Nadine Dorries' gaffes and weird moments as Tory plans to quit at next election
Nadine Dorries has said she will quit as an MP at the next election as panicking Tories eye Labour's continuing poll lead.
The former Culture Secretary, who has been an MP since 2005, is the 19th Conservative MP to say they won't fight the next election, which is expected to be called next year.
A staunch Boris Johnson ally, Ms Dorries used her announcement to slam the "MPs who drank Kool-Aid and got rid of Boris Johnson" and said the behaviour of her fellow Tories had pushed her to leave.
In a clip from her new TalkTV show, the Mid-Befordshire MP said: "I'm afraid that the lack of cohesion, the infighting and occasionally the sheer stupidity from those who think we could remove a sitting Prime Minister, who secured a higher percentage of the vote share than Tony Blair did in 1997, just three short years ago...
"That they could do that and the public would let us get away with it. I'm afraid it's this behaviour that I now just have to remove myself from.
Boris Johnson attempts to defend partygate and Brexit on Nadine Dorries Show
"And so, despite it being a job that I've loved for every year that I've done it, I'm now off. Oh gosh, I've just said it out loud, there's no going back now."
Nadine Dorries poses with Boris Johnson (nadinedorries/Instagram)The one-time ' I'm a Celebrity... Get me out of Here' contestant may have been best known to some Brits for failing a ‘Bug Burial’ trial by cockroaches before becoming the first to be voted off in 2012.
The 65-year-old is a best-selling novelist - and hit the headlines as one of the first MPs to get Covid in 2020.
But she is also known for her punchy views, gaffes and her adoration for shamed ex-PM Mr Johnson.
Here are her some of her weirdest moments.
Congratulating a Tory minister for wrong job
The bungling Tory accidentally congratulated Nadhim Zahawi for being promoted to Health Secretary, rather than Chancellor last summer.
She tweeted: "He arrived in the U.K. a refugee who couldn't speak English who knows nothing but to achieve against the odds.
"He will deliver for health in the same way he delivered for vaccines and education. A top cabinet minister. Congratulations my friend."
Ms Dorries swiftly deleted the tweet.
(Twitter)Accusing the BBC of nepotism after hiring her own daughters
Ms Dorries complained about nepotism at the BBC in a Tory conference event in 2021, saying it needed to "be more accessible to people from all backgrounds, not just people whose mum and dad worked there.”
Boris Johnson says anyone who thinks he covered up Partygate 'out of their mind'
She didn't mention she had once employed her two daughters - Phillipa, then 27, and Jennifer, then 23 - in secretarial roles in her private office.
Both daughters were paid from public funds at a cost to the taxpayer of up to £80,000, the Mirror previously revealed.
Forced to say she doesn't fancy Boris Johnson after adoring memes
Ms Dorries has been one of Boris Johnson's most vocal and staunch allies, sticking by the shamed PM even as his Government crumbled.
She was forced to insist she didn't have a crush on Boris Johnson after endless memes circulated of her staring adoringly at him.
Mr Johnson's sister Rachel pressed her on the issue during her LBC show last June.
But the Tory MP insisted: "I don’t fancy your brother – not a bit."
Nadine Dorries looks on as Boris Johnson speaks to Commonwealth Games volunteers (Getty Images)
Boris Johnson and Nadine Dorries in ParliamentSlating her own Government's pandemic planning
Ms Dorries admitted Tory preparations for the Covid pandemic were "inadequate" in a ferocious Twitter rant against criticism of Boris Johnson.
She was enraged by Tory Jeremy Hunt - now the Chancellor - who said he would oppose Mr Johnson in a confidence vote last summer.
"Your handling of the pandemic would have been a disaster," she said.
Ms Dorries said Mr Hunt had claimed the Government would collapse after Brexit, adding: "You’ve been wrong about almost everything, you are wrong again now."
But her attack backfired when she admitted that the Tory Government's pandemic preparedness during his tenure as Health Secretary "was found wanting and inadequate".
Wrongly claiming Channel 4 is publicly funded
The-then Culture Secretary blundered during a select committee grilling when she claimed Channel 4 was "in receipt of public money".
In fact, the broadcaster is publicly owned but it is funded through a commercial model and does not receive taxpayers' cash.
Ms Dorries wanted to sell off the public service broadcaster - but the plans have now been ditched.
Rapping on TikTok to promote the Online Safety Bill
Ms Dorries took to TikTok last year for a wince-inducing clip to explain the Government's online safety legislation.
In a 41-second video shot in her office, the Tory MP delivered a stilted rap about "a framework to protect internet users / From scams, illegal content and anonymous abusers".
She ended the clip with a mic drop.
Suggesting Liz Truss's budget earrings give her the edge over Rishi Sunak
Ms Dorries frequently attacked Rishi Sunak during the Tory leadership race, who she appeared to blame for Mr Johnson's downfall.
In one Twitter outburst, she mocked Mr Sunak's expensive taste in clothes by posting an article about the millionaire ex-Chancellor wearing a £3,500 suit before a vote and donning £490 Prada loafers on a visit to a building site.
She said his rival Ms Truss was more likely to be seen wearing £4.50 earrings from high street chain Claire's Accessories.
Ms Dorries has previously boasted about spending thousands of pounds on her own jewellery and clothes.
Rishi Sunak donned a pair of brown Prada loafers to visit a building site (Getty Images)Rugby mix-up
Whilst speaking to a Rugby League audience in St Helens, the-then Culture Secretary recalled Jonny Wilkinson's match-winning dropped goal for England in the 2003 Rugby Union World Cup final.
“I’ve always quite liked the idea of rugby league,” she said. “My long-standing memory is that 2003 drop goal. I’ll let you into a secret. I think we were drinking bloody marys at the time. It was 11 o’clock in the morning but wow what a moment that was.”
She later took to Twitter to make light of her error, saying she may have switch codes like England legend Jason Robinson - who switched from rugby league to rugby union.
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