Who exactly is the Prime Minister’s wife? To some, she’s Carrie Antoinette, the extravagant demander of gold wallpaper who spent lockdown ambushing her unsuspecting husband with parties and cake. To others, she’s a young wife and new mum under attack by sexist patriarchs intent on ousting Boris from No. 10.
Our national obsession with Carrie Johnson knows no bounds. The latest round of intrigue comes courtesy of Lord Ashcroft and his new book, First Lady. The title alone wryly signals Carrie has overstepped the mark into a starring role that is fundamentally un-British. Its shocking contents detail alleged incidents of behind-the-scenes interference, from ‘impersonating’ Boris in text messages to whispered briefings during phone calls.
In response, a spokesman for Carrie has declared Lord Ashcroft’s book to be full of ‘vile fabrications’ and Boris has pointed the finger of blame at ‘disgruntled former No. 10 advisers’. Meanwhile, Sajid Javid took time away from calculating NHS waiting lists to announce that the PM’s wife ‘should be off limits’.
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