Theresa May tried her hand at a Scottish accent as she mimicked a Tory colleague during jovial remarks in her House of Lords debut.

Making her maiden speech in the upper chamber, the Tory former prime minister, dressed in a bright red suit, statement necklace and trademark heels, jokingly recalled how her “mentor” Baroness Goldie had given her a gift ahead of her introduction to the red benches last month.

There was laughter as Baroness May of Maidenhead impersonated the accent of the former leader of the Scottish Conservatives to reveal the “present” was in fact a copy of the Lords rulebook for her to read during the conference recess.

It is not the first time that Lady May, who was previously dubbed the “the Maybot” for her sometimes awkward manner, has shown her humorous streak.

She previously sashayed onto the stage at the 2018 party conference to the music of Abba’s Dancing Queen while, as prime minister, she mocked George Osborne when she accepted an award from the former chancellor dressed in his trademark hard hat and hi-viz jacket.

Speaking in Parliament, the Conservative peer said: “I stand here feeling the privilege of being in this place but also with a sense of trepidation.

“People outside of this House have said to me, ‘Don’t worry you were a member of Parliament for Maidenhead for 27 years. It will be all right. You know what the ropes are, you know the rules’.

“And I say no. This is a very different place. And when they say how, I say well, for a start, their lordships normally only speak when they know what they are talking about.

“I will endeavour to follow that rule in my contributions in this place.”

Among those she thanked in her speech was Lady Goldie.

Lady May said: “I hope she won’t mind if I tell the story of the day of my introduction when I was standing in the Moses Room with my supporters waiting to process into the chamber.

“She turned up with a very large envelope for me and my supporters indicated how generous it was of her to give me a gift.

“And she said, ‘It’s the companion on standing orders. To read during recess’.”

Amid hilarity, Lady May said: “I have not yet been tested on it.”

She added: “I would like to thank her for the help and support she has given me not just recently but over many years.”