Hold on a second, what if the Boris Johnson premiership turned out to be, actually, quite a good thing?

The doom mongers could be right. We could be in for a period of burbling, blustering, chaotic maladministration. Then again cheer up, chin up, we might not

Doom and gloom stalk much of the Westminster establishment as they – we – await the seemingly inevitable elevation of Boris Johnson to prime minister. The buffoon, the crowd-pleaser, the cad, who has evaded responsibility his whole life, looks set to be swept into No 10 by the acclamation of provincial Brexiteers.

He may have won the support of more than half of all Conservative MPs, but nearly half opposed him with a passion. Former teachers, employers and colleagues have lined up to discredit him with their tales of “bad Boris”. The civil service, with the foreign office out front, can hardly conceal its loathing.

Even the decorous Theresa May chimed in, just hinting in her valedictory speech – no names named, just a swipe at those “making promises you cannot keep, just telling people what they want to hear” – that Boris Johnson was probably not her chosen successor.