Will Boris bounce back as editor of The Spectator? The former Prime Minister could return to his old job following his shock resignation as Rupert Murdoch reportedly circles the magazine after it was put up for sale
Boris Johnson’s first post-political job could be a return to his old berth as editor of The Spectator magazine under the stewardship of media magnate Rupert Murdoch – if febrile Westminster rumours are to be believed.
Speculation over Mr Johnson’s future in the wake of his explosive resignation has ranged from him making an instant return to the Commons through a by-election to trying life as a stay-at-home, nappy-changing dad when his latest child arrives in the coming weeks.
But the fact that Mr Johnson’s exit has coincided with the sale of the 195-year-old magazine has led to speculation that he could be dramatically parachuted in to the editor’s chair which he occupied between 1999 and 2005.
The Spectator is being sold – along with The Daily and Sunday Telegraph newspapers – after B.UK Ltd, which is controlled by the Barclay family, was put into receivership by its lender, Lloyds Banking Group, as it seeks to recoup a debt of almost £1 billion.
A Westminster source said: ‘There is talk about spinning off The Spectator to sell it separately, and Murdoch would be keen. Putting Boris back in would be a coup.’
Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson leaves his home in London on March 21
Johnson stepped down as an MP with immediate effect after receiving the ‘Party-gate’ report
However, tonight an insider at Murdoch’s News UK said the magazine’s highly respected editor Fraser Nelson would be safe in his job if Murdoch’s News UK bought the title – and accused Mr Johnson of spreading the rumours about himself.
The insider said: ‘There’s only Boris saying this. Rupert loves Fraser Nelson.’
To add to the intrigue, another senior politician who might fancy The Spectator editor’s chair is Michael Gove, once an executive and columnist on The Times – raising the possibility of one of the most toxic rivalries in British politics playing out in a new arena.
Mr Johnson’s editorship was infamous for cultivating a high-living, sexually-charged atmosphere – earning it the soubriquet of ‘The Sextator’.
Sources at the profitable magazine expect it to fetch at least £25 million, with one saying that they expected there to be ‘a long line of well-heeled potential bidders’, adding that the staff would ‘feel insulted’ if Murdoch was not among the potential bidders.
Analysts expect the Telegraph newspapers, which Sir David and Sir Frederick Barclay bought in 2004 for £665 million, to fetch between £452 million and £586 million in the current post-Covid media market.
Mr Johnson could also use his unexpected freedom to finally complete Shakespeare: The Riddle Of Genius, the biography of the Bard for which he received an advance of £88,000 more than eight years ago.
Mr Johnson has said the aim of the book was to determine ‘whether the Bard is indeed all he’s cracked up to be’. The former Prime Minister, 58, will also be able to spend more time writing newspaper articles taking aim at Mr Sunak’s Government, and delivering the speeches which make up the lion’s share of the £4.8 million he has earned since leaving office in September.
Mr Johnson’s wife, Carrie, announced last month that she and her husband are expecting their third child in ‘just a few weeks’.
The couple have two other children: Wilfred, who was born in April 2020, and Romy, who was born in December 2021. Mr Johnson has said of fatherhood: ‘It’s a lot of work, I’ll tell you that much, but I love it, I absolutely love it, and I want you to know I change a lot of nappies.’
A spokesman for Mr Johnson declined to comment tonight.
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