And so the great escapologist wriggles free once again. But Boris Johnson is wounded beyond repair, waiting for the voters to do what his hopelessly divided party failed to do last night and deliver the fatal blow.
Because the converts he seduced into believing he was the answer to their prayers have sussed him as the great con-artist that he is.
His defenders can’t ignore the boos, many from natural Tory voters, that greeted him outside St Paul’s on Friday.
Anyone who has followed his career knew it was only a matter of time before the people who lent him their trust would feel let down by this ruthless egomaniac, serial liar and shameless rule-breaker.
That’s the story of his life.
Tory MPs say Johnson’s strength is that he gets the big calls right. Well, they bottled the biggest one of all last night and many will eventually pay for that with their job.
Because, as his private and public life attest, the only certainty with Johnson is that he will inevitably let you down.
