18 September 2014, The Tablet

Mrs Johnson I presume?


 
When visiting the Pope it is a good idea to carefully observe Vatican protocol. But when Stanley Johnson, pictured right, was received in an audience with John Paul II his decision to break the rules paid off rather well for him. Stanley, the father of the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, was invited to meet the Pope when he was a member of the European Parliament. The invitation stated that wives were welcome, although Mr Johnson took with him the woman who was his then girlfriend, Jenny Kidd.In his recently released autobiography, Stanley I Resume, Johnson explained that when he and Jenny arrived at the Vatican and were presented to the Pope, there was some confusion about how to introduce her. The Pope, writes Stanley, intervened: “Well, this is Mrs Johnson, I suppose.” Late
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