Boris Johnson’s father Stanley broke his mother Charlotte’s nose and left her needing hospital treatment, a new biography of the Prime Minister has alleged.
In The Gambler, written by journalist Tom Bower, it is alleged that the PM’s parents had a ‘violent and unhappy’ relationship before they divorced in 1979. Charlotte is quoted as saying of Stanley: ‘He broke my nose. He made me feel like I deserved it.’
The incident is alleged to have happened in the 1970s, when Johnson was still a child. Friends of the family told the Mail on Sunday that Charlotte had ‘flailed’ at Stanley, who ‘flailed’ back and broke her nose in a ‘one-off’ incident.
Mr Bower wrote that the incident left Johnson ‘agonising over his mother’s fate’ and turned him into a ‘loner’, as he was ‘unwilling to confide in others about his father’s violence’.
He added: ‘To mask the misery and hurt, he demanded attention… But Boris’s bravado masked deep unhappiness.’
Stanley is said to ‘deeply regret’ the alleged incident. He declined to comment when approached and said he had not read the book. Number 10 also declined to comment.
Charlotte, a painter, married Stanley in in 1963, while she was studying at Oxford University. The couple share four children together; Boris, Rachel, Jo and Leo.
They later moved to the US in 1966, with Stanley becoming heavily involved in environmental work. The biography claims the father-of-four travelled a lot for his role, and missed several ‘milestones’, even after they returned to the UK.
Charlotte told Mr Bower she suspected him of having affairs during the 1970s, but added: ‘I stayed because I loved him, despite the tensions.’
The biography reports that years later Stanley described claims of infidelity on his part as ‘total garbage’.
Stanley hit headlines this week after he was spotted shopping in Maida Vale, west London, without wearing a mask – despite his own son’s laws deeming it compulsory in England.
Stating that he was ‘extremely sorry for the slip up’, he said: ‘ I would urge absolutely everybody to do everything they can to make sure they do follow the rules about masks and social distancing.
If you think I'm not wearing my hijab properly, that's your problem - not mine
‘The fact this was my first day back in the UK after three weeks abroad is, I am sure, no excuse for not knowing the rules.’
Not wearing a mask in a shop can result in offenders being handed a fine of £200. The Met Police received calls to punish the PM’s father, but stated that they would not be issuing a fine retrospectively.
A spokesperson for the PM said: ‘In relation to individuals, it’s for police to determine what action to take. What the PM is clear on is the rules apply to everyone and everyone should follow them.’
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