Boris Johnson: Final curtain on a colourful career?

Could this truly beryllium the end?

Boris Johnson's latest departure from Parliament has a feeling of finality astir it.

The past clip helium stood down arsenic an MP, successful 2008, it was successful triumph. He had conscionable been elected politician of London, a occupation that would motorboat him connected the way to Downing Street.

Now helium is heading for the exit with each guns blazing, with a scathing onslaught connected the MPs who sought to punish him for misleading Parliament implicit Covid rule-breaking.

His absorption to the Privileges Committee report is vintage Johnson - colourful, amusing successful parts - the references to "Mystic Meg" and nudist colonies - but with an unfamiliar borderline of bitterness and anger.

Whether it turns retired to beryllium the last raging testament of a antheral destined for the governmental wilderness remains to beryllium seen.

He has bounced backmost from many, chiefly self-inflicted, disasters before.

And helium is intelligibly successful nary temper to settee for comfy semi-retirement.

He has already earned much than £5m for giving speeches astir the satellite since helium discontinue arsenic premier minister.

He is besides astir to go a begetter again, astatine 58, with woman Carrie expecting their 3rd child. The household person conscionable moved into a £3.8m Grade II listed manor location successful Oxfordshire, implicit with its ain moat.

There are books to constitute - his memoir of his clip successful Downing Street is good nether mode apparently, and speech of concern opportunities.

But this whitethorn beryllium bladed gruel for idiosyncratic with Boris Johnson's outsize personality.

From his earliest puerility days, erstwhile helium famously declared helium wanted to beryllium "world king", Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson has had his eyes connected life's large prizes.

He came into the satellite successful 1964 successful the Upper East Side of Manhattan, successful New York, wherever his father, Stanley, was studying economics.

One of 4 children, helium spent his aboriginal years connected the household workplace successful Somerset, earlier moving to northbound London and past Brussels, wherever Stanley was moving for the European Commission.

The Johnson siblings were adjacent and highly competitory with 1 another. Young Boris, oregon Al, arsenic helium was known to the family, was mostly brought up by his creator parent Charlotte, helped by au pairs.

He won a assistance to Eton College, England's astir prestigious backstage school, wherever helium made a lasting content connected his teachers and classmates.

In a wide quoted excerpt from a schoolhouse report, teacher Martin Hammond said of the 17-year-old Johnson: "Boris sometimes seems affronted erstwhile criticised for what amounts to a gross nonaccomplishment of responsibility.

"I deliberation helium honestly believes it is churlish of america not to respect him arsenic an exception, 1 who should beryllium escaped of the web of work which binds everyone else."

Simon Veksner, a schoolhouse person of Johnson, told writer Simon Kuper successful his caller publication Chums: "Boris's charisma adjacent past was disconnected the charts, truthful funny, warm, charming, self-deprecating,"

At Oxford University, helium was elected president of the national - a debating nine dating backmost to 1823. He besides joined the infamously rowdy and exclusive Bullingdon Club, alongside aboriginal premier curate David Cameron.

After Oxford, helium was taken connected arsenic a trainee newsman astatine the Times newspaper, but was sacked aft falsifying a quote.

It proved to beryllium a insignificant setback however, and successful 1988 helium was fixed a occupation connected the Daily Telegraph by then-editor Max Hastings.

As the Telegraph's Brussels correspondent, Johnson specialized successful ridiculing regulations passed by the European Commission - though galore of his chap reporters successful Brussels felt his stories were exaggerated and successful immoderate cases simply untrue.

In 1999, helium became exertion of influential right-wing mag the Spectator, and 2 years aboriginal yet achieved his ambition to participate Parliament, arsenic the Tory MP for Henley, successful Oxfordshire.

Things did not spell smoothly.

He insisted connected continuing to edit the Spectator, adjacent erstwhile helium was promoted to the Tory frontbench by past person Michael Howard.

He came unstuck successful 2004 erstwhile the mag published an nonfiction blaming the Hillsborough catastrophe connected the behaviour of Liverpool shot fans.

An incensed Howard ordered Johnson to Liverpool to apologise to the full city.

He survived "Operation Scouse Grovel", arsenic helium dubbed it, lone to beryllium sacked by Howard a period aboriginal for lying astir claims helium had had an matter with writer Petronella Wyatt.

Johnson's colourful backstage beingness has agelong been a root of fascination for chap journalists - successful particular, the question of however galore children helium has fathered.

He has declined to corroborate a fig erstwhile asked, but it is thought beryllium seven, with different connected the way.

He has 4 children from his 2nd marriage, to barrister Marina Wheeler, which ended successful divorce, and different from an matter with creation advisor Helen Macintyre.

In May 2020, Johnson joined Carrie Symonds, a erstwhile Tory aide, astatine a backstage ceremonial astatine Westminster Cathedral. The mates had their archetypal lad together, Wilfred, successful April 2020. Their 2nd child, girl Romy, was calved successful December 2021.

It was Johnson's 2 presumption arsenic London politician - starting successful 2008 - that transformed his governmental career.

Up until then, helium had been stuck successful the dilatory lane, amended known arsenic a TV personage and drama crook than a superior politician.

His quality to harvest votes from Labour supporters - and task an upbeat, affirmative imaginativeness of Conservativism - made him a almighty electoral plus for his party.

His popularity reached its highest during the 2012 London Olympics, despite, oregon possibly due to the fact that of, being pictured dangling from a zip ligament gamely waving a brace of national flags.

In 2015, helium returned to Parliament arsenic MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip, with his sights acceptable connected the apical job, and a large dilemma. David Cameron's determination to clasp an EU referendum was a defining infinitesimal for the country, but besides for the aged friends and rivals.

Johnson's determination - aft overmuch agonising - to articulation forces with the pro-Brexit run came arsenic a terrible stroke to Cameron's hopes of keeping the UK successful the EU. But it was seen arsenic a game-changing infinitesimal by the pro-Brexit campaign, tally by tough-talking strategist Dominic Cummings, a antheral Cameron had erstwhile dismissed arsenic a "career psychopath".

When his broadside emerged victorious, Johnson threw his chapeau into the ringing to regenerate Cameron arsenic Conservative person and premier minister.

However, his run was dramatically undermined erstwhile workfellow and adjacent person Michael Gove withdrew enactment and decided to tally for the enactment himself, saying helium did not deliberation Johnson was up to the occupation of premier minister.

Not for the archetypal time, helium was contemplating the extremity of his governmental career. Yet successful a astonishment determination Theresa May, the eventual winner, appointed Johnson arsenic overseas secretary.

He discontinue May's furniture successful 2018, successful protestation astatine her Brexit deal, which helium claimed would pb Britain into "the presumption of a colony".

When she was forced to resign arsenic Tory person the pursuing year, helium yet got his hands connected the apical job.

He was instantly plunged into turmoil, arsenic helium battled to govern with the non-existent bulk inherited from May.

In an audacious and highly arguable move, aboriginal ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court, helium attempted to prorogue, oregon suspend, Parliament, aft his attempts to propulsion done a Brexit woody faltered up of his ain deadline of 31 October 2019.

After 2 failed attempts to get MPs to ballot for a wide election, helium yet went to the state successful December 2019, promising to "Get Brexit Done", a slogan dreamed up by Dominic Cummings, who was present his closest aide.

The gamble paid off, and helium was returned to powerfulness with the biggest Conservative bulk since Margaret Thatcher's 1980s heyday. Crucially, helium had won seats successful erstwhile Labour strongholds crossed the North of England, what came to beryllium cognize arsenic the Red Wall.

His Brexit woody was approved and connected 31 January 2020 the UK near the EU.

It looked arsenic though negotiating a commercialized woody with the EU would beryllium his government's archetypal cardinal task - and Brexit his abiding legacy. But, wrong weeks, helium was engulfed by an all-consuming situation that fewer - slightest of each Mr Johnson - had seen coming: the coronavirus pandemic.

In April 2020, helium tested affirmative for Covid himself and spent 3 nights successful intensive care. Downing Street played down the seriousness of his information but erstwhile helium was discharged, the PM admitted "it could person gone either way".

As the UK emerged from the pandemic, Mr Johnson's authorities was nether occurrence from each sides for its handling of the pandemic.

He hailed the occurrence of the UK's vaccine roll-out, which was the fastest successful the developed world.

But his governmental problems were mounting up.

In November 2020, helium mislaid Dominic Cummings and different elder aides aft a bout of bitter infighting successful Downing Street.

Worse was to travel successful November 2021, erstwhile the Daily Mirror accused Johnson of breaking Covid rules by attending parties successful Downing Street erstwhile indoor mixing was banned. There was a further bombshell conscionable implicit a week aboriginal erstwhile video footage emerged of Downing Street unit laughing and joking astir holding a Christmas party.

Then the Daily Telegraph revealed that Downing Street unit had held booze-fuelled parties the nighttime earlier the Duke of Edinburgh's funeral. Johnson aboriginal apologised to the Queen.

Johnson, his then-Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Carrie Johnson were among those fined by police, portion a damning study by elder civilian servant Sue Gray laid bare a Downing Street civilization of drunkenness and contempt for the rules.

Johnson did his champion to dependable contrite successful public, telling MPs helium had learned lessons and had launched a shake-up of backroom staff, but helium continued to importune that helium had not breached Covid rules connected purpose.

The furniture rallied circular the premier minister, but a steadily increasing set of backbench Conservatives, from antithetic wings of the party, had travel to the decision that helium had to go, amid rising nationalist anger.

He survived a assurance question successful June 2022, contempt astir fractional of his MPs voting against him. But a drawstring of by-election defeats led MPs to fearfulness helium had go an electoral liability. The aged magic, it seemed, was nary longer working.

The last straw for galore MPs was erstwhile ministers were sent retired to support the premier curate successful a enactment implicit an MP facing allegations of intersexual misconduct, equipped with misleading accusation from Downing Street.

A wide walkout by ministers, including Chancellor Rishi Sunak, followed and aft 48 hours of defiance, successful which helium repeatedly vowed to "get connected with the job" of governing, helium was yet forced to look up to reality.

He did not spell quietly. And wrong a fewer abbreviated months helium would get an unexpected accidental to marque different comeback, pursuing the spectacular implosion of Liz Truss's premiership.

He flew backmost from a Caribbean vacation successful October 2022 to motorboat a bid to regenerate Truss, who had won the contention to regenerate him.

But contempt managing to scrape unneurotic conscionable capable nominations from Tory MPs to get connected the ballot, Johnson pulled retired of the contest, paving the mode for the coronation of Rishi Sunak, who had acold much enactment successful the Parliamentary party.

He insisted helium would stay an MP, fuelling rumours that different comeback mightiness beryllium connected the cards.

But questions astir his behaviour during the Covid pandemic refused to spell away, with the committee of MPs investigating whether helium had lied to Parliament yet delivering their damning verdict.

Only a fool would constitute Boris Johnson disconnected wholly - and helium retains a set of loyal supporters, who constituent to his enactment implicit the warfare successful Ukraine and his espousal of accepted Tory escaped marketplace values arsenic reasons for his instrumentality - not to notation his formidable campaigning skills.

But the roadworthy backmost looks similar a agelong and steep one.