Image source, Reuters

He's the man whose visits to No 10 have spelled the end for the UK's most recent prime ministers.

But who is Sir Graham Brady?

As chairman of the influential 1922 Committee, a group of backbench Tory MPs, Sir Graham's role involves gauging how unhappy Conservative MPs are.

He was elected MP for Altrincham and Sale West in Greater Manchester in 1997 when he became the youngest Conservative MP at the time.

Then in 2010, he was elected chairman of the 1922 Committee, a role he's held unchallenged since then.

The group, which meets weekly, is known in Westminster as the "men in grey suits".

They run the selection process for new leaders and if MPs are looking to get rid of their current leaders, then the committee collects the votes to do so.

Sir Graham said on Thursday that the leadership election process for the next prime minister will be finished by 28 October.

Read more here.

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Scotland's first minister Nicola Sturgeon has responded to Liz Truss's resignation by saying a UK general election is a "democratic imperative".

She described the political situation as an "utter shambles", after the prime minister announced she would be leaving No 10, just 45 days into the job.

In a tweet, Ms Sturgeon said: "Reality though is that ordinary people are paying the price.

"The interests of the Tory party should concern no-one right now."

Speaking to BBC Scotland, the first minister said she thought the resignation was "inevitable" the moment Ms Truss entered Downing Street.

Read more here.

Question Time audience members in Cheltenham were asked on Thursday evening whether there should be a general election.

This comes as political leaders, including Keir Starmer, have called for a general election following the resignation of Liz Truss.

Here's how some in the audience responded:

Peter Hoskins
Business reporter, Singapore

Image source, Getty Images

The pound is holding above $1.12 in Asia morning trade after Prime Minister Liz Truss' resignation.

Sterling gained in the immediate aftermath of the announcement on Thursday, to top $1.13 before giving up those gains.

The pound was trading at $1.1208, down by 0.26 per cent, at 03:06 BST on Friday.

Speaking on BBC 2's Newsnight, former education secretary Justine Greening said she believes the key to reuniting the Tories is a return to policies outlined in their 2019 "Levelling Up" strategy.

"The mistake that I think that Liz made was to shift away from that," said Greening.

Levelling Up - a set of policies that seek to improve opportunities and outcomes for everyone in the United Kingdom - will encourage economic growth, she said.

"What the markets want to see is a long-term economic strategy," said Greening.

"Levelling Up is that growth strategy."

She added that "it almost doesn't matter who is running the party, the more important thing is what they are trying to accomplish for the UK."

You can read more about the Conservative's Levelling Up strategy here.

No MPs have yet publicly confirmed they're running, but names including the former chancellor Rishi Sunak, and the leader of the House of Commons, Penny Mordaunt, have been touted.

Both ran against Truss when their party was deciding who should replace Boris Johnson - a name that is also being floated.

Click here for our guide on who might emerge as the next PM.

BBC Question Time's panel and audience members share their views on Labour's leader.

Chris Mason
Political editor

Image source, Reuters

Who on earth will be our next prime minister in under 10 days time?

Another new prime minister.

In the blink of an eye.

With the tiniest slice of the country getting a say.

This is entirely constitutionally proper, by the way, in a parliamentary democracy.

The party leader who can command a majority in the House of Commons becomes prime minister.

And, as Liz Truss discovered rather quicker than she might have hoped, when you can't command that majority, you're done for.

But what is constitutionally proper can still be politically tricky.

Whoever wins will face a clamour from opposition parties for a general election, although those calls may carry a little less force if one particular chap ends up winning.

Read more here.

Boris Johnson - who was prime minister just last month - is reportedly flying back from a Caribbean holiday as early as Friday to throw his hat into the ring for the Tory leadership contest.

The Westminster gossip mill is in overdrive, but the former PM's sister, Rachel Johnson, was tight-lipped on Thursday night about whether her older brother should stage a comeback.

Liz Truss is now the shortest-serving prime minister in UK history since George Canning died in 1827 after 119 days in office.

She'll stay in the role until her successor is chosen, but here's a look back at the 45 tumultuous days from her appointment to her resignation speech.

The race to become the next prime minister dominates Friday's UK dailies.

The Guardian headlines with "the bitter end".

Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak were leading the race with nominations on Wednesday evening - but no formal declarations have yet been made, reports the Daily Mail.

Former PM Johnson has been privately encouraging Tory MPs to support him returning to Downing Street, says the Daily Telegraph.

The Daily Mirror says the British people are demanding a "general election now".

Read more here.

On BBC Newsnight, long-time Conservative MP Sir Christopher Chope defended Liz Truss.

He called his colleagues on the backbenches who ousted her "hyenas who are out for blood and revenge".

"The way in which she has been treated is a disgrace," Chope told the programme.

"I am ashamed of my party for having behaved in that way."

Chope also joined opposition MPs in calling for a general election, saying he believes his backbench colleagues will not respect any incoming prime minister without a mandate to govern.

The Conservative backbenchers, he said, "are completely out of control".

Nick Eardley
Chief political correspondent

Image source, Reuters

Liz Truss ascended to power promising a new economic and political era. It is 45 days since she became PM - the shortest premiership in British history.

Over the summer, as we travelled around the UK for hustings, it was clear Truss was highly popular with Conservative members.

Her promises to slash tax and govern as a Conservative were exactly what they wanted to hear. She wasn't a flawless media performer, but she knew how to work a friendly crowd.

There were warnings from former Chancellor Rishi Sunak and his supporters that her economic plans were risky and could backfire.

Some said it would be electoral suicide. But they lost the argument in the Conservative Party.

With victory imminent, along with her close friend and political ally Kwasi Kwarteng, Truss got to work on formulating a plan for power which would be radical and bold.

But over the next few weeks, her authority collapsed completely.

Read the rest here.

Image source, PA Media

Tory MPs revolted against Truss after a series of U-turns on her economic plan sapped her of authority.

In a brief speech outside Downing Street, Truss said the Conservative Party had elected her on a mandate to cut taxes and boost economic growth.

But given the situation, Truss said: "I recognise that I cannot deliver the mandate on which I was elected by the Conservative Party."

Her resignation comes after a period of political and economic turbulence, which forced her government to ditch tax cuts that sent financial markets into a tailspin.

Last week she sacked close political ally Kwasi Kwarteng as chancellor and appointed Mr Hunt as his successor as she attempted to calm the markets.

On Wednesday, Truss insisted she was a "fighter, not a quitter" after Labour's leader asked her why she had not resigned.

But more instability followed, when her home secretary quit and a vote on fracking fell into disarray, with some Tory MPs accused of bullying.

On Thursday lunchtime, she resigned.

The short answer is a lot, but here's a quick recap of all the key events you need to know about.

• Liz Truss resigned as PM after 45 days in office, making her the shortest-serving PM in UK history
• Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the influential 1922 committee, announced that nominations for those wishing to run to replace Truss had opened and would close on Monday
• He said that candidates would need to have the backing of at least 100 Tory MPs by that point. If there's more than one candidate on Monday, the contest will be opened up to the party's membership in an online vote.
• The new Tory leader, and so PM, will be in office by next Friday, according to Brady
• Among the names rumoured to be in the running to replace Truss are, as you'd expect, former contenders Rishi Sunak and Penny Mordaunt - with one surprise in the mix: Boris Johnson. But no-one has yet announced their bid for No 10
• Appearing on BBC One's Question Time on Thursday evening, Johnson's sister Rachel refused to confirm whether her brother intended to run
• Senior politicians from across the political spectrum - including Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon - are calling for an "immediate" general election

Hello and welcome to our continuing coverage of the political situation in the UK.

Prime Minister Liz Truss resigned on Thursday, after just 45 days in the job.

A search for her successor has begun, and Conservative MPs are beginning to coalesce around candidates.

Stay with us as we guide you through what we expect to be fast-moving events.