Steerpike

So farewell, Nick and Fi. As Theresa May's once formidable co-chiefs of staff walk out of No 10 for good following the disastrous election result, the Prime Minister has appointed Gavin Barwell as their replacement. If Barwell sounds familiar, that's because he is the former housing minister who lost his seat in Croydon Central on Thursday. The author of 'how to win a seat in a marginal', Barwell will have to shelve any plans for a sequel (suggested title: 'how to lose a marginal seat'), as he moves into No 10. Barwell's appointment will be seen as an attempt by May to finally show some contrition and reach out to those MPs who lost their seats – after she was criticised for failing to pay tribute to them in her post-election statement.

When the Prime Minister called the general election, Katie Perrior stood down as No. 10 communications chief. An odd decision: why walk away from such a prestigious job after only nine months? She has never really explained: until now. Writing in the Times, she reveals that her ‘painful’ time in No. 10 was made all the more painful by Lady Macbeth and Rasputin – aka Fiona Hill and Nick Timothy, Mrs May’s joint chiefs of staff. The portrait she paints is extraordinary: a Prime Minister who is more captive than master, someone who has seemingly employed two lunatics and can’t rein them in. The team at No10 could have done great things together, Perrior says. ‘But there was no together. Her closest advisers put paid to that.’ How so?

According to the exit poll, the Conservatives are on not on course for a majority, instead a hung Parliament is predicted. Given that Theresa May called this election to strengthen her hand and increase the Tory majority, her gamble looks to have backfired spectacularly. Now the polls could be wrong but this doesn't mean May's enemies aren't enjoying the moment. Step forward George Osborne. The former chancellor – who May fired when she came to power – appears particularly revitalised by the news. Following the projection, Osborne – who now edits the Evening Standard – was quick to suggest May's time could be up. Appearing on ITV, he predicted that Theresa May won’t ‘survive’ if the ‘catastrophic’ exit poll comes true.

Last night, Diane Abbott used an appearance on Sky News to insist that she had not been sidelined by the Leader's Office in light of her recent interview performances. However, in that same interview she went on to generate more negative headlines when the shadow home secretary appeared to have little to no knowledge of the Lord Harris report on improving London’s terror preparedness. So, Mr S was curious to learn that today Abbott has mysteriously dropped out of a scheduled appearance on Woman's Hour – with Emily Thornberry being lined up to replace her. While one Labour source tells Steerpike that Abbott has been 'spoken to' following her disastrous interview last night, Mr S fears that today's absence signals the return of ‘the migraine’.

With Theresa May on the back foot today over Tory cuts to police numbers, CCHQ can count their lucky stars that Diane Abbott has been doing the media rounds this evening. The shadow home secretary was interviewed by Dermot Murnaghan this evening on Labour's position on terrorism measures following Saturday's attack. However, Abbott soon hit a problem when Murnaghan asked her about the 2016 Lord Harris report on improving London’s terror preparedness. It soon became clear that Abbott was not familiar with its contents – not that she was willing to admit this: DA: I think we do need to revisit that report DM: Which part of it?

Given that Theresa May hasn't performed one of her customary 'strong and steady' U-turns for over a week, it was about time she changed her mind on something. So, Mr S was relieved to read her interview with City AM editor Christian May. While the Prime Minister promises to defend the City in EU negotiations, it was the quick fire round that caught Steerpike's attention. May is asked to pick which restaurant out of Coq D'Argent or Simpson's Tavern she prefers: CM: Coq D'Argent or Simpson's Tavern? TM: Simpson's Tavern. When May plumps for Simpson's Tavern, the editor lets her know this is also Nigel Farage's favourite: CM: When I point out this is Nigel Farage's favourite City haunt, the PM changes her mind.

This week, David Dimbleby set the cat among the pigeons when he used an interview with the Radio Times to complain of right-wing media bias against Jeremy Corbyn: 'I don’t think anyone could say that Corbyn has had a fair deal at the hands of the press, in a way that the Labour party did when it was more to the centre, but then we generally have a rightwing press.' But has Dimbleby's employer taken his comments a bit too literally? Mr S only asks after last night's BBC Election Debate appeared to have such a left-wing audience that even left-wing pundits took to social media to query whether it really had the required level of BBC balance: https://twitter.

Today Westminster has been abuzz with speculation over the general election result after YouGov analysis suggested the Conservatives are on course for an electoral upset which could see them lose their majority. The YouGov team have been busy defending the numbers behind the headline, with Joe Twyman appearing on today's Spectator’s Coffee House Shots podcast. However, despite their best efforts, some are unwilling to accept YouGov's findings. Step forward Jim Messina. The former Obama adviser -- who did the Tory's micro-targeting campaign in 2015 and is involved again this year -- has taken to social media to brand the YouGov poll 'stupid': https://twitter.

With Theresa May currently experiencing a rough patch in her election campaign, the Prime Minister is discovering fast who her friends really are. Unfortunately for May, her old Cabinet colleague George Osborne doesn't appear to be on that list. Now that the former Chancellor is the editor of the London Evening Standard, the paper's editorials have become a constant source of criticism for the government. Today's was no exception. On the state of the Conservative campaign, the paper says the 'campaign has meandered from an abortive attempt to launch a personality cult around Mrs May'.

Although Theresa May has refused to go head-to-head with Jeremy Corbyn in a debate ahead of the election, Boris Johnson and Andrew Gwynne have at least obliged. Ahead of tonight's Sky News/Channel 4 leaders interviews, the two came close to coming to fisticuffs as they went blow-to-blow over the election. While Labour's joint national elections coordinator was keen to talk about the Tories' plan for pensions, the Foreign Secretary had other ideas. Johnson repeatedly asked Gwynne about Labour's plans for Brexit. With the pair talking over one another constantly, Adam Boulton attempted to act as a referee: AB: No, excuse me. Can I just say one thing to you both: doesn't your exchange show we should have had face-to-face debates? AG: Absolutely, what's she running scared of?