Rishi Sunak gave a wide-eyed expression that suggested his fear during a "very odd" 86-second speech after becoming Conservative leader, a body language expert has said.
Mr Sunak said he was "humbled and honoured" to get the backing of Tory MPs, who handed him the keys to No10. In a televised address, he also pledged to provide "stability and unity" after weeks of Tory-inflicted chaos. He also paid tribute to his crisis-hit predecessor Liz Truss, and described her seven-week stint in Downing Street as leading with "dignity and grace through a time of great change". But according to body language expert Judi James, it was a "bizarre" speech that had no "charm or warmth".
She told the Mirror: "If this was Rishi’s idea of a calming, authoritative and reassuringly adult PM he might need to go back to the drawing board because this short and very odd speech saw him out-robot his robotic predecessor Truss."
She explained: "The pause for seven seconds at the start might have been psychologically smart (it is a technique to build tension and anticipation that Michael Caine is said to recommend to actors) but it came with a wide eye expression that suggested fear.
"The six-second silent pause at the end of the speech was bizarre though. Rishi stood in silence with an unsmiling expression before suddenly turning on his heel and walking off.
"He delivered his speech with his eyes staring in one spot as though reading from only one autocue and there was no warmth from any eye connection with the camera.
"Any charm, warmth and normal bounce and connection signals with his audience had evaporated, but if he was ramping up to something more statesmanlike he missed the vocal tone and impactful gesticulation here.
"This was not a classic speech or moment of history from the new PM."
Mr Sunak broke cover this afternoon after conducting the entire four-day leadership contest since Liz Truss' resignation without speaking publicly, doing any interviews or spelling out his policy agenda.
His first speech after being named as the new PM was to Tory MPs, behind closed doors in Westminster. He then travelled to Conservative HQ in London to meet supporters and give a live address to the nation.
He has kept an ultra-low profile in recent weeks after losing to Liz Truss in the summer leadership race.
His rival Penny Mordaunt failed to get the 100 MP backers needed to proceed to the vote of members. Her campaign said she missed out by a handful of votes with 90 supporters.
Boris Johnson pulled out of the race late on Sunday night - despite jetting back from a Caribbean holiday to try to convince Tories he was the only one to save them from electoral wipeout.
