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David Cameron has revealed intimate details of his marriage to his wife Samantha - from how they met as youngsters to how Theresa May walked in on her having a final dance in the Downing Street kitchen. 

The couple first met when the young Samantha Sheffield was just 17 and grew close on a family holiday organised by Mr Cameron's father. 

Mr Cameron credits his wife, whom he married in 1996, with turning 'a pretty traditional Home Counties Tory boy' into 'someone a bit more rounded', the latest extracts published in The Times reveal. 

However, he revealed the couple had frequently argued about how his career would affect their private lives. 

Former Prime Minister David Cameron's memoirs have revealed intimate details of his marriage to his wife Samantha (they are pictured in 1995, the year before they married)

Mr Cameron's book describes how the young Samantha Sheffield was initially a friend of his sister Clare. 

He recalled being 'struck' by Samantha smoking on a sofa and laughing as his sister teased him.  

Clare Cameron invited Samantha on a family holiday to Italy but warned her that 'I think my brother fancies you'. 

'I did. And it was a blissful week,' Mr Cameron recalls.   

At the time she was a 21-year-old art student in Bristol while he was a 25-year-old working as an adviser for the then Tory chancellor Norman Lamont. 

He said Samantha would grow irritated when Mr Lamont would call up about that day's papers - suggesting he 'f*** off and buy them himself'.  

Describing how his friends doubted their relationship, he said: 'I was the ambitious Tory apparatchik. She was the hippie-like art student.'  

David Cameron is accompanied by his wife Samantha as he waves goodbye to Downing Street in 2016 

Jean-Claude Juncker promised 'I want to make Brexit work'

Jean-Claude Juncker privately promised to 'make Brexit work' after Britain voted to leave, but warned that he would have to take a more hardline stance in public, David Cameron has revealed. 

The European Commission chief tried to reassure the outgoing Mr Cameron at a Brussels summit just days after the EU referendum result in 2016, according to the ex-PM's new memoirs. 

Mr Juncker, who has lately thwarted the Government's Brexit plans by insisting that Theresa May's withdrawal deal cannot be renegotiated, told Mr Cameron back then that 'I want to try and make this work', the latest extracts in The Times reveal.  

Mr Cameron and Mr Juncker in June 2016

'Of course, I've got to say "No big deal for Britain", but I have to say these things to keep the European Parliament happy,' Mr Juncker added. 

Mr Juncker was 'sad' about the result but consoled Mr Cameron that Britain still had Europe's best Army and 'huge power in the world,' the extract reveals.  

The two men's relationship had started poorly when Mr Cameron tried unsuccessfully to block Mr Juncker from taking the top job in 2014. 

Mr Cameron had warned that Mr Juncker's 'backroom' appointment would make British voters more likely to back Brexit.  

At the same summit, German Chancellor Angela Merkel insisted that Britain could not have got better terms when Mr Cameron tried to negotiate with Brussels. 

Mr Cameron had tied his referendum pledge to a plan to renegotiate the terms of Britain's membership of the EU. 

The UK was granted an exemption from the EU's founding goal of 'ever closer union' and there were small concessions on immigration. 

However, Brexiteers dismissed the renegotiation as a failure and Mr Cameron's gamble failed as Britons nonetheless voted to leave.   

'My friends would say she helped to turn a pretty traditional Home Counties Tory boy into someone a bit more rounded, more questioning and more open-minded,' Mr Cameron writes.

'But many of the arguments we had about politics were actually about logistics, rather than issues. Samantha worried hugely about how it would affect our life. Where would we live? How would we stay together? How much would we see of each other?'

Moving ahead to their final days in Downing Street, Mr Cameron recalls how he had to call his daughter back from a school trip when his departure was brought forward. 

Mr Cameron quit in the hours after the EU referendum result but initially intended to stay on for a few months while the Tory leadership campaign took place. 

However, the leadership election collapsed in on itself after every candidate except Theresa May withdrew or was knocked out. 

That meant Mr Cameron's resignation was hurried forward - though his daughter Nancy asked if the Queen could be persuaded to amend her schedule. 

Mr Cameron said it 'didn't feel right' for him to go back to Downing Street and help pack away after he left office, meaning that Samantha was left to clear up on her own. 

At one point she put on some music and had a 'final dance around the kitchen' - at which point the new occupants, Theresa and Philip May, walked in.  

In the latest extracts Mr Cameron also admits that both he and Samantha started smoking cigarettes again in the stress of the referendum result. 

The ex-PM has already confessed that he got 'off his head' on dope while at Eton, and said he smoked it later with his wife and her friends.  

Mr Cameron has consistently refused to answer questions about whether he ever took cocaine as a young man.

During the 2005 Tory leadership election, other candidates publicly stated that they had never used Class A drugs.

But Mr Cameron declined to give a similar statement, saying: 'I did lots of things before I came into politics which I shouldn't have done. We all did.' 

Earlier this year, the issue of drug use erupted in the latest Tory leadership race when it emerged that Michael Gove had taken cocaine on 'several social occasions' 20 years ago. The revelation weakened Mr Gove's campaign for the leadership. 

Boris Johnson questioned Michael Gove's mental health calling him 'a bit cracked' after being betrayed during 2016 Tory leadership race, David Cameron's memoirs reveal 

 Boris Johnson questioned Michael Gove's mental health and suggested he was 'a bit cracked' after the Tory minister betrayed him during the 2016 Tory leadership race, the latest extracts of David Cameron's memoirs have revealed. 

Mr Gove famously sabotaged the first Johnson leadership bid in 2016 by launching his own rival campaign, forcing Mr Johnson to pull out. 

According to Mr Cameron, then-Chancellor George Osborne celebrated Mr Gove's betrayal, saying: 'We've taken Boris out, now on to Port Stanley!,' a reference to the Falklands War. 

Mr Cameron also worked behind the scenes to help Theresa May win the contest to replace him, the extracts published by The Times reveal.   

The former Prime Minister has already accused both Mr Johnson and Mr Gove of behaving 'appallingly' during the referendum campaign. 

Boris Johnson questioned Michael Gove's mental health and suggested he was 'a bit cracked' after the Tory minister turned on him during the 2016 Tory leadership race (they are pictured together that year), the latest extracts of David Cameron's memoirs have revealed 

Mr Cameron announced his resignation in June 2016 after captaining the losing side in the referendum, triggering the first Tory leadership contest for 11 years, and the latest extract covers the days and weeks that followed. 

In the hours after the referendum result, Mr Cameron says he was 'on autopilot' as he called to congratulate Mr Gove who had been one of the ringleaders of the Vote Leave campaign. 

He also apologised to world leaders including Barack Obama for his failed strategy to keep Britain in Europe.  

Mr Johnson was initially seen as the front-runner to replace him but was forced to quit the race within days after Mr Gove's entry into the race.   

Mr Gove, who had been helping Mr Johnson's campaign, dramatically quit his team and said the ex-London mayor could not 'provide the leadership' that was needed.   

According to Mr Cameron, Mr Johnson wondered aloud whether former Education Secretary Mr Gove was 'a bit cracked'. 

Mr Cameron said he could not resist a cheeky dig at Mr Johnson in reply, saying: 'You should have stuck with me, mate.' 

The two Brexiteers are now back on the same side but the former PM's latest revelations will test how far they have patched up relations since 2016.

The former Prime Minister has already accused both Mr Johnson and Mr Gove of behaving 'appallingly' during the referendum campaign (they are pictured the day after polling day)

As Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Mr Gove is now responsible for no-deal Brexit preparations in Mr Johnson's Government.  

Mr Gove had previously said he was 'not equipped' to be Prime Minister, and Mr Cameron says he had taken those statements to be sincere.  

Theresa May eventually won the race which ended without a full party vote after her last remaining rival, Andrea Leadsom, also pulled out. 

Mrs Leadsom quit the race after a backlash over her comments in an interview about Mrs May not having children.  

Mr Cameron said the comments were almost certainly not malicious but said the row persuaded Mrs Leadsom that she was not ready for the job.  

But Mr Cameron himself also played a role in helping Mrs May win the contest, his memoirs reveal. 

Although he did not back any candidate officially, he 'secretly encouraged' his Tory colleague Gavin Williamson to help the May campaign in 2016. 

David Cameron's autobiography will leave some of the Tory members aghast

George Osborne, who was sacked as Chancellor by Mrs May and quit as an MP the following year, is said to have celebrated Mr Johnson's departure with a cryptic reference to the Falklands War. 

''Now on to Port Stanley!' he said, meaning it was Michael's turn to fall next,' Mr Cameron recalls.  

Mr Osborne had once been seen as a likely Tory leadership contender himself but he and Mr Cameron were both tarnished by the failed Remain campaign in 2016.  

Boris Johnson also complained that 'people were looking at me as if I was a leper' after the referendum result which he helped to bring about. 

After declaring for Leave in February that year he became one of the most high-profile Brexit campaigners during the referendum campaign. 

At a summit days after the referendum Jean-Claude Juncker privately promised to 'make Brexit work' after Britain voted to leave, but warned that he would have to take a more hardline stance in public, Mr Cameron revealed. 

In a separate extract, Mr Cameron reveals details of his marriage to his wife Samantha, whom he married in 1996. 

He describes how the young Samantha Sheffield was a friend of Mr Cameron's sister Clare, who invited her friend to a family holiday in southern Italy. 

'Samantha was invited by Clare, who warned her in advance, 'Watch out — I think my brother fancies you.' I did. And it was a blissful week,' Mr Cameron recalls.   

Mr Cameron was working for then-Chancellor Norman Lamont in the early 1990s and said Samantha would grow irritated when the minister would call up about that day's papers - suggesting he 'f*** off and buy them himself'. 

The ex-PM has already confessed that he got 'off his head' on dope while at Eton, and said he smoked it later with his wife and her friends. 

In the latest extracts he admits that both he and Samantha started smoking cigarettes again in the stress of the referendum result.   

David Cameron has already taken aim at Boris Johnson (pictured together in 2015) and Michael Gove, accusing them of behaving 'appallingly' 

Yesterday Mr Cameron faced a backlash from the current crop of Tory politicians after taking aim at Mr Johnson in his memoirs. 

In one of the most controversial passages published so far, Mr Cameron claimed that the now-prime minister wanted to become the 'darling of the party' and 'didn't want to risk allowing someone else with a high profile – Michael Gove in particular – to win that crown'. 

'The conclusion I am left with is that he risked an outcome he didn't believe in because it would help his political career,' he added.

Mr Cameron has also taken aim at leading Brexiteers including Nigel Farage, Arron Banks and Dominic Cummings - now ensconced in Number 10 as a senior adviser - branding them a 'cauldron of toxicity'. 

He reserved particular criticism for Priti Patel, accusing her of using 'every announcement, interview and speech' to 'hammer' the government's approach to immigration, even though she was in it.  

Ms Patel, 47, appointed Home Secretary by Mr Johnson in July, refused to rise to the bait yesterday, coldly telling the former PM that 'There is no point in going over the past'.  

Asked about the criticism on the BBC's Andrew Marr show she said she had 'enjoyed' working with Mr Cameron.

'Obviously the referendum has happened, we have moved on and the fact of the matter is we are now working to deliver that referendum mandate,' she said. 

Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay also tore into the ex-PM, telling the BBC 'obviously when there's a book to sell there's always excerpts that come from it'. 

Among a string of revelations in his memoirs, Mr Cameron said he was 'delighted' when the Queen stepped into the 2014 Scottish independence referendum. 

The monarch told a member of the public to Scots to 'think very carefully' about how they would vote, just a week before the September 2014 poll. 

It was widely seen as a boost for the unionist campaign which was emphasising the risks of independence.  

The No campaign went on to win the vote 55 per cent to 45 per cent. 

Launching the memoir, For The Record, Mr Cameron said he had 'kept relatively quiet about politics' since leaving Downing Street in 2016. 

'But I think it’s right former PMs write their memoirs, to explain what they did and why,' he explained. The book is published on Thursday. 

 

'It was as if the world stopped turning': David Cameron says 'nothing could prepare him' for his son Ivan dying aged six as he recalls emotional 'torture'

Former Prime Minister David Cameron said that 'nothing could have prepared him' for the death of his son at the age of six, which he described as 'torture'.

Mr Cameron, whose son Ivan suffered from a rare neurological disorder, said losing his first-born child felt 'as if the world had stopped turning'.

Writing candidly about the devastating family tragedy in extracts of his memoir serialised in the Sunday Times, the former Conservative leader said he can 'hardly bear to remember' those dark times.

Mr Cameron, whose son Ivan suffered from a rare neurological disorder, said losing his first-born child was 'as if the world had stopped turning'

'Nothing, absolutely nothing, can prepare you for the reality of losing your darling boy this way', he wrote.  

He said his wife Samantha - 'the mother who loved him deeply' - was 'torn apart' by his tragic death after struggling with Ivan's diagnosis and bouts of seizures. 

Ivan was born a healthy boy, but by his second week he was rapidly losing weight and making jerky movements.

He was eventually diagnosed with Ohtahara syndrome - a rare neurological disorder characterised by seizures. He died in 2006.

The former Prime Minister said his condition had brought him and his wife Samantha 'close to collapse'.

'A world in which things had always gone right for me suddenly gave me an immense shock and challenge,' he said.           

The former Prime Minister said his condition had brought him and his wife Samantha 'close to collapse'

The former MP for Witney previously revealed how Ivan was forced to undergo dozens of often painful and invasive tests before doctors knew he had Ohtahara syndrome.

Managing Ivan's condition was an intensive process and he was given as many as 20 different drugs a day. There were regular emergencies caused by seizures, infections and changes in his blood pressure.

In both 2002 and 2003, Mr Cameron had to abandon the Tory party conference because Ivan was in hospital. 

Mr Cameron and Samantha are parents to three children, Nancy, 15, Arthur, 13, and nine-year-old Florence.

Mr Cameron said new and advanced genomic testing could end the anguish of uncertainty for parents of children with such rare neurological disorders. 

He was eventually diagnosed with Ohtahara syndrome - a rare neurological disorder characterised by seizures

In an interview with the Times in 2018, he said : 'Different treatments are tried, some with excruciating and potentially damaging side-effects. Huge efforts are being made on your child's behalf, but no one knows exactly what is wrong or how to make it right.

'In many cases the doctor is unlikely to have seen a patient with the same condition before. They are left to rely on intuition and antiquated tests to determine which of the 7,000 rare diseases may be affecting the child.

'This gruelling process can go on for months, even years. If a correct diagnosis is eventually made it is often too late to undo critical damage that has already been done to the child's development.

'Yet we are on the brink of a huge breakthrough. Instead of looking at individual chromosomes [through genome sequencing]  we can sequence the whole genome, determining the unique ordering of three billion letters found in almost every cell in a person's body. Rather than testing one disease at a time, this process simultaneously can test for all rare diseases, 80 per cent of which are genetically based. All it takes is a blood test. It is that simple.'       

Though Ivan's condition meant he could not move his limbs or speak, the Camerons drew strength from the fact that he appeared to respond to their love and care.

'Ivan's only self-conscious movements are to raise his eyebrows and to smile,' Mr Cameron said in 2004. 'And his smile - slightly crooked, sometimes accompanied by a little moan - can light up a room. It never fails to make me both happy and immensely proud of him.'

But asked once if he thought Ivan enjoyed his life, he replied: 'Oh, not really, I think his life's very tough.' 

Mr Cameron added: 'We were all devoted to Ivan and as a family we still talk about him all the time today.'