Boris Johnson plans to go out with a bang, behind closed doors. On Saturday, the Prime Minister will hold a lavish and long-delayed wedding reception to celebrate his marriage to Carrie, 14 months after the couple took advantage of relaxed Covid rules to hold a low-key ceremony at Westminster Cathedral followed by a small party in the garden of number 10 Downing Street.
The upcoming country party has already landed Mr Johnson in hot water – he is accused of delaying his resignation so he could get married at Checkers, his official country retreat, forcing him to relocate .
I understand the invitations to the party went out more than five months ago, meaning a last-minute scramble to find a new venue forced the Johnsons to scrap their carefully laid plans and start over almost from scratch .
This time, the couple is taking no chances. Wedding guests are understood to be under strict instructions not to discuss details ahead of the event, to avoid an embarrassing leak that would risk putting the nuptials back in the tabloid headlines.
“We’re sworn to secrecy,” said one guest. Even the details of a theme, number of guests and entertainment were kept secret. However, the only detail that has leaked is the location: to replace Chequers, Mr and Mrs Johnson have been offered the use of Daylesford House in Gloucestershire, ironically in the same part of the Cotswolds where Prime Minister David Cameron’s former nemesis has. their ‘set’ based around the nearby town of Chipping Norton.
The Grade I listed Georgian manor house has a checkered history: it was bought by Warren Hastings, the famous 18th-century Governor-General of India, as an act of revenge because his impecunious grandfather had been forced to sell- to pay for it. the family bills.
It has been owned since 1986 by Lord Bamford, chairman of the JCB empire and one of the Conservatives’ biggest donors – he gave Johnson’s party £4m at the last election and allowed him to do a stunt photoshoot in his Staffordshire factory where the Prime Minister. drove a bulldozer through a styrofoam wall.
Daylesford has become a household name, at least in Mr and Mrs Johnson’s circles, thanks to Lady Bamford, who has opened a chain of organic food shops and cafes that were originally based on the estate and are now they also spread across London. as well as having its own Daylesford Organics line in supermarkets.
In addition to hosting, the Bamfords are said to be helping foot some of the wedding bill. Number 10 has steadfastly refused to comment, saying only that no taxpayers’ money will be spent; but if the Prime Minister takes advantage of the generosity of wealthier friends, it would be entirely in character.
He funded the renovation of the Downing Street flat through a donation from Lord Brownlow (later repaid), and spent a holiday in Mustique, paid for by the founder of Carphone Warehouse.
The guest list for the party is likely to include many members of Mr Johnson’s extended family, including his father Stanley and sister Rachel. It is not clear if his adult children with ex-wife Marina Wheeler will attend; friends say her relationship with her father remains uneasy after a bitter divorce. But given Boris and Carrie’s love of putting their young children Wilfred and Romy center stage at big events, guests can surely expect the youngsters to take part in the ceremony.
Close friends of Ms Johnson include political aides Henry Newman and Josh Grimstone, while a handful of journalists who knew her when she was a Tory spinner will also be in attendance. Johnson has a less tight-knit circle of friends, but the ministers who have been most loyal to him, including Nadine Dorries, Nigel Adams and Jacob Rees-Mogg, are likely to attend.
The Prime Minister’s closest childhood friend is believed to be Hugo Dixon, who attended Eton with him and also went into journalism, but ironically spent several years as a vociferous anti-Brexit campaigner running a website that verified Mr. Johnson’s comments and his own. mates.
Once the couple have sealed their nuptials with a big party, their thoughts will turn to life after Downing Street. When Mr Johnson left the family home and moved in with Carrie, they lived in a flat in Camberwell, south-east London, which he owns, but after his neighbors leaked a story to the press about a noisy argument, the couple had one. night in 2019, they are unlikely to want to return.
There are rumors that the Johnsons are already looking for houses. Residents of Herne Hill, an increasingly fashionable neighborhood east of Brixton, report that the couple have been seen house hunting on a street where the average property costs £2 million. Given Mr Johnson’s repeated (private) complaints about money problems, he may need to step up his book writing and lucrative speaking engagements as soon as possible after leaving office.