The Prime Ministers We Never Had

The Prime Ministers We Never Had
Author: Steve Richards
Publisher: Atlantic Books
Total Pages: 322
Release: 2021-09-02
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1838952438

BOOK OF THE YEAR, The Times, Guardian and Prospect Was Harold Wilson a bigger figure than Denis Healey? Was John Major more 'prime ministerial' than Michael Heseltine? Would David Miliband have become prime minister if it were not for his brother Ed? Would Ed have become prime minister if it were not for David? How close did Jeremy Corbyn come to being prime minister? In this piercing and original study, journalist and commentator Steve Richards looks at eleven prime ministers we never had, examining what made each of these illustrious figures unique and why they failed to make the final leap to the very top. Combining astute insights into the demands of leadership with compelling historical analysis, this fascinating exploration of failure and success sheds new light on some of the most compelling characters in British public life.

The Prime Ministers

The Prime Ministers
Author: Steve Richards
Publisher:
Total Pages: 464
Release: 2020-09
Genre: Great Britain
ISBN: 9781786495884

A landmark history of the men and women who have defined the UK's role in the modern world - and what makes them special - by a seasoned political journalist.

Prime Minister Boris

Prime Minister Boris
Author: Duncan Brack
Publisher: Biteback Publishing
Total Pages: 413
Release: 2011-10-06
Genre: Humor
ISBN: 1849542457

History resting on a hair's breadth ... a man dies rather than lives, an election is lost rather than won, one minister is appointed, another dismissed, a coalition is joined, or not. Enter a world of political counterfactuals, twenty-two examinations of things that never happened - but could have. In this book a collection of distinguished commentators, including journalists, academics, former MPs and special advisers, consider how things might have turned out differently throughout a century of political history - from Lloyd George and Keynes drowning at sea in 1916 right through to Boris Johnson becoming Prime Minister in 2016. Scholarly analyses of possibilities and causalities take their place beside fictional accounts of alternate political histories - and all are guaranteed to entertain and make you think.

The Prime Ministers Who Never Were

The Prime Ministers Who Never Were
Author: Francis Beckett
Publisher: Biteback Publishing
Total Pages: 236
Release: 2011-03-28
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1849541426

Each of these chapters in this book of political counterfactuals describes a premiership that never happened, but might easily have done had the chips fallen slightly differently. The contributors, each of them experts in political history, have asked themselves questions like: what shape would the welfare state and the cold war have taken if the Prime Minister had been Herbert Morrison instead of Clement Attlee? What would have been consequences for Northern Ireland had Norman Tebbit succeeded Margaret Thatcher? How would our present life be different without New Labour - a name we would never have heard if either Kinnock or Smith had become Prime Minister and not Tony Blair? Each of the chapters in this book describes events that really might have happened. And almost did.

The Prime Ministers Who Never Were

The Prime Ministers Who Never Were
Author: Francis Becket
Publisher:
Total Pages: 256
Release: 2012
Genre: Great Britain
ISBN: 9781849543217

In 'The Prime Ministers Who Never Were', Francis Beckett presents eight intriguingly imagined counterfactuals, assessing how things might have turned out under different circumstances.

The Prime Ministers

The Prime Ministers
Author: Iain Dale
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Total Pages: 576
Release: 2020-11-12
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1529312175

**Winner of the 2020 PARLIAMENTARY BOOK AWARDS for Best Political Book by a Non-Parliamentarian** A Times Political Book of the Year 'An entertaining, thorough and informative canter through the characters and stories of prime ministers past.' - New Statesman 'A wealth of enjoyable insights into three centuries of Westminster politics... It is a most elegant hardback volume, with a gilded cover that looks a little like the famous front door of No. 10 itself; the ideal Christmas gift.' - Joyce McMillan, The Scotsman 'This is a timely study of UK Prime Ministers and Iain Dale has done the subject a great service with this measured and thoughtful labour of love which offers a fascinating set of insights into the history of Britain, politics, the role of Prime Minister, and elite and establishment power... a superb guide to the times we have lived through and are living in.' - Gerry Hassan, Scottish Review *** 'Many of my predecessors were giants, some had feet of clay, all possessed human foibles.' - From the foreword by Boris Johnson It has almost been 300 years since Sir Robert Walpole arguably became the first holder of the office of Prime Minister in 1721 - an office which today is under scrutiny like never before. The Prime Ministers, edited by leading political commentator Iain Dale, brings to life all 55 of Britain's 'First Among Equals' with an essay for each office holder, written by key figures in British politics. From the obscure 18th-century figures like the Earl of Shelburne to 20th-century titans like Churchill and Thatcher, this book provides a much-needed reminder about their motivations, failures and achievements.

British Prime Ministers

British Prime Ministers
Author: Robert J. Parker
Publisher: Amberley Publishing Limited
Total Pages: 217
Release: 2011-03-15
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1445612429

A handy and accessible guide to the colourful and not so colourful characters who have held Britain's top job.

May at 10

May at 10
Author: Anthony Seldon
Publisher: Biteback Publishing
Total Pages: 775
Release: 2020-09-08
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1785905287

Theresa May has presided over the most dramatic and historic peacetime premiership for a century. May at 10 tells the compelling inside story of the most turbulent period in modern British politics for 100 years. Written by one of Britain's leading political and social commentators, May at 10 describes how Theresa May arrived in 10 Downing Street in 2016 with the clearest, yet toughest, agenda of any Prime Minister since the Second World War: delivering Brexit. What follows defies belief or historical precedent. This story has never been told. Including a comprehensive series of interviews with May's closest aides and allies, and with unparalleled access to the advisers who shaped her premiership, Downing Street's official historian Anthony Seldon decodes the enigma of the Prime Minister's tenure. Drawing on all his authorial experience, he unpacks what is the most intriguing government and Prime Minister of the modern era.

John Major: An Unsuccessful Prime Minister?

John Major: An Unsuccessful Prime Minister?
Author: Kevin Hickson
Publisher: Biteback Publishing
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2017-05-23
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1785902717

This year marks the twentieth anniversary of one of the most momentous general elections this country has ever seen. John Major's defeat in 1997 ended a record eighteen years of Tory government, prompting accusations of failure and ignominy. A controversial leader, Major oversaw numerous crises in international and domestic policy. Between 1990 and 1997, he presided over Britain's participations in the Gulf War, the start of the Northern Ireland peace process, the Maastricht Treaty negotiations and, famously, Black Wednesday and Britain's exit from the ERM. Towards the end, Major's government was split over Europe and ridden with allegations of sleaze. Widely criticised by the media and politicians from all parties, Major went on to be crushed by Tony Blair and New Labour in the 1997 general election. An Unsuccessful Prime Minister? is the first wide-ranging appraisal of John Major's government in nearly two decades. This book reconsiders the role of John Major as Prime Minister and the policy achievements of his government. Major's government faced many more constraints and left behind a more enduring legacy than his critics allowed at the time or since.