Boris Johnson’s heavily pregnant fiancee Carrie Symonds is ‘distraught’ as she is separated from the gravely ill Prime Minister who has spent a second night in intensive care.
Mr Johnson, 55, was rushed into ICU with breathing difficulties and his wife-to-be, 32, is not allowed to be by his side because of her pregnancy and a blanket ban on visitors.
Carrie, who is believed to be self-isolating at the couple’s £1.3million South London home with their rescue dog Dilyn, broke down when Boris was rushed to St Thomas’ Hospital in central London on Sunday night.
A friend told the Telegraph Ms Symonds, 32, had been ‘distraught’ and ‘in tears’ in a phone call after his admission and was ‘deeply upset and concerned for his wellbeing’, the newspaper said.
In a caring moment, the Queen yesterday sent a personal message of good wishes to Ms Symonds, whose baby is due this summer, and his wider family who are waiting anxiously to hear if he recovers.
Her Majesty led an international outpouring of goodwill towards Mr Johnson, wishing him a ‘full and speedy recovery’, and the Prime Minister is in a ‘stable’ condition and breathing without the need for a ventilator, Downing Street said last night.
Carrie Symonds is self isolating with the couple’s rescue dog Dilyn (pictured together on March 27) and was described as ‘distraught’ as Boris Johnson was rushed to St Thomas’
Pregnant Carrie cannot see her fiance Boris, who is seriously ill with coronavirus (pictured together on March 9 at Westminster Abbey)
There is a heavy police presence at St Thomas’ Hospital on Wesrminster Bridge today where Mr Johnson remains in intensive care
Royals wish Boris Johnson a ‘speedy recovery’
The Queen has sent her best wishes for a speedy recovery to her Prime Minister this afternoon and also said her thoughts are with his pregnant fiancee and his family as he battles coronavirus in hospital
The Queen and other senior royals have sent messages of support to Boris Johnson for a ‘speedy recovery’ as he battles coronavirus in intensive care today.
Her Majesty said her thoughts were also with the Prime Minister’s heavily pregnant fiancee Carrie Symonds and his family, who are not able to visit him at St Thomas’ Hospital in central London.
It is the third time in less than 72 hours that the Queen has made a public statement about the coronavirus crisis, as the death toll jumped by a record-high of 854 in a day with 6,227 known victims.
Buckingham Palace said in a statement: ‘Earlier today The Queen sent a message to Carrie Symonds and to the Johnson family. Her Majesty said they were in her thoughts and that she wished the Prime Minister a full and speedy recovery’.
And in a message released at the same time Prince William and Kate Middleton also sent their best wishes to the PM.
The Duke of Cambridge tweeted a personal message, signing it off with his initial ‘W’, and saying: ‘Our thoughts are with the Prime Minister and his family, who like so many in the UK and around the world are affected by coronavirus. We wish him a speedy recovery at this difficult time. W.’
His father the Prince of Wales, who has recovered from Covid-19, sent a message from himself and the Duchess of Cornwall to Mr Johnson on Tuesday, also wishing him a ‘speedy recovery’, Clarence House said.
Boris and Carrie have not seen each other for a fortnight after Mr Johnson, 55, first fell ill on March 27 while Ms Symonds, 32, is understood to have come down with similar symptoms over the weekend.
The Prime Minister is said to be conscious but needing oxygen – and it is not known if they have been able to speak on the phone, but Carrie will be getting updates from the ward and No 10.
If Mr Johnson has nominated Carrie as his next of kin, if his condition deteriorates doctors may ask her to make decisions on his behalf should he be sedated and put on a ventilator.
Boris’ children Lara Lettice, 26, Milo Arthur, 24, Cassia Peaches, 22, and Theodore Apollo, 20, will also be being informed about his condition by ICU medics at St Thomas’, according to NHS guidance. He also has a fifth child, Stephanie Macintyre, 11, after an affair with art consultant Helen Macintyre with a sixth child from another affair also rumoured.
But it is likely his second wife Marina, who divorced him in February, will only hear news from their four children unless Mr Johnson specifically asks medics to speak to her about his health.
Their acrimonious split has caused tension between Mr Johnson and his children, who he asked to meet in person in February to tell them he was engaged to Carrie and they were having a baby.
But not all of his children reportedly bothered to turn up for their father’s announcement and are said to be ‘furious’ because they believe Carrie and Boris got together after an affair.
On March 27 – the day Boris tested positive for coronavirus – Carrie shared a photograph of herself self-isolating with their dog Dilyn at the £1.3million Camberwell house she bought with Mr Johnson last year.
Downing Street has refused to say where she is
Carrie Symonds is just one of the millions of pregnant women who were told they were ‘at increased risk’ from Covid-19 – and ordered to follow ‘stringent’ social distancing, for 12 weeks.
She had also reportedly wanted a home birth but women all over the country are having these cancelled because of a lack of midwives and some hospitals are also banning birthing partners.
Miss Symonds is the first unmarried partner of a Prime Minister to live in Downing Street, where she is understood to have been considering having the baby.
But if the lockdown continues she may have to give birth in hospital, potentially without a birthing partner.
Boris Johnson is still battling coronavirus in intensive care today with ‘no change’ in his condition overnight – amid a wave of support from across the nation and an outp
Mr Johnson was moved to ICU at St Thomas’ Hospital in central London and given oxygen after his health deteriorated sharply over just two hours, leaving doctors fearing he will need a ventilator.
The 55-year-old was transferred to intensive care at 7pm because of breathing difficulties – forcing him to ‘deputise’ Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab to take the reins of government.
The Queen is being kept informed about Mr Johnson’s condition, while Mr Raab will chair a meeting of the government coronavirus task force this morning.
No10 has been urged to be more ‘transparent’ about the premier’s condition, amid claims a hospital bed was being prepared for him as early as last Thursday.
Boris Johnson’s second wife Marina (pictured together in 2015) divorced him in February amid claims of an affair
Boris’ daughter Lara (together in 2012) reportedly branded her father a ‘selfish b*****d’ after allegations he had a liaison with Carrie surfaced in 2018
Carrie was brought up by her mother Josephine, who is now 71, in East Sheen, South-West London and attended the private £20,000-a-year Godolphin & Latymer School.
Her father Matthew, a founder of the Independent newspaper, lived in a large property not far away in Twickenham with his wife, Alison, with whom he has three children.
Matthew had an affair with Josephine, who was a lawyer on the paper— and Carrie is the product of that affair, born in 1988.
When Mr Johnson and former Tory Party head of press Miss Symonds fell in love, many were sceptical that it could last.
The cynics appeared to have been proved right when they were overheard having a spectacular domestic spat in their London house early in their relationship.
But they have proved the doubters wrong. Despite not being married, they negotiated tricky moments like visiting the Queen at Balmoral as an unmarried couple, with great dignity.
Miss Symonds proved a great asset to Mr Johnson in the election campaign. She curbed her love of the limelight and made sure he was the centre of attention.
The couple, pictured on election night in December, have rarely seen each other through the crisis and haven’t been together for more than a fortnight
Within weeks of becoming Prime Minister she became pregnant. Mr Johnson was heavily criticised soon into his premiership when many parts of Britain were badly flooded and he failed to visit them.
At the time he was staying with Miss Symonds at the Foreign Secretary’s official residence, Chevening in Kent, while repairs were being carried out at Chequers. Mr Johnson fell in love with Chequers in his days as Foreign Secretary in Theresa May’s government.
He regularly went for swims in the Chevening lake, urging male guests to strip off and join him.
One MP who has known him since before he became an MP said: ‘He was excited at being able to be with Carrie at Chevening officially. It is no secret that they used to go there for trysts before they were officially an item.
‘They had a brief break in Mustique but it was at Chevening that they had the time and space to get to know each other better. Then Carrie got pregnant. It was wonderful.’
Little did they know that their lives were about to be thrown into such personal and political turmoil.