Boris Johnson ’s dad expects him to turn to painting to console himself over losing his job as Prime Minister.
The PM finally resigned on Thursday morning after scores of minister quit following a tumultuous couple of months for the government, culminating in it being revealed that Mr Johnson had been aware of allegations of “inappropriate behaviour” by MP Chris Pincher before making him deputy chief whip.
As candidates to replace Johnson as Tory leader and Prime Minister begin launching their campaigns, rumours started by Mr Johnson's ex lover claiming he'll stand to be the next Tory leader have been quickly quashed.
Any attempt by the PM to run again in the leadership contest would be against Tory party rules.
The PM's former mistress Petronella Wyatt took to Twitter to allege a No10 source told her Mr Johnson intends to stand down as PM on Monday so he can run for the Conservative leadership.
Mr Johnson caved to pressure from his own MPs to quit on Thursday but has stubbornly said he will remain in office until his successor is appointed.
He faces calls from within the party to let deputy prime minister Dominic Raab take over in the interim.
Journalist Ms Wyatt, 54, who had an affair with Mr Johnson between 2000 and 2004, this week compared him to a "dictator" who was obsessed with "his own divine right" earlier this week.
However his father Stanley painted a contrasting image of his son, claiming he will use his love of art to move on once his time at No 10 comes to an end.
The Sunday Mirror broke the news to Stanley Johnson, 81, as he was boarding a plane for France that his son had decided to quit as Tory leader though not as PM.
Mr Johnson Senior said: “I suspect he will go back to painting. He is a brilliant painter and 10 years down the line I would like to see him have a retrospective at the Institute of Contemporary Arts.”
His mother Charlotte Johnson Wahl was an accomplished portrait painter.
Actress Joanna Lumley and novelist Jilly Cooper both sat for her and the PM was photographed with his easel while on holiday in Marbella last year.
During the 2019 Tory leadership contest, Boris Johnson claimed he enjoyed painting buses on old wooden crates with passengers “enjoying themselves”.
However, some critics speculated that the bizarre admission was an attempt to obscure internet searches of the Brexit bus that promised £350 million per week for the NHS after leaving the European Union.
