Starting out as a postgraduate intern at The Times before joining The Telegraph, he would become one of that paper’s most prominent columnists until his election as Tory leader in 2019. And in 2015, Mr Johnson signed a £500,000 deal with publisher Hodder and Stoughton to write a biography of William Shakespeare. This came a year after The Churchill Factor, Mr Johnson’s first biography which looked at the wartime leader’s life and his biggest personal political idol. In any capacity, he will no doubt wish to return to writing. And not since Margaret Thatcher will the words of a former prime minister be chosen more. All his writing will be scrutinized for what it says both directly and indirectly about the big issues of the day or where the government is getting it right or wrong. And somewhat worryingly for his successor, Mr Johnson’s comments in his columns were – more often than not – newsworthy in their own right. He will also be free to tweet, give interviews and give after-dinner speeches at his leisure. The speaking market is particularly lucrative for a figure so flamboyant in his prose, and no doubt no shortage of stories and anecdotes from his three extraordinarily eventful years at the height of power. As well as her work as an MP, Mrs May earned £1.1m between December 2019 and March 2021 from a wide range of speaking engagements. Mr Johnson will no doubt be tempted to follow suit.
