“On last orders” and “one strike and he’s out”, ran the headlines on many newspaper websites, reacting to the North Shropshire byelection in which the Liberal Democrats gained what was considered a safe Tory seat after a 34-point swing. The Mirror was one of many outlets to quote the Conservative MP Sir Roger Gale’s verdict on the result. “Tory says Boris Johnson is on ‘last orders’ and ‘one more strike and he’s out’”, one of the paper’s headlines read on Friday morning, on an article saying Gayle had warned that the prime minister could face a leadership challenge, “though even some of his most ardent critics think that’s still unlikely”. The Telegraph led on the same “one more strike” line, and ran an analysis piece titled “The big question for Tories: is Boris Johnson still an electoral asset, or becoming a liability?” A comment piece by Janet Daley said: “Defeat in North Shropshire marks a turning point for chaotic Boris Johnson … In mere weeks, the government has managed to extinguish virtually all public goodwill.” The Independent led with the headline “PM warned after Lib Dems crush Tories in formerly safe seat”, while the Times went with “Tories warn PM: ‘One more strike and you’re out – stark message from backbenchers after byelection disaster”, before referring to a “humiliating defeat” for the Conservatives. An analysis piece in the Times said: “Leave voters lose faith in Johnson’s ethics and competence – not quite unprecedented but certainly a spectacular rejection of the Conservative party.” Mail Online went even further with the headline “Tory MP’s warning for ‘failed’ prime minister after byelection ‘earthquake’ sees 23,000 majority in true-blue, Brexit-backing North Shropshire routed by Lib Dems”. It continued: “The astonishing result immediately fuelled a seething uprising against the PM, who suffered one of the biggest Commons rebellions ever over Covid measures this week, and has been battling allegations of sleaze and lockdown-busting parties in Downing Street.” The Sun decided to focus on other stories on its website on Friday, with no sign of the byelection result on its homepage. A story tucked away in the politics section was headlined “Throwing a Shrop – Huge blow to Boris Johnson as he loses safe North Shropshire seat to Lib Dems.” An Evening Standard headline read “Boris Johnson told get a grip in 3 months or risk leadership challenge”, quoting Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, the treasurer of the influential 1922 Committee of backbench Tory MPs. Clifton-Brown told the paper: “If the self-inflicted wounds go on for three months I think the party would be looking for a change in leader.” The sentiment was echoed by the Financial Times’ Robert Shrimsley, who commented that the “Tory mauling” in North Shropshire was “self-inflicted by Boris Johnson”. In a comment piece for the Yorkshire Post, the former cabinet minister Justine Greening wrote: “I completely understand the frustration of MPs with the prime minister and his No 10 Downing Street operation,” citing “catastrophic miscalculations” and “lack of grip”.