Boris Johnson’s dad Stanley reveals PM asked him for two copies of his book The Virus – to give to Vallance and Whitty

BORIS Johnson asked dad Stanley for two copies of his novel The Virus — to send to his top medical experts.

The PM wanted to give the republished thriller about a terrifying pandemic to Professor Chris Whitty and Sir Patrick Vallance.

Stanley, 80, told Trending In The News: “I don’t think Boris bothered to read it necessarily, but he did ask me quite early on in the (Covid) pandemic if he could have a couple of copies.

“He said he wanted to give them to (chief medical officer) Chris Whitty and (chief scientific adviser) Patrick Vallance.

“I’m hoping they may have read them and taken away some ideas.

“I actually wrote the book in the late seventies. It was based on a true story of a deadly virus outbreak.

“In this instance, the virus emerged from two laboratories in West Germany and Serbia and spread rapidly before it could be contained.

“It’s essentially about one scientist’s battle to find a vaccine, and has obviously been quite timely now.”

In September, ex-MEP and Oxford graduate Stanley releases a political thriller set in Cambodia called From An Antique Land.