The Prime Ministers edited by Iain Dale PAPERBACK (SIGNED COPY)

Paperback
Hodder & Stoughton
June 16 2022

With an updated Boris Johnson chapter

If you wish to have a personal dedication from Iain, then please leave an instruction in the Comment box at the end of the purchasing process or email info@politicos.co.uk as soon as you have placed your order, and include the order number (on your email receipt) in your email.

All books will otherwise be signed 'Best wishes, Iain Dale'.

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.

Contributors include Roy Hattersley (Lord Palmerston), Simon Heffer (William Gladstone), Nicky Morgan (Lord North), David Laws (Herbert Asquith), Adam Boulton (David Cameron), Sir Anthony Seldon (Clement Attlee), Jesse Norman (Marquess of Rockingham), Iain Dale (Boris Johnson), Rachel Sylvester (Theresa May), Andrew Adonis (Tony Blair), Stewart Wood (Gordon Brown), Sir Henry Bellingham (Spencer Perceval), Peter Riddell (Lord Liverpool), Robert Buckland (Lord Melbourne), Leo McKinstrey (Lord Rosebery), Rachel Reeves (Harold Wilson), Damian Collins (David Lloyd George) and Julian Glover (John Major), plus a host of historians and academics.

'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