Prime Minister’s island paradise revealed

As Boris Johnson and girlfriend Carrie Symonds touched down in St Lucia on Thursday morning, excitement on nearby Mustique — their final destination — was reaching fever pitch.

The Caribbean paradise island is accustomed to welcoming everyone who is anyone, from rock stars to royalty, along with every aristo and captain of industry in between, but our Prime Minister is very much the man of the moment.

Word spread just before Christmas that he and Carrie were planning a New Year break there, but no one had quite believed it until it happened. 

The couple are staying with the Von Bismark family and as well as having the sea just a stone’s throw away, then can also take a dip in their own pool

As Boris Johnson and girlfriend Carrie Symonds (pictured in St Tropez) touched down in St Lucia on Thursday morning, excitement on nearby Mustique — their final destination — was reaching fever pitch

As Boris Johnson and girlfriend Carrie Symonds (pictured in St Tropez) touched down in St Lucia on Thursday morning, excitement on nearby Mustique — their final destination — was reaching fever pitch

Mr Johnson and his girlfriend can kick back and relax after a bruising general election campaign while enjoying the panoramic views at the villa

Mr Johnson and his girlfriend can kick back and relax after a bruising general election campaign while enjoying the panoramic views at the villa

But after disembarking from their London to St Lucia flight — and after the PM had been greeted by his St Lucian counterpart Allen Chastanet and merrily posed for pictures with BA cabin crew — the couple transferred onto a twin-propeller plane for the short hop to Mustique.

They are guests of Count Leopold von Bismarck-Schonhausen (a descendant of the first ‘Iron Chancellor’ of Germany) and his glamorous wife Debonnaire.

She runs an invitation-only boutique in London selling objets d’art and is said to have become firm friends with Carrie.

Meanwhile Leopold and Debonnaire’s son, Nikolai von Bismarck, a photographer, is expected to join the throng, with his girlfriend of four years, supermodel Kate Moss, who is due to fly in today. At 45, she is 13 years his senior, while, of course, Boris is 24 years older than Carrie.

Carrie and Boris (pictured on holiday in Turkey with his family) will be staying with Count Leopold von Bismarck-Schonhausen and his wife

Carrie and Boris (pictured on holiday in Turkey with his family) will be staying with Count Leopold von Bismarck-Schonhausen and his wife

The couple will be staying with the Von Bismark family - who are descended from the first German chancellor Otto Von Bismark - but it is not clear who will be picking up the bill for the swanky villa

The couple will be staying with the Von Bismark family – who are descended from the first German chancellor Otto Von Bismark – but it is not clear who will be picking up the bill for the swanky villa

A brochure for the villa says: 'The open air plan provides the perfect balance of indoor and outdoor living spaces'

A brochure for the villa says: ‘The open air plan provides the perfect balance of indoor and outdoor living spaces’

Intriguingly, the Mail can reveal that it’s entirely possible that Moss, Boris and Carrie will all be staying under the same roof.

The von Bismarcks do not own a property on the island but are reported to be renting a five-bedroom ‘Moorish castle-style villa’ called Oceanus, high above Britannia Bay (so named because the Queen visited in 1966) for which they are paying nearly £40,000 for a week. It comes with a staff of four, with all food and drink thrown in.

Designed originally in 1976 by Swedish architect Arne Hasselqvist, it advertises itself as ‘built from natural materials, and set around four ornamental pools . . . perfect for large families and house parties’.

Images of the interior show wide verandahs, ornately carved four-poster beds, and a dining area with breathtaking views.

So what exactly can the PM and his consort expect from the celebrations here?

The stunning bedroom of the six-bedroom villa where Boris Johnson and Carrie Symonds will staying. It comes replete with a four poster bed

The stunning bedroom of the six-bedroom villa where Boris Johnson and Carrie Symonds will staying. It comes replete with a four poster bed

Stunning view: The island is also a favourite of the Royal Family, with the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall having holidayed there as well as Princess Margaret who was gifted land on the island as a wedding present

Stunning view: The island is also a favourite of the Royal Family, with the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall having holidayed there as well as Princess Margaret who was gifted land on the island as a wedding present

Well, thank goodness Boris is back on the booze after his election campaign abstinence. And let’s hope he’s ready to let his rumpled hair down because as guests of the famously flamboyant von Bismarck family he will be expected to join in the no-holds- barred revelry.

This year’s New Year’s Eve theme on Mustique is Game Of Thrones, and all those holidaying there over the festive season have been sent suggestions about what they might wear and where to hire suitable costumes.

Perhaps Boris, 55, will don a medieval tunic and go as Jaime ‘the Kingslayer’ Lannister, blond son of Lord Tywin Lannister with a lust for power and scandalous private life.

Fancy dress or not, there’ll be no shortage of diverting company.

Mick Jagger and his daughters Jade and Georgia May will be there, as will Daniel Craig (taking a break from filming his final Bond movie) and his wife Rachel Weisz, while rock star Bryan Adams is expected to put in an appearance, along with designer Tom Ford, who named one of his pink lipsticks ‘Mustique’.

Fellow designer Tommy Hilfiger is there and Cara Delevingne will add to the supermodel quotient.

The open plan dining area is perfect for entertaining and eating, with stunning views of the surrounding ocean and countryside

The open plan dining area is perfect for entertaining and eating, with stunning views of the surrounding ocean and countryside

But Boris will also find himself among more familiar faces, for example Henry Channon, son of the late millionaire Paul Channon, a member of Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative Cabinet, who has a holiday home on the island.

At Oxford, Boris was a friend and exact contemporary of Henry’s older sister, Olivia, who died in 1986 aged just 22, of a drugs overdose.

She had been attending a drug-fuelled party in the rooms of Count Gottfried von Bismarck, another member of the von Bismarck clan. Gottfried and Boris also knew each other.

Following Channon’s death, Gottfried was charged with drug possession and fined £80 at an Oxford Magistrates Court.

In 2007, then aged 44, he was found dead on the floor of his £5 million flat in Chelsea after overdosing on heroin.

All homeowners on Mustique have been told not to say a word about the PM’s jaunt here and there is little chance of photographers intruding on his visit.

Known for its white-sand beaches, the exclusive island (pictured) in the archipelago nation of St Vincent and the Grenadines is a favourite of the rich and famous

Known for its white-sand beaches, the exclusive island (pictured) in the archipelago nation of St Vincent and the Grenadines is a favourite of the rich and famous

In the past, paparazzi snappers hunting celebrities have hired boats and positioned themselves off shore with long lenses. But if they attempt to set foot on land, they know they will immediately be handed over to police because Mustique is a private island.

It is just three miles long and one mile wide, and there are no cars (people get around on petrol-fired Mini Mokes called ‘mules’ — which Boris no doubt will love). Everyone who comes here is vetted before arrival.

‘There’s even more of a buzz here than normal at this time of year,’ a long-time Mustique home-owner told the Mail this week.

‘[Boris and Carrie] have come at the very best possible time. The place goes mental at New Year. It’s party central.’

The New Year’s Eve bash starts around 11pm on the lawn of the Cotton House Hotel, which leads down to Endeavour Bay. Tents will be set up on the grass in front of the Great House, designed by architect Oliver Messel, and all food and drink is provided courtesy of the Mustique Company, which manages the island on behalf of the more than 100 home-owners.

After disembarking from their London to St Lucia flight — and after the PM had been greeted by his St Lucian counterpart Allen Chastanet and merrily posed for pictures with BA cabin crew (pictured) — the couple transferred onto a twin-propeller plane for the short hop to Mustique

After disembarking from their London to St Lucia flight — and after the PM had been greeted by his St Lucian counterpart Allen Chastanet and merrily posed for pictures with BA cabin crew (pictured) — the couple transferred onto a twin-propeller plane for the short hop to Mustique 

Word spread just before Christmas that he and Carrie were planning a New Year break there, but no one had quite believed it until it happened

Word spread just before Christmas that he and Carrie were planning a New Year break there, but no one had quite believed it until it happened

At around 2am-3am, the party moves on to legendary Basil’s Bar on Britannia Bay — almost directly below Boris’s lodgings — where everyone from Princess Margaret to David Bowie, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and all the Middletons have, over the years, wiggled and giggled until dawn.

William and Kate even asked the founder of Basil’s Bar, Basil Charles, now 72, to recreate his infamous venue at the Goring Hotel in London before their wedding, to which he was invited.

Hopefully, Boris and Carrie will stick around long enough to attend Marc Quinn’s annual extravaganza, held at the artist’s villa in the first week of January. 

It was Quinn who was awarded the commission for the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square in 2004 and persuaded the then pregnant Alison Lapper, who has no arms and shortened legs, to pose for him. 

The artist seems to have a thing about plinths. Last year, his party featured a female dance troupe flown over from New York. They were dressed as robots and each of them was given a plinth of their own on which to perform.

Despite its racy connections both past and present, the mystique of Mustique is largely due to its extraordinary natural beauty, its pristine beaches and crystal waters — and its refusal to allow private jets to land at the rustic little airport. 

‘There is no bling bling,’ says Jacques Brouchier, general manager of the Cotton House, ‘which is why so few Russians come here’.

It was Colin Tennant — later Lord Glenconner — who bought Mustique on a whim in 1958 for just shy of £45,000.

At the time, it was a mosquito-infested spit of land with no electricity and little water.

Although wildly eccentric and prone to outbursts of violent temper, Tennant, who died in 2010 and caused a furore by leaving his estate to his man servant on the island rather than his wife and children, must take much of the credit for what Mustique has become.

In the Sixties, Tennant wanted only ‘beautiful people’ to invest — so anyone wishing to buy land had to send a photograph first for his approval.

Leopold and Debonnaire's son, Nikolai von Bismarck (left), a photographer, is expected to join the throng, with his girlfriend of four years, supermodel Kate Moss (right), who is due to fly in today

Leopold and Debonnaire’s son, Nikolai von Bismarck (left), a photographer, is expected to join the throng, with his girlfriend of four years, supermodel Kate Moss (right), who is due to fly in today

And when one potential investor said he had flown over the island in his helicopter and liked what he saw, Tennant told him to take his chopper and his architectural drawings elsewhere. 

Mustique’s most famous resident was undoubtably Princess Margaret — currently being played in season three of The Crown by Helena Bonham Carter. Margaret conducted much of her affair with Roddy Llewellyn on the island.

On her engagement to society photographer Tony Armstrong-Jones (later Lord Snowdon) in 1960, Tennant had asked her if she would like ‘something in a small box from Aspreys or a piece of Mustique’. 

She chose the land and even made a detour to inspect it during her honeymoon on the Royal Yacht Britannia. Snowdon always resented the gift and ever after referred to Mustique as ‘Mustake’.

Margaret’s house Les Jolies Eaux, (Beautiful Waters) was built on the plot high above Gelliceaux Bay. It was the only home she ever owned and, according to Basil Charles ‘it meant more to her than a hundred palaces’.

In her book, Lady in Waiting: My Extraordinary Life In The Shadow Of The Crown — which was serialised in the Mail and became a best-seller — Lady Glenconner, Tennant’s widow and Princess Margaret’s Lady in Waiting, says the reason Mustique is still so popular among those who can afford it is because ‘it has kept Colin’s distinctive bohemian spirit’.

There are no electric gates or barbed wire; no armed security (although a former British policeman and his team ensure there’s zero crime); no advertising hoardings, no golf course, no marina, no water skiing and heaven help anyone who tries to smuggle in a jet ski.

That bohemian spirit reached its zenith at Tennant’s 50th birthday celebrations in 1976. They lasted a week, culminating in a gold-themed party on the white sands of Macaroni Beach, at which locals formed a guard of honour wearing gold-painted codpieces made from coconut shells, their bodies glistening with oil.

Guests — including Mick and Bianca Jagger (he wore a battered ‘Southern boy’ straw hat; she sported a gold creation reminiscent of Gone With The Wind), socialites Sabrina Guinness, Emma Soames, and photographer Robert Mapplethorpe — walked through arches of gold palms, with flaming torches lining the route to the beach.

‘It was Princess Margaret who, as guest of honour, stole the show in a gold-sequinned turban and kaftan, with her skin darkened. She looked out of this world,’ says Charles, who Tennant had put in charge of the party logistics.

One of Princess Margaret’s favourite beaches was Lagoon Bay. She regarded it as the perfect spot for picnics and loved to swim in its clear, gentle waters.

Perhaps if Boris is feeling especially romantic at the start of a New Year, then this would be the perfect place to propose. There surely could be only one answer.

As Basil once told me: ‘People ask where I’m from and I say, ‘I don’t know where heaven is, but I live just next door.’ ‘

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk