Portsmouth Year in Review July: Boris Johnson resigns and the Lionesses crowned Euro winners

The beginning of the month witnessed political turmoil across the country as the former Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, resigned from his post on July 7, sparking a battle of MPs.

Penny Mordant, Portsmouth North MP, quickly became one of the favourites to take the title of the next PM as she went from strength to strength in the knock-out stages of MPs that had proposed why they should be appointed.

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The Conservative MP managed to make it to the last three standing, but on July 20, she was knocked out of the race with 105 votes, leaving Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak in the running. Both would be prime ministers within the next three months.

On July 7, Portsmouth also had the privilege to welcome the Queen’s baton arrive in the city via hovercraft. The baton began its 294-day journey across all of the Commonwealth in October 2021, in aid of celebrating the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The baton made its way through Gunwharf Quays, the Historic Dockyard, the historic Charles Dickens ward, and the Guildhall Square before arriving on Southsea Common.

Taking part in the relay were Derrick Harris, George Turner, Angie Osborne, James Dawson, Simon Tier, Henry Ainsley, Effie Blankston, Keith Graetz, and learning disability advocate Max Ross.

The middle of the month saw a huge spike in temperatures as the country experienced a heatwave, with the heat reaching 30C, and beach goers flocked to Southsea beach to catch some of the sun rays before they disappeared.

The beach not only bore witness to hundreds of families making the most of the sunshine, but they also saw the negatives of the heatwave as youngsters launched themselves into the sea from Clarence Pier, causing concern.

At the time, Anthony Basely, who is part of the pier’s maintenance crew, said: ‘It’s a nightmare down there.’

Gunwharf Quays added a summer attraction to bring a taste of America to Portsmouth as they introduced rides, fairground attractions, a hot dog stand and a bar as part of the Summer Boardwalk.

The Plaza area was kitted out with a balloon ride, a big wheel to give shoppers the opportunity to hit the heights, the funhouse, a carousel and marvellous margaritas.

The international kite festival returned to Southsea on July 30 and 31, filling the sky with dozens of unique kites celebrating the 30th anniversary of the event which is run by Portsmouth County Council and The Kite Society.

This year adopted the theme of ‘Art on the line’ and there was an array of spectacular kites in attendance including Sonic the Hedgehog, whales, frogs, dogs, teddies, turtles and many more.

At the time, Councillor Steve Pitt, cabinet member for culture, leisure, and economic development, said: ‘We are once again proud to host such a unique and vivid event at the seafront. This event is always a highlight of the summer event calendar.’

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Former Portsmouth players for the women’s team were brimming with excitement as the Lionesses went into the final of the UEFA Women’s Euro 2022, saying that this achievement is paving the way for young girls wanting to play the game.

Ahead of the finals against Germany, Kirsty Pearce, a former player on Pompey women’s team who now runs development programme for Pompey in the Community, said: ‘The whole nation is beyond proud. They have done themselves and they have done the nation proud and there is way more still to go.

‘I just think it shows just how far it has come and I have seen that transition over the years.’

On the last day of the month, the England women's national football team beat Germany 2-1, winning the women’s Euro 2022 for the first time in their history.