Clement Attlee bore little resemblance to the contemporary politician. He had no time for the things that are now the stock-in-trade of all serious aspirants for high office: image and public relations. Attlee was so apparently unconcerned with presentation that …
Speaking personally, I love it when BBC Parliament re-shows general election television coverage in order to mark general election anniversaries, and I know I'm not alone with my enthusiasm. You see the story of the election unfold, 'in real time' …
...then I'll begin. Could a government document ever have been a potential contender for the ‘Jackanory’ treatment? Let me explain. Today, 3 January, as part of the transition to a 20-year rule, The National Archives is releasing Prime Minister’s Office …
Ask anyone to name Winston Churchill’s best-known speech and nine times out of ten they will answer: We shall fight them on the beaches. It’s not an exact quotation – Churchill did not include the word ‘them’ – but the …
Behind every Prime Minister there are other people, 'at Power’s Elbow', never achieving the same acclaim or notoriety, yet indispensable to the very public figure they support. The British premiership has always been a group effort. This point can be …
If I told you that records of 30 years ago have just been released, would you immediately think that records such as ‘Karma Chameleon’ (Culture Club), ‘Every breath you take’ (The Police) and ‘Down under’ (Men at work’) had been …
Are you a scribbler? Do you regularly commit your thoughts by putting pen to paper? Or does that sound a ridiculously old fashioned notion in this age of social media? On the other hand, perhaps you keep a handwritten diary, …
On 20 February 1913 The Times reported: ‘An attempt was made yesterday morning to blow up a house which is being built for Mr Lloyd George near Walton Heath Golf Links’. One device had exploded, causing about £500 worth of …
Lord Butler was Cabinet Secretary between 1988 and 1998, working with two Conservative Prime Ministers - Margaret Thatcher and John Major - and, after Labour's 1997 landslide victory, Tony Blair. In this interview with historian Anthony Seldon, he talks about the bombing …
Lord Armstrong was Cabinet Secretary between 1979 and 1987, working throughout Margaret Thatcher’s premiership. In this interview with historian Lord Hennessy, he talks about his service under Margaret Thatcher. Lord Armstrong biography The Rt Hon Lord Armstrong of Ilminster, GCB, CVO …