Prime Minister Boris Johnson has officially moved into 10 Downing Street
BY MICHELLE DELREY
toby@slpmedia.co.uk
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has officially moved into 10 Downing Street, but has brought more than just baggage with him.
Downing Street’s newest residents are bringing a South London connection not seen for many years.
Carrie Symonds, 31, the Prime Minister’s Camberwell girlfriend, moved into 10 Downing Street on Monday with him, but the couple have only been dating for the past 18 months.
They’ll be the first unmarried duo to reside at the famous address in recent history.
The decision was made even though Johnson’s marriage to his second wife, Marina Wheeler, hasn’t yet been finalised.
The two kept a low profile until their recent row at their flat in Camberwell, where a spat was recorded by neighbours Eve Leigh, 34, and Tom Penn, 30.
The event resulted in an attempted blacklisting of a local pub after residents thought the Camberwell Arms was owned by the pair.
Ms Symonds has missed out on leading moments, such as meeting the Queen, but stood right by her boyfriend’s side as he delivered his first speech as PM.
It’s likely that Ms Symonds met Mr Johnson when she signed on to work on his 2012 London mayoral campaign.
She has been credited with the rebranding of his image.
The pair have just bought a house for £1.3million, less than a mile from Symonds’ flat
in Camberwell.
Ms Symonds is the daughter of Matthew Symonds, a founder of The Independent, and Josephine McAfee, a former lawyer at the newspaper.
Originally from South-west London, she attended Godolphin and Latymer School – an independent day school for girls in Hammersmith, west London.
She went on to attend the University of Warwick, receiving a degree in art history and theatre.
During her studies, she revealed herself to be one of the victims of the Black Cab Rapist, who was convicted in 2009 for attacks on 12 women.
At 29 she became the Conservative Party’s youngest ever communications director.
Mr Johnson has praised his South London roots in the past.
At a celebration for the holiday of Eid he said: “In 1908, my father’s father’s father moved to South London and was a Muslim who knew the Quran by heart.”
Boris Johnson is the first Prime Minister from South London since John Major, who served between 1990 and 1997.
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