Allegra Mostyn-Owen

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Allegra Mostyn-Owen[1][2] (born 1964) is a British ceramic artist and journalist. She was the first wife of Boris Johnson, now the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Career[]

She has worked for the Evening Standard.[3] Mostyn-Owen was on the cover of Tatler magazine July/August 1984 issue[1] while an undergraduate student at Trinity College, University of Oxford. She has a master's degree in EU Law from Universite Libre in Bruxelles, Belgium.

She makes ceramics that have been exhibited at the Victoria & Albert Museum.[4] Mostyn-Owen was a teacher of English and art at the .[1][5]

Personal life[]

Mostyn-Owen's father William Mostyn-Owen was an influential art historian and director of the Old Masters department at Christie's. Her mother was the Italian writer Gaia Servadio.[6]

She met and became engaged to Boris Johnson while studying at Oxford. The couple married in Shropshire in 1987, Johnson arriving late for the wedding and needed to borrow appropriate trousers and cufflinks from Conservative MP John Biffen.[7] The marriage ended in divorce or annulment in 1993.[a]

While attending a friend's wedding in Lahore, Pakistan, Mostyn-Owen met her future husband.[3] After maintaining a long-distance relationship, the couple married in 2010.

Boris Johnson, as Mayor of London in 2012, requested Mostyn-Owen to be a part of his Muslim Engagement Task force.[10] However, the offer was quickly retracted.

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d Sampson, Annabel (11 November 2019). "Who is Boris Johnson's first wife, former Tatler cover girl Allegra Mostyn-Owen?". Tatler. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  2. ^ Mostyn-Owen, Allegra (12 April 2012). "My Muslim marriage is no different to Mohammed's". www.standard.co.uk. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  3. ^ a b c McDonagh, Melanie (31 May 2012). "'He's a better ex than he was a husband', says Boris Johnson's ex". www.standard.co.uk. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  4. ^ "Artist detail page | Artists At Home". www.artistsathome.co.uk. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  5. ^ Alibhai-Brown, Yasmin. "Reasons to Be Cheerful: Allegra Mostyn‑Owen, Boris Johnson's first wife, is bringing art into the lives of conservative Muslims". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  6. ^ "Gaia Servadio obituary". The Times. 21 August 2021. Retrieved 21 August 2021. (subscription required)
  7. ^ "The socialite named Allegra who became Boris Johnson's first wife". www.standard.co.uk. 12 April 2012. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  8. ^ Press Association (18 February 2020). "Boris Johnson agrees divorce settlement with Marina Wheeler". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  9. ^ Malnick, Edward; Stanley, Tim; Southworth, Phoebe (30 May 2021). "Boris Johnson and Carrie Symonds married in secret wedding ceremony at Westminster Cathedral". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  10. ^ "Diary: Why Allegra Mostyn-Owen was always better off without Boris". The Independent. 30 May 2012. Retrieved 27 May 2021.

Notes[]

  1. ^ Sources differ on whether the marriage ended in divorce[1][3] or with an annulment.[8][9]

External links[]


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