spell Pinocchio if they tried” before asking the host whether she could spell the word as the election cycle continues to get stranger by the day.

The Prime Minister’s father went on to say:

I go back to what I said before, and I was trying to say it in a humorous way, I think it is utterly absurd and wrong that you can read out, on air, a tweet, coming in from one of your readers, which calls the Prime Minister a liar. I think it is amazing you can do that.

People had thoughts, naturally.

More: The moment a floundering Boris Johnson appears to forget he's being filmed during radio interview​

More:A really, really long list of awful things Boris Johnson has said about women, LGBT+ people and people of colour​