Boris Johnson splashes out on Greek holiday cocktails with Carrie and kids
Boris Johnson has been snapped knocking back cocktails and lets his hair down on a luxury family holiday in Greece. The ex-Prime Minister enjoyed a slower pace of life after his time running the country as he soaked up the sun on the beach trip.
He was joined by wife Carrie and their four children - Wilfred, four, Romy, two, Frank, one, and Poppy, two months - on the paradise island of Euboea. Stripping off to his swimming shorts, the former politician enjoyed a dip in the sea to cool down from the heat. Boris, 61, then relaxed on the beach, munching a packet of crisps and indulging in some cocktails.
Euboea is second largest island in Greece is less than an hour from Athens and has been the location of a Johnson family holiday before. They were spotted enjoying a break there in 2022.
Euboea, also known as Evia, it is a favourite amongst holiday goers thanks to its stunning white beaches and Dubai-like restaurants.
In 2000, Johnson nearly drowned on a break in Scotland. He was almost swept out to sea on a dinghy whilst in the Highlands.
Setting sail in an inflatable kayak from Argos, he found himself in grave danger. 'I was trying to get away from the goddamn midges - only to find a more serious problem,' he wrote in the Daily Mail.
'No matter how hard I gouged that paddle in the brine, I was going in the wrong direction. I was being tugged by wind and wave into the fast-flowing channel between the mainland and the Isle of Skye, and thence to the Atlantic, where the rolling black gulfs of ocean were waiting to wash me down.
'It looked as though our short summer holiday was about to climax in disaster, and though my sinews were now popping with effort there seemed to be nothing I could do.'
Johnson was able to paddle halfway back where he was met by his protection officers who had stripped off and swum out to sea.
He chose to cut another holiday short to contest the Tory leadership race to replace Liz Truss. He flew back from the Dominican Republic after Truss announced her resignation as Conservative Party leader on 20 October 2022.
Johnson received more than the 100 MPs' nominations required to stand in the leadership election but soon announced that he would not stand.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
White Lotus style retreats overrun with Gen Z workers claiming they are overworked and desperate to unplug
Forget rooftop cocktails, goat yoga and overpriced 'digital detox' retreats in Tulum - burned-out workers are seeking a new kind of solace: monasteries. Religious retreats are seeing a surge in demand across the US as more stressed-out city dwellers trade screen time for solitude. At the Abbey of Gethsemani in Kentucky, demand is so high that even the waitlist is full. 'We get hundreds of new requests continuously pouring in,' the woman who has managed reservations there for over a decade told the Daily Mail. Brother Paul Quenon, an 85-year-old monk who's lived at Gethsemani for 65 years, said the trend has been consistent for at least a decade. 'We're usually booked up; we don't have enough room for everybody,' he told the Daily Mail. 'They're not here to see the sights - they're here to pray. They're pilgrims, not tourists.' At Blue Cliff Monastery in New York, staff say they have also seen an uptick, even though they don't offer formal silent retreats. And in upstate New York, the Franciscans of the Immaculate are doing what they can to keep up. 'We've seen a slight increase in demand, but we can only accommodate a handful of people at a time,' said Father Jacinta, a friar and priest since 2008. 'Some of our cabins are aging and need to be rebuilt, so we're limited in what we can offer right now.' Visitors stay in small, rustic hermitages and join friars for prayers throughout the day. While the setup is private and unstructured, these hosts say, the spiritual payoff is powerful. 'People are starving for a deeper spiritual life - for God,' Father Jacinta said. 'There's so much noise in everyday life. At a certain point, if people don't step away from that, something breaks - physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.' He believes the divisive political climate and modern chaos also play a role, stating there is 'a certain chaotic state we're living in right now'. And despite the lack of frills, guests tend to leave refreshed - and they often return. 'It's like a spiritual vacation. Some people don't want to leave,' he said. 'Every single one of us needs retreat time.' Meanwhile, the Zen Center of New York City – a branch of Zen Mountain Monastery – reported a 'significant rise in attendance', even joking that 'the current American President has been good for Zen Buddhism'. The center added that the real disconnection happens upstate, where guests immerse in week–long silent retreats far from phones and urban chaos. On the Buddhist side, the Dharma Drum Retreat Center in upstate New York offers structured, intensive silence. 'All of our retreats have to be in silent mode,' said resident monk and teacher Chang Yao Shi. Phones are surrendered at the door, and guests practice mindfulness in everything – sitting, walking, eating, even sleeping. The center caps retreats at around 50 people, depending on volunteer support, and Shi says their waitlists grow longer by the season. 'We don't focus on politics or trends,' he added. 'People come because they experience something here and tell their friends.' And that's exactly what happened to Mary Catherine Nanda. The 28–year–old tech worker from Brooklyn fits the mold of your standard–issue girl boss. But last fall, she did something most of her peers only post about on close friends Instagram stories: She closed her laptop, put her phone on airplane mode and checked into a Catholic monastery in the woods. A photo from inside a session at Zen Mountain Monastery is seen above 'I did feel evil,' she told the Daily Mail. 'Filled with malice, dread, discontent. So I knew I needed to go to the monastery and be with the nuns in the woods.' She said that, like everyone, she 'feels the devil on her shoulder from time to time', adding that she has a wonderful life and there was no specific event that sparked this desire to retreat – she just knew she needed some time away to reset. And that's just what she did. No WiFi. No Slack. No small talk. Just incense, handwritten notes, and sunrise prayers with five cloistered women in upstate New York. It's almost like a storyline straight out of The White Lotus – specifically Season 3's Piper Ratliff, the sweet–faced rich kid who flirted with joining a Buddhist monastery after attending a silent dinner. But unlike Piper, Nanda didn't bail. She went – and loved it. The retreat she attended in November 2023 was no influencer–branded wellness weekend. It was stripped down, sacred and refreshingly analog. 'You just email the nuns, they confirm, and you pay when you get there,' she said. 'It's an all–cash deal, which is very nice.' There was no chitchat, no apps, no wellness swag. To communicate, guests leave handwritten notes in a wooden box. 'They bring the box up to the monastery every night,' she said. 'You come back in the morning, and your response is there.' Later, she posted a short, deadpan TikTok about her failed attempt to return this summer but she couldn't because it was all booked out. She accidentally went viral as the clip, which is now just shy of 1 million views, struck a nerve with spiritually exhausted Gen Z women drawn to ritual, retreat and the fantasy of disappearing (at least temporarily) from modern life. 'I think everyone feels the call of the monastery – or to be with nuns more generally in the woods,' she said. 'I hope more people go.' Still, she was caught off guard by the video's reach. 'I do feel a little bad,' she admitted. 'When my video started to blow up, I said to a friend, 'Maybe I should take this down.' I didn't think it would reach outside my immediate friend group.' She had every intention of going back this summer but she was waitlisted. 'I emailed them early this year, and they did have openings, but the timing just didn't work out,' she said. 'I reached out again for June and July, and the nun that emailed me back said, 'We're fully booked, but I'll let you know if someone cancels their vow.'' Her reaction? 'Kind of immediately filled with malice,' she joked. 'I'm gatekeeping,' she added. 'They're five nuns and terrible at email – they don't need this blowing up.' But blow up it has. Now she's seeking alternatives to find her calm. 'I went on a hike to a sort of abandoned rock quarry nearby and sat for a while, and that felt pretty good,' she said. 'Then I went shopping at a really nice boutique in New York – and trying on clothes there felt pretty spiritually fulfilling,' she added. And while her TikTok may have introduced her as a kind of Gen Z mystic, she's happy to own the contradiction.
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Daily Mirror
Boris Johnson splashes out on Greek holiday cocktails with Carrie and kids
The ex-PM lounged on the beach and swam in the sea on the sunshine break in Greece with his wife and children, enjoying cocktails under a parasol and munching on crisps Boris Johnson has been snapped knocking back cocktails and lets his hair down on a luxury family holiday in Greece. The ex-Prime Minister enjoyed a slower pace of life after his time running the country as he soaked up the sun on the beach trip. He was joined by wife Carrie and their four children - Wilfred, four, Romy, two, Frank, one, and Poppy, two months - on the paradise island of Euboea. Stripping off to his swimming shorts, the former politician enjoyed a dip in the sea to cool down from the heat. Boris, 61, then relaxed on the beach, munching a packet of crisps and indulging in some cocktails. Euboea is second largest island in Greece is less than an hour from Athens and has been the location of a Johnson family holiday before. They were spotted enjoying a break there in 2022. Euboea, also known as Evia, it is a favourite amongst holiday goers thanks to its stunning white beaches and Dubai-like restaurants. In 2000, Johnson nearly drowned on a break in Scotland. He was almost swept out to sea on a dinghy whilst in the Highlands. Setting sail in an inflatable kayak from Argos, he found himself in grave danger. 'I was trying to get away from the goddamn midges - only to find a more serious problem,' he wrote in the Daily Mail. 'No matter how hard I gouged that paddle in the brine, I was going in the wrong direction. I was being tugged by wind and wave into the fast-flowing channel between the mainland and the Isle of Skye, and thence to the Atlantic, where the rolling black gulfs of ocean were waiting to wash me down. 'It looked as though our short summer holiday was about to climax in disaster, and though my sinews were now popping with effort there seemed to be nothing I could do.' Johnson was able to paddle halfway back where he was met by his protection officers who had stripped off and swum out to sea. He chose to cut another holiday short to contest the Tory leadership race to replace Liz Truss. He flew back from the Dominican Republic after Truss announced her resignation as Conservative Party leader on 20 October 2022. Johnson received more than the 100 MPs' nominations required to stand in the leadership election but soon announced that he would not stand.
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Daily Mail
Forget robot bunnies - realtor turned real-life Indiana Jones is hunting Florida's most dangerous predators
Beneath the dark canopy of Florida 's Everglades with only stars in sight, Daily Mail got an exclusive look at one of Florida's peculiar new tourist attractions: the high–stakes, high–end world of python hunting. At the center of it is Amy Siewe, a former luxury real estate broker who traded listings for swamp boots and snakes — and now leads elite eco–tourism hunts capturing one of Florida's most destructive invasive species. 'I wasn't looking for another career,' Siewe told The Daily Mail during a July night hunt. 'But once I realized there was a python problem in Florida, I thought, 'Wait a minute — this obsession I've had with snakes my whole life could actually help solve an ecological crisis.' That crisis is Burmese pythons. Believed to have been introduced via the exotic pet trade in the last 30 years, they've exploded in population across South Florida, willing to kill any native wildlife or pets they come across. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), species like raccoons, opossums, bobcats — and even deer — have seen dramatic declines. 'We find deer hooves in the stomachs of almost every python we catch that are over 16 feet,' Siewe said. 'They are eating full grown deer. It's horrific.' Last month in an attempt to combat the python problem scientists from the University of Florida let an army of remote–controlled robotic bunnies loose in the hope of monitoring python patterns. But Siewe doesn't need to use robotics — she has her hands — and now runs a wildly popular python hunting tour business, charging $1,800 for up to four people and $300 for each additional person per night. Her clients are seeking both adrenaline and a way to help Florida's ecological future. But this isn't just thrill–seeking — it's conservation. 'This guided hunt is both a thrill and a mission,' she explained. 'It's amazing to catch a python, but it's even more powerful knowing you're saving native animals.' Our night with Siewe offered a rare glimpse into her operation. Aboard her custom 'snake deck' truck, outfitted with custom decals reading 'Python Huntress', several flood lights and handheld spotlights, we drove through the Everglades, which spans 1.5 million acres, under nothing but moonlight and stars. The tour did pass by Alligator Alcatraz, which does light up a section of the forest, but Amy said it has not affected her hunting. Her hunting locations are confidential, and her methods are honed from years of experience. That night, she stalked a 16–foot serpent — just three feet shy of the world record —and marked her 700th python capture. Siewe's largest capture to date measured 17 feet, 3 inches. 'There have been 17–footers that take four people to get,' she said. 'I caught mine by myself... she was 110 pounds. I am very proud of that.' Tourists like Jim Gillenwater from Indiana joined Siewe in the swamp the night Daily Mail was there, experiencing the thrill of the hunt firsthand. 'When you're in the middle of the everglades in the summer months, and when we were wrestling the big snake, the bugs were all over us,' Gillenwater said. 'You gotta put in the work and be able to deal with the variables to get the best trophy.' 'It was everything I ever dreamed of,' Gillenwater said. 'It was one of the hardest things I've ever hunted because they're so illusive. I cannot remember more fun than I've had in the last two days [following the hunt] just showing photos of the snake I caught.' Siewe formerly worked for the state's Python Elimination Program, which pays licensed hunters to remove pythons. Now she hunts for herself, her tours, and she also collaborates with researchers to learn more about the behaviors and habits of the pythons. 'It's not the python's fault they're here,' Siewe acknowledged. 'They're just being pythons. But they have to go. Our mammals are disappearing at an alarming rate.' 'It takes a python three years to get to be 10 feet,' she said, 'and it takes 200 animals to get it there. Every single python we take out of the Everglades is saving hundreds of lives.' Florida officials estimate there may be up to 500,000 pythons in the wild. While total eradication may be out of reach, Siewe believes every hunt is the best thing that can be done at the moment. 'We might just be prolonging the extinction of our native animals,' she said, 'but if we can do that long enough for scientists to develop better solutions, then it's absolutely worth it. 'What drives me to keep going night after night, chasing snakes through the swamp? Well, first of all, it's totally my calling. It is the most amazing adventure and the most fun I've ever had in my entire life.' The Florida Everglades have long faced the python invasion, but fears of mass extinctions have become an ever–growing threat to the local animal populations. Ian Bartoszek, one of three authors of a study with the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, said: 'The impact the Burmese python is having on native wildlife cannot be denied. This is a wildlife issue of our time for the Greater Everglades ecosystem.' Researchers from the University of Florida released 40 of the fake toy fluffy rabbits, fit with motors, a smell designed to attract pythons, and tiny heaters to mimic the beasts prey in July. The goal is to monitor python patterns and movements in order to alert officials to their presence, before a snake wrangler is sent out to euthanize the snake.
