It's 26 years since Christopher Pyne walked into Parliament House as its youngest MP, to a scandalised general gasp generated by the then-whippersnapper's gory elimination of his Liberal predecessor in the seat of Sturt.

Over the intervening quarter of a century, Pyne has been in and out of government, in and out of the dogbox with this century's merry-go-round of prime ministers. But he's never been far from the action.

His resignation has been rumoured for months, and diplomatically demi-denied by the man himself repeatedly in a special form of words with built-in escape flap: "It is my intention to contest the seat of Sturt at the next election."

But the denials have dried up, and Mr Pyne — given multiple opportunities — isn't contesting widespread speculation that he will pull the pin.

The failure of Christopher Pyne to fill a televisual vacuum is a once-in-a-lifetime event on a par with the Menindee fish kill, which is what — along with other clues — leads your correspondent to accept that the Member for Sturt is indeed in the departure lounge.

Christopher Pyne and Malcolm Turnbull test mixed reality lenses. ( ABC News: Nick Haggarty )

Mr Pyne's departure blows a prodigious hole in the ranks of the senior moderates of the Liberal Party, a group already mourning the loss of Julie Bishop.

Mischievous, literate, garrulous, politically merciless and possessed of a not-insignificant personal charm, Mr Pyne is a character whose departure will sap the Parliament of significant colour.

Kicking off with a faux pas

The heaviest blow to Pyne's political career came at its very beginning. A brand-new backbencher, he was surprised in March 1993 by a visit from John Howard to his office in the House's most distant orbit of junior offices. Mr Howard was there to canvass Mr Pyne's vote in his bid against serving leader John Hewson.

"You've had your time. We'll never go back to you," was the youthful Mr Pyne's confident and career-limiting response.

And so began the South Australian moderate's lengthy sojourn on the frozen tundra of Mr Howard's backbench.

John Howard and Christopher Pyne in 2006. His relationship with Mr Howard got off to a rocky start. ( AAP: Alan Porritt )

A supporter of Peter Costello, Mr Pyne was never far from the intrigue that accompanied the then-Treasurer's constant but never-realised availability for supreme office.

Along with Ms Bishop, Mr Pyne was routinely overlooked by Mr Howard for ministerial office and served as a parliamentary secretary for many years, leading him to observe on Kitchen Cabinet in 2012 that he must have been an extremely good parliamentary secretary, given his extreme longevity in the role.

Annabel Crabb, Amanda Vanstone and Christopher Pyne on the ABC show Kitchen Cabinet. ( ABC )

As parliamentary secretary for health, Mr Pyne legalised the importation of Roquefort cheese, observing that French people were more likely to die from being hit by a falling round of the product than from consuming it, and Australians would benefit from having the choice to eat the unpasteurised delicacy.

He also was instrumental in establishing Headspace, the youth mental health scheme, campaigned passionately for the republican "yes" cause, and pursued the return of Aboriginal warrior Pemulwuy's remains to Australia.

Aslan was a big clue

In the dying days of the Howard government, Mr Pyne was appointed minister for aged care, in a latent demonstration of Mr Howard's sense of humour matched only by the appointment of fellow moderate and notorious bookworm George Brandis to the Ministry of Sport.

But it was in opposition, during the Rudd and Gillard years, that Mr Pyne's star rose in the Liberal Party. Never again did he estrange himself from a serving leader the way he had from John Howard; Mr Pyne made himself indispensable to Brendan Nelson, to Malcolm Turnbull, to Tony Abbott (an old friend and regular dining companion for many years, odd as this might seem), and to Mr Turnbull again

Fast friends: Tony Abbott and Christopher Pyne. ( AAP: Alan Porritt )

He became a nimble and expert manager of parliamentary business, maintaining — notably — a warm relationship with his opposite number, Labor's Anthony Albanese.

While Mr Pyne has remained as the Government's Leader of the House under Scott Morrison, his recent interview mourning the loss of Mr Turnbull and likening him to Aslan — the slain, Christ-like hero of CS Lewis' Narnia novels — was a beefy clue that the magic had gone out of politics for him.

Mr Pyne was the minister who claimed — in a YouTube classic — to have "fixed" the higher education system. And the Defence Minister who claimed to have presided over a halcyon age in Defence spending.

But his principal legacy is in the art of politics itself, managing the House of Representatives in opposition and in government over two hung parliaments.

End of an era: Julie Bishop, Malcolm Turnbull and Christopher Pyne. ( AAP: Lukas Coch )

Enemies? He had a few

He is defined, in part, by his enemies. Mr Howard, of course, for many years, but also the right-wingers in his own state against whom he fought both as a young and middle-aged man. Nick Minchin was a long-term adversary, as was Cory Bernardi, now a crossbencher after having been sacked by both Mr Abbott and Mr Turnbull for Pyne-related offences.

Senator Cory Bernardi and Mr Pyne fell out. ( ABC News: Nick Haggarty )

Ironically, Mr Bernardi was recruited to the Liberal Party by Mr Pyne, but in subsequent decades the pair fell out viciously.

Legend has it that Mr Turnbull, puzzled by the enmity between them, once asked Mr Bernardi: "What's the deal with you and Pyne? Did you used to date, or something?"

Disappointingly, Senator Bernardi denies that the fabled exchange ever occurred.

The end of an era

Mr Pyne's life in politics has — in the seamless way of parliamentary men — also produced four children without any particular public comment.

In his revealing 2015 memoir, A Letter To My Children, he pays tribute to his wife, Carolyn, an engaging, well-read woman of dry wit who somehow managed to complete a university degree while serving as an effective single parent married to the minister for education.

"I won't let him come to my ceremony," Carolyn recalled of her graduation from the University of Adelaide.

"He said he was going to come disguised as Cyrano de Bergerac and hide in the wings, but I absolutely refused. I'm not being mean to him, but I hate being the centre of attention. It's about me, that day, not him. He said, 'But I'll have a police escort! I'll be fine!' I said 'It's not about you. I've worked really hard, and now I just want something for myself''."

Christopher Pyne principal legacy is in the art of politics itself. ( ABC News: Christopher Pyne )

In the letter to his children, Mr Pyne explained that he was in a hurry in life, partially because his father (noted eye surgeon Remington Pyne) and grandfather both died in their 50s.

He also advanced the notion that public office was the grandest form of public service.

At 51, Pyne still has a lot of life left. In his departure, he joins a significant migration of talent from the House of Representatives, including former foreign minister Julie Bishop, former treasurer Wayne Swan, and the powerhouse of Labor social policy Jenny Macklin, among others.

Their disappearance spells the end of an era in federal politics. The opportunity for a new generation is rich.

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