Beaming Jeremy Corbyn received a hero's welcome as he took his seat in Parliament for the first time since he defied expectations to deny Theresa May a majority.

The jubilant Labour leader was given a standing ovation from his MPs - just a year after they tried to oust him from the top job amid complaints of his woeful leadership performance.

And his MPs queued up to shake hands with him in triumphalist scenes - despite winning scores fewer seats than the Tories.

Darren Stanton, a body language expert, told the Mail Online Mr Corbyn's new-found swagger meant 'it looked almost as if Labour had won the election.'



It is huge turnaround for Mr Corbyn who has spent most of his two years as Labour leader being criticised and sniped at by his backbenchers.

But his grip on his party has never looked stronger.

Scroll down for video

Jeremy Corbyn today received a standing ovation from his MPs after he led his party to win many more seats than the pollsters had predicted

Mrs May and Mr Corbyn had a brief chat while walking out of the Commons chamber, where MPs had met today for the first time since the General Election

The House of Commons was packed for the first day of Parliament - but while the Tories are in government body language expert Darren Stanton said it looked like Jeremy Corbyn is PM

Mr Stanton said: 'Obviously Corbyn got a standing ovation, and I noticed that his shoulders were upright, his posture was up, he had a very different stance what he usually does.

'So obviously that has bolstered his confidence - to have those MPs on their feet.

'And that's on contrast to Mrs May. It looked almost as if Labour won the election.'

And he said that footage showing Mrs May approaching Mr Corbyn as they walked out of the Chamber following the brief sitting made the Labour leader look like he was the newly elected PM - not the other way round.

Mr Stanton said: 'Mrs May was not exactly shuffling, but almost like the sidekick.

'It looked almost like he was the PM, in terms of the way he was conducting himself.

'Although Labour didn't win they did really well - if you looked at it without the sound you would have thought Labour had won and Corbyn was the PM.'

Mr Corbyn made the most of his new-found popularity by poking fun at Mrs May's election defeat as he gave his first speech of the new parliament.

He congratulated her on returning as PM, adding: 'And I'm sure she'll agree with me that democracy is a wondrous thing and can throw up some very unexpected results.

'I'm sure that we'll all look forward to the coming Queen's Speech, just as soon as the coalition of chaos has been negotiated.

Body language expert Darren Stanton said Labour's triumphalism in the Commons today made Jeremy Corbyn look like the PM and Theresa May the 'sidekick'

'If that's not possible the Labour Party stands ready to offer strong and stable leadership in the national interest.'

He added: 'We look forward to this parliament - however short it may be.'

But while Labour politicians were in a jubilant mood, Tory MPs sat grim-faced as they gathered in the Commons for the first time since the election.

It took place amid acute political uncertainty as Mrs May is scrabbling to secure a deal with the DUP that will allow her to cling on as PM.

Talks between the Tories and the DUP's leader Arlene Foster were still ongoing as MPs took their seats amid pomp and ceremony.

While Britain is in the almost unprecedented situation of the date of the Queen's Speech being unclear.

The rest of the week will see MPs sworn in to the Commons before business begins in earnest later this month.

Mr Corbyn posed with his newly elected Scottish Labour MPs outside parliament today. Labour won seven seats in last Thursday's election - six more than in 2015

A jubilant-looking Mr Corbyn had earlier met his new MPs at Parliament, and in a rare move even stopped to chat with photographers outside his north London home.

The Labour leader - who dubbed himself 'Monsieur Zen' during the election campaign - stopped to smell the roses that are blossoming in his front garden.

The left-winger said: 'Aren't they beautiful these roses? And such a glorious day.'

Mr Corbyn has claimed that Labour were the victors in the election - despite wining scores fewer seats than the Tories.

The Conservatives won just 318 seats - wiping out their majority but still several dozen more than Labour on 262 seats.

The Labour leader said they had 'changed the face of British politics' and that he will use parliamentary tactics to try to topple the Tory government and seize power.

While shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry said Labour is 'waiting in the wings' and will step in to rule if they get the chance.

Mr Corbyn is expected to announce any reshuffle of his shadow cabinet later this week.

Mr Corbyn wore Labour's signature red rose as he posed for photos today outside Parliament

He is reportedly set to replace his close ally Diane Abbott with Yvette Cooper as he beefs up his frontbench team.

The move would help to unite his party after it has been scarred by two years of civil war.

But any offer for Ms Cooper to make a return to the frontbench is expected to come with strict conditions to ensure that his one-time leadership rival stays loyal.

Miss Abbott was asked to step aside from her role as shadow home secretary amid concerns for her health.

Her shock removal from the top job came just days before Britain went to the polls. Miss Abbott had a dismal election campaign after a series of car crash interviews.

Ed Miliband has also reportedly offered his services to Mr Corbyn while Dan Jarvis and Chuka Umunna are rumoured to be among the frontrunners to be offered a shadow cabinet post.