THE MAYOR of London paid a surprise visit to riot-hit shopkeepers to congratulate them on getting their business back on its feet.

Boris Johnson dropped in on Amrit Khurmy, owner of the SPAR in Ealing Green and her colleague Harv Singh after a visit to Ealing Studios across the road.

Mrs Khurmy said she only had a couple of hours warning before Mr Johnson walked in with Central Ealing and Acton MP Angie Bray last Thursday (April 3).

She said: “It was a shock but it was really lovely for someone so important to come to see us. We'd had met him before the riots and it was nice he could come back and see us now we're open again. He said the shop looked lovely and bought some chocolate.”