WARNING: Some readers might find the following content uncomfortable.
Nigel Farage has revealed something even more unsavory than his policies - details of his sex life.
In a long-ranging interview with Piers Morgan, airing Friday night on ITV, the former Ukip leader talks candidly about the “sex using ice cubes” scandal involving a Latvian TV reporter in 2006, which the Daily Mail described as a “seven-times-a-night tryst”.
Farage admits going back to her house after they met in a pub but told Morgan, as part of his Piers Morgan Life Stories show, that “very little” of the story was accurate.
He said: “Yes (we went back to her house) because the pub was closed and that was a big mistake.”
When Morgan asked if there were ice cubes involved, he said: “No.” And when asked what did happen, he replied, “absolutely nothing”.
Morgan, who introduced Farage as “one of the most divisive, controversial, undeniably successful politicians of our lifetime”, then asked the twice-married MEP if he would concede he had been a “naughty boy when it comes to women” over the years.
“(I’ve) not been perfect but it’s not been that bad,” Farage said.
“I don’t look back at anything. I look forwards. Hopefully through all aspects of life you learn from things you’ve got right, things you’ve got wrong but I’m not one for looking back, I’m looking ahead, you’ve got to.”
The conversation then turned to Farage’s second wife Kirsten Mehr. Of his marriage, and rumours surrounding it, he said: “I’d describe it as being a bit like most others really - all marriages, all relationships have huge ups and downs… If it still exists now then it could possibly survive anything couldn’t it.
“One of my hopes is that life will start getting a little bit more normal going on from here. I hope it can’t be as bad as it’s been, can it?”
The interview also saw Farage being asked about his relationship with Donald Trump, Brexit, his chances of becoming Prime Minister, fatherhood, his near-death experience following a plane crash, cancer, his childhood, and the many embarrassing statements made by his party members.
Farage told Morgan that he is living like a “virtual prisoner” and is “frightened” to leave his home because of the way the media has “demonised” Ukip and accused the media of highlighting some members of the party with controversial views to try to discredit Ukip as a whole.
“It is because of these irrelevant people, who held no position, they happened to join an organisation, and because of these irrelevant people being demonised by liberal media, I’ve had to live years, frankly, of being frightened of walking out into the street all because the media picked out these people. And because of these people, attempted to demonise me and give me a bad name.
“And you’re surprised three years on, when I have to live like a virtual prisoner, that I’m not happy about it? Will I ever forgive the British media for what they’ve done to me? No.”
One of the controversies Farage was asked about was when then Ukip MEP Godfrey Bloom complained about Britain sending development aid to “Bongo Bongo Land”.
Farage said: “He was wrong to use the term ‘Bongo Bongo Land’. Was he right about us sending foreign aid to corrupt regimes all over the world when we could spend it better at home? Of course he was right.”
The MEP signalled he could make another political comeback if Brexit is handled badly, saying: “If this falls to bits, anything could happen, let’s see.”
Asked if he would like to be prime minister, he said: “If this political class let us down on Brexit, then anything can happen.”
Farage denied that Ukip had racist positions, saying: “Our policies are common-sense policies and when you look at the sheer hundreds of hours of interviews and speeches I have done, you really struggle to find anything you can put in that category.”
Reaction to Morgan’s promotion of the ‘sexual content’ questions have left some feeling rather queasy.
Other highlights from Morgan interview with Farage include:
Farage on whether he cares what people think of him:
“Not particularly. I spent 17 years inside an institution trying to effectively destroy it, can you imagine how popular I am in Brussels? I am the most hated figure that’s ever been in that place, every time I get up to speak hundreds of people boo and jeer. Do you know what Piers? I couldn’t care less.”
On whether politics had turned him into an unlikely sex symbol:
“No, I don’t think it has, no.” Adding, “I think it’s infamy really don’t you?”
“I seem to be doing very, very well with a certain age bracket.”
On Trump’s tweet that Farage should be the Ambassador to the US:
“I couldn’t believe it. I have to tell you to be honest with you, I’d never actually thought of the words ‘Farage’ and ‘Ambassador’ going together in the same sentence.”
On Brexit:
“Virtually every aspect of our commercial lives have been given away to be run by European project over which we had so little say. So to me it was fundamental should we actually have the basic facets of a nation, a nation controls its borders, makes its laws, and puts its own people first, that’s what a nation does and that I felt is what we’d surrendered. And a bunch of gutless politicians, without ever telling us the truth, were happy to give that away and I thought to hell with them, I’m going to do something about it and I did.”
On his parents being tearful when they realsied their son had realised his “25 year dream in politics” with the Brexit vote:
“Not many people do realise their dream so it was a hell of an evening [when it was announced that Britain was to leave the EU]… [I don’t feel] fully vindicated, no. The hate that has been put upon me and all of those around me, because of the media, because you pick out somebody that lives in Northumberland who is irrelevant and say effectively that represents me and UKIP leads to those hate mobs. Will I ever forgive the British media for what they’ve done to me? No.”
Farage on how many death threats he’s received:
“Plenty yes… I don’t know, I just don’t know [how many are credible].” He said it didn’t keep him awake at night though, saying, “There’s no point worrying about it.”
On his future:
“I’ve got to see the Brexit process through. We’ve won the war but we must win the peace. I will see out my time in the European Parliament so I’ll be there until the spring of 2019, I still lead a group in the European Parliament so I still want to go there regularly to make my helpful constructive suggestions and speeches.”
On the plane crash that nearly killed him in 2010:
“There was just me and the pilot in it and I say ‘What’s wrong?’ and he explains, ‘We’re losing control’ but of course we’re going to crash. Initially it was denial, ‘this really can’t be happening, surely this is a bad dream and I’m going to wake up in a minute,’ then it’s a strange sort of terror I suppose. I don’t think that’s an exaggeration. As it got closer, a strange resignation and I did have a vision of what it was going to be like. I imagined the bang on the head and blackness and that was it, it was almost like a premonition of what it might be and then the noise, a huge bang and then almost in slow motion the plane goes over so the whole world is going like this [he waves arms]. And then you stop. But that wasn’t the scariest bit. I remember thinking then ‘I’m covered in fuel’ so I thought, ‘This blimmin thing is going to burn and nobody will ever know that I survived the crash.’
On the difficulties of being married to him:
“I should think very difficult. I should think before I was in politics it was pretty tricky but very difficult... I can take the abuse [that comes with being in politics] it doesn’t bother me, but it has had an effect on everybody around me so there’s the nasty side of it. But I suppose, if I’m honest about it, my complete fanaticism for the UKIP thing, for the cause and I guess I did put that above everything else, there’s no question about it. It’s probably a rotten thing to say but yes [it is my priority.] I suppose being in politics, it wasn’t a job it was almost a calling, it dominated my life, so I do think that probably a lot of people around me have paid quite a big price for that.”
Piers Morgan’s Life Stories will be broadcast on ITV at 9pm on Friday February 24.