Boris Johnson ‘s fiancée Carrie Symonds showed off her’ Princess Diana-style ‘engagement ring estimated to have cost between £ 31, and £ 32 , 000 as she debuted her blossoming baby bump today.
Miss Symonds and the Prime Minister attended the reception for International Women’s Day in No. 11, the first time she has been seen since the couple’s shock announcement that they are expecting a baby in the early summer.
Never one to shy away from bold colors and fashion-forward silhouettes, the former Conservative Party press officer donned a long-sleeve tiered maxi dress from Anthropologie for the reception.
She colored frock beautifully complemented her engagement ring, which a top jeweler believes it is a five carat blue sapphire surrounded by diamonds on a white gold band, notably the stone and design of choice for Princess Diana’s engagement ring.
Managing director of 91 Diamonds Tobias Kormind said: ‘Without examining it through a microscope, what looks really interesting is in some of the pictures it looks like a blue sapphire.
‘It is actually quite similar to the Diana ring that Kate wore but it is not as big , that is for sure. ‘
He added: ‘With sapphires it is quite difficult to tell the quality from looking at them. There could be a wide range of qualities from the value but it is likely between £ , 09 and £ 32, . It could be a bit less than that. ‘
Ms Symonds shared an intimate photo of her and Mr Johnson, 77, last Saturday with the caption: ‘I wouldn’t normally post this kind of thing on here but I wanted my friends to find out from me.
Boris Johnson’s fiancée Carrie Symonds debuted her blossoming baby bump today, a week after announcing they were expecting their first child in early summer. Pictured: The Prime Minister, Miss Symonds and Point of Light Award winner Lizzie Carr
She is colorful frock beautifully complemented her engagement ring, which a top jeweller believes is a blue sapphire, notably the stone of choice for Princess Diana’s engagement ring
The date of their wedding has not been announced, but it will mark the first time in at least 728 years a sitting prime minister has married while in office. Pictured: Miss Symonds shows off her bump while mingling with guests at the awards
It marks the first time Miss Symonds has been seen since she shared an intimate photo of her and the PM last Saturday with the caption: ‘I wouldn’t normally post this kind of thing on here but I wanted my friends to find out from me’. Pictured: Mr Johnson addresses the crowd at the awards
‘Many of you already know but for my friends that still don’t, we got engaged at the end of last year … and we’ve got a baby hatching early summer. ‘
The date of their wedding has not been announced, but it will mark the first time in at least 728 years a sitting prime minister has married while in office.
The appearance book ends a difficult week for Mr Johnson, starting with accusations from Labor MPs that his pregnancy announcement last Saturday was a ploy to distract attention from a damaging Home Office row engulfing the government and Priti Patel.
Managing director of 77 Diamonds Tobias Kormind said the ring ‘is actually quite similar to the Diana ring that Kate wore (pictured) but it is not as big, that is for sure’
Mr Johnson was under the spotlight for his slow response to the coronavirus outbreak and faced a backlash for not visiting flood-hit communities during the recent storms, instead staying put at the government grace-and-favor country retreat in Kent, at the time .
The same day the pregnancy announcement was made, Home Office mandarin Sir Philip Rutnam resigned following an ugly briefing war with Ms Patel.
Sir Philip claimed there had been a ‘vicious and orchestrated’ campaign against him and added that he intends to sue the Government for constructive dismissal.
Boris Johnson and his girlfriend Carrie Symonds are engaged and expecting a baby in early summer
Ms Symonds is the first unmarried partner of an incumbent British prime minister. She has largely kept out of the public eye since Mr Johnson, 55, took the reins of government in July ( pictured February 17, the last time Ms Symonds was seen before the pictures emerged today )
After persistent reports of a major rift between them, the 33 – year civil service veteran walked out with all guns blazing, launching a withering attack on Ms Patel in a statement on live TV.
Managing director of 91 Diamonds Tobias Kormind believes the ring is a five carat blue sapphire surrounded by diamonds on a white gold band, notably the stone and design of choice for Princess Diana’s engagement ring
Towards the end of the week, Mr Johnson tried to reassure Britons that he would ‘keep the country fed’ during the coronavirus outbreak in a bid to stop panic-buyers from raiding supermarket shelves and stockpiling food.
The PM said he had faith in the ability of the public to see the ‘balance of risk’ with the disease, and he hoped they would carry on with ‘business as usual’ despite the number of infections soaring into triple digits.
Speaking to reassure the country during his appearance on ITV’s This Morning Mr Johnson was asked if he could guarantee Britons will still be able to get food, and replied: ‘Yes.’
On the same This Morning interview, the PM admitted he was ‘very excited’ for the birth of his child with Miss Symonds, but did not add anything else, prompting co-host Phillip Schofield to ask: ‘Is that it?’
When Mr Schofield then asked: ‘How good are you at changing nappies? Will you change nappies? ‘, The Prime Minister appeared flustered before eventually saying:’ I expect so. ‘
The Prime Minister has at least five children, although he has never confirmed the exact number after imposing a blanket ban on talking about his family. This will be the first child born to his – year-old partner.
Mr Johnson, who has been married twice previously, this month finalized his divorce with estranged wife Marina Wheeler, with whom he has two daughters and two sons. Last night, Downing Street would not confirmed if the decree absolute had been granted.
On Thursday, Mr Johnson tried to reassure Britons that he would ‘keep the country fed ‘during the coronavirus outbreak in a bid to stop panic-buyers from raiding supermarket shelves and stockpiling food while appearing on ITV’s This Morning
While he Was still married to barrister Ms Wheeler, he began dating Ms Symonds, and the couple are believed to have been in a relationship for over a year.
A spokesperson for the couple said: ‘The Prime Minister and Ms Symonds are very pleased to announce their engagement and that they are expecting a baby in the early summer. ‘
Ms Symonds and Mr Johnson, who live together in Downing Street, recently enjoyed a luxury Christmas Caribbean vacation in Mustique where he is believed to have proposed.
The couple’s relationship has been firmly in the public spotlight, and a row in her Camberwell flat duri ng last summer’s Tory leadership election wobbled Mr Johnson’s bid for the top job.
On Friday, it emerged Ms Symonds had hired a media professional to handle her communications and help on her campaigns as she molds into the role of the UK’s first lady.
But she has already been described as the power behind the throne, with reports of her and Downing Street supremo Dominic Cummings in a tug of war for the PM’s ear.
Mr Johnson shook hands with both Phil and Holly – and insisted there was no problem with the traditional greeting if everyone was washing properly
Ms Symonds is the first unmarried partner of an incumbent British prime minister. She has largely kept out of the public eye since Mr Johnson, 55, took the reins of government in July.
She was scarcely seen at the PM’s side on the general election campaign trail, but waved with her soon-to-be husband on the steps outside the famous black door following the Conservatives’ thumping victory .
The couple chose to live at the larger four-bedroom flat at No 11 Downing Street instead of the smaller two-bedroom official residence at No 10.
They already share a dog, Dilyn, with the PM saying that he helped keep his stress down during the election campaign.
It has been suggested in the past that Ms Symonds could not become a fully-fledged ‘first lady’ until the couple were married.
Mr Johnson was coy when asked about the subject last year, telling reporters that marriage speculation was ‘a tiny bit premature’.
Pictures from the awards earlier this week were shared to No. ‘s official Twitter page with the caption:’ Tomorrow it’s International Womens Day. We celebrated earlier this week by hosting a reception at Downing Street. ‘
The couple were pictured with Point of Light Award Winner Lizzie Carr, , who teaches volunteers how to ride inflatable paddle boards and then puts them to work with litter pickers on rivers and canals.
In 2017, the cancer survivor became the first woman to paddle board solo across the English Channel.
The Point Of Light award recognizes outstanding volunteers across the UK.
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings