The Daily Telegraph’s front page, which called Boris Johnson “the roaring lion”, after he delivered his Tory Party Conference speech amid a growing fight with Theresa May, has been ridiculed.
The Foreign Secretary, who has used the pages of the paper to challenge May’s authority by setting out his vision for Brexit in September, gave a 29-minute speech in which he attacked Brexit “pessimists” and called on the party to “let that lion roar”.
Theresa May has faced claims Johnson is “unsackable” as his own Brexit interventions have shown her weakness.
The Telegraph, however, has championed him comparing him to Winston Churchill and dubbing him “the roaring lion” on the front page of its Wednesday edition.
Guardian columnist Rafael Behr summed up how he felt about Johnson and the Telegraph’s relationship on Tuesday night.
In a post that was retweeted by Tory MP and Johnson critic Anna Soubry, Lineker said: “Finally The Telegraph shows it’s got a sense of humour. Roaring with laughter.”
ITV News anchor Alastair Stewart jokingly called it a “cautious welcome” to Johnson’s speech.
Wednesday’s front pages were too early to include Johnson’s comment at a conference fringe event that Libya could be an appealing tourist destination if they “clear the dead bodies”.
The remark is already threatening to overshadow May’s speech at the conference on Wednesday.
In a series of broadcast interviews, First Secretary of State Damian Green was asked repeatedly about Johnson’s remarks.
“It was not a sensitive use of language,” Green told Good Morning Britain.