Podcasts about attlee

The Wilson government got off to a pretty sticky start, with the new Prime Minister learning, more or less as he arrived at Downing Street in October 1964, that the trade deficit for the year was likely to be twice as bad as he'd expected. One option to deal with the problem was devaluation, but that Wilson ruled out: he remembered how it had been when the Attlee government had devalued, and he didn't want to face that loss of national prestige or the resentment devaluation had produced, all over again. The problem was that sticking with the pound at an artificially high value meant costs for government which killed many other ambitions, in particular introducing an element of planning and using it to generate growth.Still, the US was pleased Britain hadn't devalued. It was, however, less pleased that Britain wasn't sending troops to join its war in Vietnam, but that was a red line for Wilson. He didn't like wars and he wasn't inclined to send young British people into harm's way for a war whose moral grounds many were now questioning and which it wasn't obvious the US could even win.And Wilson also had to face another grisly chapter in the collapse of empire, when Southern Rhodesia, renamed Rhodesia and under a government headed by the hardline Ian Smith, went for a unilateral declaration of independence (UDI). Again, Wilson however much he disliked seeing Rhodesia hanging on to white rule ignoring its black majority, wasn't prepared to go to war over the issue. Instead, he tried to use sanctions to bring Smith to his knees, a well-intentioned tactic which simply didn't work.Illustration: The funeral cortège of Winston Churchill winding its way through London. Public Domain.Music: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

Circumstances seemed unfavourable for a Labour victory in a 1950 election but, when it was held, Attlee managed to lead his party to the second win in its history. It took a majority of the popular vote, and even a majority of parliamentary seats, though way down from its previous landslide to a mere five.With that small majority, it was poorly placed to deal with the continuing financial difficulties of the country. These were made worse by involvement in the Korean War, which meant rearming. The funds for the war had to be found somewhere, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, a rising star of the Party, Hugh Gaitskell, decided that had to come in part from raiding the National Health Service and the Social Insurance Fund.In disgust, the architect of the health service, Nye Bevan, resigned from the government. With him went another young rising figure, Harold Wilson, who had become the youngest cabinet minister in Britain in the whole of the twentieth century. At that stage he stood with the left and with Bevan, though later he would turn on his mentor, taking a seat in the Shadow Cabinet when Labour was back in Opposition, a seat vacated precisely by another resignation on principle by Bevan.There were difficulties internationally too, with the Mossadegh government in Iran set to nationalise British oil industries there, and nationalist forces in Egypt putting pressure on the British garrison guarding the Suez Canal. Attlee's friend and loyal supporter, the long-time Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin had died in April 1951, and his successor Herbert Morrison wasn't up to the job, adding these foreign crises to the burden on Attlee.With Bevan's left-wing group organising against him and making his parliamentary majority look decidedly fragile, the aging and tired Attlee called another election. Held on 28 October 1951, it saw Labour at last lose its majority and the Conservatives win one.Attlee was out. Churchill was back.Illustration: The Royal Festival Hall in London, souvenir of the 1951 Festival of Britain, itself marking the centenary of the Great Exhibition in Victorian times. Photo by a Wikipedia contributor. Public Domain.Music: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

What Attlee's government had shown was that, though it regarded itself as Socialist, it was a very distinctive kind of Socialism and heavily influenced by Liberal thinking. Where a more Marxist Socialist would take a class-based approach to politics, for Attlee the central figure was the Citizen and Citizens inhabited every class. Hence his universalist approach to social services, available to anyone who needed them irrespective of status. At the same time, he would not forbid those with the means to buy themselves other services, if they chose, from the private sector.His opposition to a harder-line brand of socialism had its corollary in his deep suspicion of Soviet behaviour internationally. His government invested whatever it needed to develop an independent British nuclear deterrent. It also became a founder member of NATO, and it also committed British forces to two major responses to Soviet aggressive moves: the Berlin airlift against the Soviet blockade on West Berlin, and the war in Korea, under the UN flag, against a Northern invasion of the South.Unfortunately, these military commitments, added on top of the need to control the remaining Empire, only added to the financial burdens on the government. That had led to a regime of austerity at home. In turn, the generated a widespread atmosphere of dissatisfaction with the government.As we'll see, that wasn't helpful in an election year.Illustration: A plane in the Berlin Airlift flying above children watching it come into Tempelhof Airport. NATO photographMusic: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

Of the five ‘giant evils' William Beveridge identified, the Attlee government set out to deal with want through social security, squalor through better housing, ignorance through more schooling and disease through the National Health Service. When it came to the fifth giant, idleness, the government's tackeld unemployment by setting out to rebuild the British economy and, overall, that didn't go too badly. Unemployment was kept to 2% of the workforce despite the return of two and a half million men to the employment market from the army, and a massive trade deficit was wiped out. But the price was a tough economy with rationing still in place and little in the way of luxury to make life more pleasurable. Survival had been made easier, but living was short of joy in a rather dour postwar Britain.Greyness at home was reflected in continuing decline abroad. This episode traces the loss of status and, indeed, of value of the pound, once the world's reserve currency, now forced aside by the dollar. It also looks at the sad story of how Britain handled, or rather mishandled, its territory of Bechuanaland in Southern Africa, behaving shamefully towards its hereditary ruler Seretse Khama and his white wife Ruth Williams, to accommodate the growing racism of South Africa, source of the uranium Britain needed for its A-bomb.Things went no more smoothly in Palestine, where Britain simply abandoned its mandate, leaving Jews and Arabs to sort out their differences themselves, kicking off the long series of repeating wars that have poisoned the existence of Israel ever since. To cap the episode off, we talk about the start of the Malaya emergency, a counter-insurgency war as ugly and as strewn with atrocities as any other. It underlines the lesson that it isn't government intentions that matter in such conflicts, it's the nature of colonial war itself that makes it vile.Illustration: Seretse Khama, first President of Botswana, and the first First Lady, Ruth WilliamsMusic: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

In the July 1945 general election, the British public offered Winston Churchill, as he put it himself, the ‘order of the boot'. A victorious war Prime Minister was kicked out. In his place, his deputy, the Labour leader Clem Attlee became Prime Minister.There was massive enthusiasm for the Attlee government in the working class, which extended to many soldiers. These were the people let down after the First World War when the promise of a ‘Land fit for Heroes' was betrayed. They, and the government they elected, weren't going to let that happen again.But does that mean that the Attlee government was socialist? In this episode, we study the social reforms it introduced and how they built on advances made by earlier radicals, many of whom were not socialist. In particular, the principal inspiration for those reforms came from William Beveridge, author of the Beveridge Report. Far from being a socialist, he was a Liberal, even briefly a Liberal MP.He'd identified five giant evils, want, ignorance, squalor, disease and idleness. This episode looks at the reforms designed to address the first four of these. The fifth, idleness, we'll return to later.Illustration: Nye Bevan talking to a patient in Park Hospital, Trafford, Manchester, on the first day of the NHS, 5 July 1948. Image: Trafford Healthcare NHS/PA WireMusic: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

Following the German surrender in May 1945, the ‘Big Three' – the United States, the Soviet Union and Britain – met for the third and last time in conference. And this time, appropriately, they met on German territory, in Potsdam near Berlin. It was Soviet-held territory too, perhaps significant given the power with which the Soviet Union was emerging from the war.Indeed, its delegation was the only one to keep the same leader, Joseph Stalin, at its head, as he had been at Tehran and Yalta. Roosevelt had died. As for the British, after nearly ten years without a general election, they finally held one, and to general surprise, the victorious war Prime Minister Churchill was defeated by his deputy, Clement Attlee, the Labour leader. Attlee would form the first ever Labour government with a parliamentary majority. He would also take over from Churchill as leader of the British delegation at Potsdam.The conference took place under the shadow of the first successful test of a nuclear device, the day before the conference started. The US was now a nuclear power. That gave it quite an edge in international power politics.Although the device had been designed to use against Nazi Germany, since only Japan was left in the war, and given how high the casualties would be in an invasion of the Japanese home islands, the Americans dropped an atom bomb on Hiroshima on 6 August 1945. To make sure the message had got through, they dropped another on Nagasaki on the 9th. The Japanese surrendered on the 15th, the only concession to their sensibilities being that the Emperor was not deposed. When the final Japanese surrender document was signed on 2 September, World War 2 was at last over. Illustration: The A-bomb dome in Hiroshima, Japan. Public DomainMusic: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

Heartland's Tim Benson is joined by David Reynolds, emeritus professor of international history at Christ's College, Cambridge University, to discuss his latest book, Mirrors of Greatness: Churchill and the Leaders Who Shaped Him. They reevaluate Churchill's life by viewing it through the eyes of his allies and adversaries like Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, FDR, Chamberlain, Attlee, De Gaulle, and Gandhi, as well as his own family. They also chat about Churchill's lifelong struggle to overcome his political failures and his evolving grasp of what “greatness” truly entailed.  Get the book here: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/david-reynolds/mirrors-of-greatness/9781541620209/?lens=basic-booksShow Notes:The Wall Street Journal: Robert D. Kaplan – “‘Mirrors of Greatness' Review: Churchill's Personal Diplomacy”https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/books/mirrors-of-greatness-review-churchills-personal-diplomacy-c8e300e3Washington Examiner: Sean Durns – “Making history with Winston Churchill”https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/2838794/making-history-with-winston-churchill/

Heartland's Tim Benson is joined by David Reynolds, emeritus professor of international history at Christ's College, Cambridge University, to discuss his latest book, Mirrors of Greatness: Churchill and the Leaders Who Shaped Him. They reevaluate Churchill's life by viewing it through the eyes of his allies and adversaries like Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, FDR, Chamberlain, Attlee, De Gaulle, and Gandhi, as well as his own family. They also chat about Churchill's lifelong struggle to overcome his political failures and his evolving grasp of what “greatness” truly entailed.  Get the book here: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/david-reynolds/mirrors-of-greatness/9781541620209/?lens=basic-booksShow Notes:The Wall Street Journal: Robert D. Kaplan – “‘Mirrors of Greatness' Review: Churchill's Personal Diplomacy”https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/books/mirrors-of-greatness-review-churchills-personal-diplomacy-c8e300e3Washington Examiner: Sean Durns – “Making history with Winston Churchill”https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/2838794/making-history-with-winston-churchill/

The tide turned against the Axis and in favour of the Allies in the course of 1943. Victories at Stalingrad in Russia, in the Battle of the Atlantic, and in North Africa, came on top of American advances in the Pacific, from island to island towards Japan. That relieved some of the pressure on the British government, that had been coming under fire for the all the disasters of 1942: the shipping losses in the Battle of the Atlantic, the loss of Burma and Malaya culminating in the fall of Singapore, and the Eighth Army's retreat in front of Rommel in North Africa. Within the British government, things had changed since the start of the war, with the Conservatives Chamberlain and Halifax gone, as well as the poorly performing Labour Deputy Leader, Arthur Greenwood. Churchill and Attlee, so different in personality, had found an effective working relationship, with Attlee now officially Churchill's deputy, and deeply loyal to him. Attlee supported his boss on the big questions, such as the strategic bombing campaign against Germany, now considerably stepped up with the arrival of the Americans. That campaign was increasingly targeting civilians, making it arguably a war crime, or even simply terrorism, but it continued even though it never achieved its aim of breaking German morale. What it did do is divert a significant amount of German airpower from the Russian front to German home defence. The North African campaign had a similar effect: small scale though it was, it sucked in German troops who might otherwise have fought in Russia, and it cost the Luftwaffe dearly, helping the Soviets gain air superiority on the Eastern Front, as the Brits and the Americans won it in the West. Where Attlee differed from Churchill was over questions such as India. A terrible new famine in Bengal, handled with callousness by Churchill, ensured that the question of Indian independence remained a burning one. Attlee was also under pressure from his own party, with Labour demanding that the government adopt as immediate policy the Beveridge report, proposing major reforms to ensure the poor and workers emerged better off when Britain reconstructed itself after the war. Attlee resisted the pressure, since he felt that it was important to hold the Churchill government together, making only small changes until it had won the war, and saving the major reforms for peacetime. Illustration: The Cathedral of Lübeck in Germany burning after an air raid in 1942. Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1977-047-16, released for free public use. Music: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

Britain, along with France, might well have declared war against Germany in September 1939. But that didn't lead to much fighting for the next eight months. There was some action at sea, during which the British Royal Navy put an end to German surface raiders, though it had still to face the worst threat to its maritime trade, which came not from ships on the surface, but from submarines. On land, in the west, there was practically no action, in what came to be known as ‘the phoney war'. It wasn't phoney for the Poles of course, who were being bombed and invaded, first only by the Germans from the west, but soon by the Soviets from the east too, rather confirming what many suspected, that the Nazi-Soviet pact included a secret protocol dividing up Poland between the two countries. The Pact also provided the Soviets with the confidence to invade Finland which they did at the end of November. Britain and France decided to come to the Finns' aid by landing troops at the Norwegian port of Narvik, but it took them so long that Finland had been defeated, after some heroic resistance, before the Allies could help. However, the Allies went on with the idea of landing at Narvik,to cut Germany's supplies of iron ore from Sweden, most of which went through the port. Unfortunately, they took so long and were so indiscreet in their plans, that Hitler pre-empted them, invading and occupying Denmark and southern Norway, and getting troops to Narvik first, able to resist the Allied landings when they finally happened. Though marginal in itself, the Narvik fiasco prompted a major debate in the British House of Commons, in which the government, although it won a final vote of confidence, did so with so small a majority that Chamberlain felt major changes had to be made. He decided it was time to form a national government, in coalition with Labour and the Liberals. That, though, proved impossible to pull off if he stayed on as Prime Minister. He stood down and, as the front runner to replace him, Halifax, said he wasn't prepared to take the post, it inevitably fell to Winston Churchill to shoulder the burden. Labour and the Liberals joined him. So it was together behind him, as depicted by David Low in a new cartoon, that they faced the next, far worse crisis that was about to hit Britain and France. Illustration: 'All behind you, Winston', cartoon by David Low, May 1940. In the front row from left: Churchill, Attlee, Ernie Bevin and Herbert Morrison. Behind Churchill is Chamberlain. Music: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

Attlee calls an early election as George VI has a lung removed. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the Austrian annexation complete, Hitler could now start eying up his next target, Czechoslovakia again. Although Italy had proved absolutely no help to Britain in trying to stop Hitler's move against Austria, Chamberlain had given his word to put in place an agreement which would accept the Italian occupation of Abyssinia in return for some Italian commitments in the Mediterranean, over the Suez Canal, and to stop intervening in the Spanish Civil War. Chamberlain seems to have felt that he had to go ahead with this agreement and submitted it to the Commons for approval. With Conservative anti-appeasers rather muted, even Churchill, the opposition had to be led by Attlee. He was Leader of the Opposition, which was now oddly enough a paid post. He had also strengthened his position in the Labour Party, especially since two colleagues, Bevin and Dalton, had forced through a change of policy to stop opposing the government's plans for defence spending – they felt that such expenditure was increasingly needed in the face of the growing threats from the dictatorships. Attlee also spoke out loudly in defence of the Spanish Republic, especially after a visit there in late 1937. The House of Commons approved the agreement with Italy despite the opposition to it. That in effect turned a blind eye to Italy's breach of international law in Abyssinia. Now Hitler prepared his next breach of such law. Faced with what seemed to be an imminent Nazi invasion of Czechoslovakia, Chamberlain travelled out to see Hitler three times, on the last occasion accompanied by the French Prime Minister, Daladier, and the Italian dictator, Mussolini. The resulting Munich Agreement, which allowed Germany to absorb a huge part of Czechoslovakia, on the pretext of protecting the German-speaking minority in those areas, left the country defenceless to future attack. In the parliamentary debate on the Agreement, Churchill emerged as the champion of the anti-appeasement cause, though Attlee too spoke out powerfully against it. But there was relief across the country and in most parts of the House of Commons that peace had apparently been preserved. That left the anti-appeasers swimming against the current of public and political opinion. The peace that Chamberlain had bought would, however, not last long. Illustration: Chamberlain waving the Munich Agreement on his return to England at Heston Aerodrome. ‘Peace for our time'. Public Domain Music: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.theflyingfrisby.comToday, we are going to look at gold, bitcoin, and our way of playing it, MicroStrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR), which has now 10xd (!) since we first covered it last year. Amazing.Finally, there'll be a short update on gold miners. Remember them?Let's start with gold.Gold - and most other metals - has been hit since the U.S. election last week. It's down $200, or about 7%, with U.S. dollar strength being a big factor (the dollar has been storming higher since October).While I think this bull market might be punctured, as I put it last week, and that gold probably has a bit further to fall, I am not unduly worried. 2024 has hitherto been a great year for gold, and it remains an essential long-term core holding.It is an even more essential holding for UK investors. I think sterling has big problems ahead of it, and gold serves as your hedge against crap governments.If you are thinking of buying gold to protect yourself in these uncertain times, I recommend The Pure Gold Company. Pricing is competitive, quality of service is high. They deliver to the UK, US, Canada and Europe or you can store your gold with them. More here.Labour or Tory - I'm no fan of either. They're both as bad as each other, in my view. The less government there is, the better things run. But that's irrelevant idealism. Of greater concern here is reality: there has never been a Labour Government that did not devalue sterling.* Blair and Brown crashed sterling in 2007-8 (though until then their record was okay);* Under Wilson, Callaghan, and Healey, we ended up going to the IMF in 1976. Callaghan and Wilson also devalued in 1967.* Cripps and Attlee devalued in 1949.* Ramsay MacDonald's National Government, which followed Labour from 1929-31, took us off the gold standard in 1931.Why should this Labour Government be any different? If anything, it is even less competent. Sterling devaluation is coming. How exactly might not yet be clear. I rather suspect it'll be an attempt to make us competitive against an ultra-streamlined US, but that's just a guess. You must own some gold (and some bitcoin) in such an environment: non-government money.Gold under Trump - What Gives? What's coming?

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.theflyingfrisby.comToday, we are going to look at gold, bitcoin, and our way of playing it, MicroStrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR), which has now 10xd (!) since we first covered it last year. Amazing.Finally, there'll be a short update on gold miners. Remember them?Let's start with gold.Gold - and most other metals - has been hit since the U.S. election last week. It's down $200, or about 7%, with U.S. dollar strength being a big factor (the dollar has been storming higher since October).While I think this bull market might be punctured, as I put it last week, and that gold probably has a bit further to fall, I am not unduly worried. 2024 has hitherto been a great year for gold, and it remains an essential long-term core holding.It is an even more essential holding for UK investors. I think sterling has big problems ahead of it, and gold serves as your hedge against crap governments.If you are thinking of buying gold to protect yourself in these uncertain times, I recommend The Pure Gold Company. Pricing is competitive, quality of service is high. They deliver to the UK, US, Canada and Europe or you can store your gold with them. More here.Labour or Tory - I'm no fan of either. They're both as bad as each other, in my view. The less government there is, the better things run. But that's irrelevant idealism. Of greater concern here is reality: there has never been a Labour Government that did not devalue sterling.* Blair and Brown crashed sterling in 2007-8 (though until then their record was okay);* Under Wilson, Callaghan, and Healey, we ended up going to the IMF in 1976. Callaghan and Wilson also devalued in 1967.* Cripps and Attlee devalued in 1949.* Ramsay MacDonald's National Government, which followed Labour from 1929-31, took us off the gold standard in 1931.Why should this Labour Government be any different? If anything, it is even less competent. Sterling devaluation is coming. How exactly might not yet be clear. I rather suspect it'll be an attempt to make us competitive against an ultra-streamlined US, but that's just a guess. You must own some gold (and some bitcoin) in such an environment: non-government money.Gold under Trump - What Gives? What's coming?

Britain and France reckoned they'd secured the support of Italy, in the Stresa Front, for their efforts to contain Hitler. Britain was the first to undermine that pleasant understanding, by signing a naval agreement with Nazi Germany on its own. Even so, the British government did what it could to keep Mussolini's Italy in the Front, a position shared by Winston Churchill. He was already ringing alarm bells over Germany but, proving how difficult prediction can be, he got Italy (and indeed Japan) completely wrong. Then Mussolini showed his true colours by preparing to launch an invasion of Abyssinia, which is now Ethiopia, to extend Italy's imperial holdings in Africa. Doing so meant spitting in the face of the League of Nations, even though Italy was a member. But Mussolini could do that with impunity. The League, only as powerful as its members, and above all its great power members, Britain and France, allowed it to be, took no effective action against it. In the face of that spinelessness, Mussolini went ahead with his invasion. That had a surprising impact on the Labour Party, whose annual conference started the day after news of the Italian invasion arrived in Britain. Labour decided that it had no further patience with its declared pacifist leader, George Lansbury. He resigned and the jostling started to pick a successor. Clement Attlee, who'd been Lansbury's deputy, was given the job on a temporary basis, as Britain went into the 1935 general election. It was a huge win for the Tories but Labour also did well, winning nearly three times as many seats as in 1931. Attlee who'd led the party into that success was boosted by it. Viewed by many as poorly qualified for the job and short of personality, he saw off others who thought themselves better suited, and to the surprise of many, was confirmed as leader. Illustration: Italian officers consulting maps as they advance into Abyssinian territory. Public domain Music: Bach Partita #2c by J Bu licensed under an Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives (aka Music Sharing) 3.0 International License

In today's episode on pivotal UK elections David talks to historian Robert Saunders about the first great Labour landslide of 1945 and how it changed Britain. Why did Churchill not get his expected reward for winning the war? How genuinely radical and popular was the Labour programme? What made the mild-mannered Attlee such an effective leader? And how did the Tories – and Churchill – manage to get themselves back in the game?To hear our bonus episode on the epochal election of 1924 sign up now to PPF+ and you'll get ad-free listening plus all past, present and future bonuses: www.ppfideas.com.Next time: 1979 and the advent of Thatcherism Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode talks about the final broadcasts of the campaign by Mr Churchill and the PM, Mr Attlee. It then goes on to talk about the final arguments the main players made in the final weeks and the comments and endorsements of the leading newspapers. It finishes with comment about the relatively inexperienced electorate Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the podcast Will is joined by Jon Cruddas, the Labour MP for Dagenham and Rainham and the author of A Century of Labour. They discuss the Labour Party's relationship to Ramsay MacDonald, Labour in the 1950s and 60s and the USSR, Keir Starmer's place in the ideological traditions of the Labour Party, the Attlee government's agenda and the mythologising of political figures. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

'After commuting for twelve years, I told GWR I had written three books on their train, and that I should be made their writer in residence.'After commuting for twelve years, I went freelance. I told GWR I had written three books on their train, and that I should be made their writer in residence. To my surprise they agreed, giving me a staff pass that allowed free travel on their network.

At the age of 17 in 1891 whilst at Harrow School, Winston Churchill learned that his mother was sending him to stay with a French family for Christmas. He wrote to her, ‘My darling Mummy, never would I have believed you would haave been so unkind. I am utterly miserable..I can't tell you how wretched you have made me feel. Oh my Mummy. I expect you were too busy with your parties and arrangements for Christmas. I comfort myself by this. Your loving son, Winny.'That letter shows there is more to Churchill than the titan of World War Two.My guest today is David Reynolds who has written a book about the great figures who influenced him - Mirrors of Greatness: Churchill and the Leaders Who Shaped Him so we discuss Gandhi, Attlee and Clementine as well as Winston himself.Since it's Christmas I have an offer of half price on an annual subscription using the code HISTORY50% at our website: Annual Subscription to Aspects of History Magazine - Aspects of History**Gift Subscriptions available**David Reynolds LinksMirrors of Greatness: Churchill and the Leaders Who Shaped HimOllie LinksOllie on X/Twitterhistory@aspectsofhistory.com

In this episode of the podcast Will is joined by Nick Thomas Symonds, Labour MP for Torfaen, Shadow Minister without Portfolio and author of Attlee: A Life In Politics, a new edition of which was recently published. They discuss Attlee's early life, his involvement with the Stepney Boy's Club, his service in World War I, his time as Mayor of Stepney and PPS to Ramsay MacDonald, his leadership of Labour and his time as a reforming Prime Minister. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Steve Richards speaks to the Labour shadow cabinet member and historian Nick Thomas Symonds. Nick has revised his biography of the former Prime Minister Clement Attlee and included an introduction from Keir Starmer, but can Starmer emulate Attlee?  Nick also has responsibility for negotiating a 'better Brexit', Steve asks him how can this be achieved? Support Rock N Roll Politics on Patreon and get exclusive benefits including bonus episodes and much more: https://www.patreon.com/RockNRollPolitics Rock N Roll Politics is live at Kings Place on October 23rd. Tickets here: https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/words/rock-n-roll-politics-10/ Steve Richards' book 'Turning Points' is available here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Turning-Points-Crisis-Change-Britain/dp/1035015358/ref=sr_1_3?qid=1695642519&refinements=p_27%3ASteve+Richards&s=books&sr=1-3 Nick Thomas Symonds' book Attlee: A Life in Politics will be available later this month: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Attlee-Life-Politics-Nicklaus-Thomas-Symonds-dp-0755636139/dp/0755636139/ref=dp_ob_title_bk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a special episode of the Commonwealth Poetry Podcast, Gyles and Aphra Brandreth meet Sir Lindsay Hoyle MP, Speaker of the British House of Commons. Recorded from the Palace of Westminster, Sir Lindsay discusses his commitment to strengthen and renew the UK's ties with the Commonwealth and British Overseas Territories. With a guest appearance from his cat, named Attlee after former Labour Prime Minister Clement Attlee, Mr Speaker shares his love of animals. Poems this episode include: Macavity: The Mystery Cat by T. S. Eliot; and A Song of Hope by Oodgeroo Noonuccal (also known as Kath Walker) 

Professor Peter Hennessy is one of the UK's leading contemporary historians. He has written acclaimed and important books about politics, the civil service, the intelligence agencies and the British constitution on which he is an expert. Peter was born in London in 1947 and read history at St John's College, Cambridge. He started writing for the Times in the mid-1970s, covering the inner workings of Whitehall whose activities at that time were shrouded in secrecy. Peter says he approached his journalism like an amateur anthropologist trying to discover more about an unknown culture. His reports were viewed with suspicion by some members of the civil service and Harold Wilson, the then prime minister, issued an edit banning them from talking to him. In 1986 Peter co-founded the Institute of Contemporary British History, and in 1992 he moved from journalism to academia at Queen Mary, University of London where he is Attlee professor of contemporary British history. He is a fellow of the British Academy and was made a crossbench life peer in 2010. During the COVID-19 pandemic he started keeping a diary which he describes as an “aid to humility” with the aim of assessing post-world war history as BC (Before Covid) or AC (After Covid). Peter lives in London with his wife Enid. DISC ONE: Slow Train - Flanders & Swann DISC TWO: Italian Concerto in F, BWV 971, composed by Johann Sebastian Bach and performed by George Malcolm DISC THREE: Why Don't Women Like Me? - George Formby DISC FOUR: Schubert String Quintet In C Major,D. 956 - 2. Adagio, composed by Franz Schubert, performed by Robert Cohen (cello) and Amadeus Quartet DISC FIVE: The Elements - Tom Lehrer DISC SIX: London Girls - Chas & Dave DISC SEVEN: Skye Boat Song - The Pipes and Drums Of Leanisch DISC EIGHT: How Lovely is Thy Dwelling Place, composed by Johannes Brahms, performed by Festival Choir And Orchestra, conducted by Thomas D. Rossin BOOK CHOICE: Poetry in the Making by Ted Hughes LUXURY ITEM: A fountain pen, ink and paper CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: London Girls - Chas & Dave Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Paula McGinley

Here at CapX we love an unfashionable cause – and in a cost of living crisis, few demographics are less popular than those who seem to be struggling less.But we're also fans of basic economic concepts, and with the tax burden the highest it's been since the era of state socialism under Attlee, the Laffer Curve inevitably comes to mind. Because while calls to ‘tax the rich' may be popular, if it means less money for public services, they will ultimately prove counterproductive.And it's not just about Treasury revenues. The only way we'll get out of the hole we're in is by growing the economy and that means enabling businesses to thrive, to generate profits and – in the end – to make some people wealthy.To discuss whether the Government and society at large are doing enough to incentivise wealth creation, we were delighted to welcome broadcaster and commentator Emily Carver, Martin Vander Weyer, Business Editor at The Spectator, Merryn Somerset Webb, Senior Columnist at Bloomberg and entrepreneur Luke Johnson –founder and partner at Risk Capital Partners and chairman of Gail's bakeries among other businesses.This fascinating conversation ranged from the deep cultural roots of Britain's distaste for the dirty business of making money, the moral obligations of the wealthy, to working out who really counts as 'rich'. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode Will speaks to Stewart Lansley, visiting fellow in the School of Policy Studies at the University of Bristol, council member of the Progressive Economy Forum and author of The Richer, The Poorer: How Britain Enriched the Few and Failed the Poor, a 200 year History, to discuss a new pamphlet he has written for The Fabian Society, The Equality Question. They discuss how inequality has not been tackled by government, how the Attlee government stands out as compared with others on inequality and the (outgoing) Prime Minister, Liz Truss' economic policies A copy of Stewart's recent book can be found here: Policy Press | The Richer, The Poorer - How Britain Enriched the Few and Failed the Poor. A 200-Year History, By Stewart Lansley (bristoluniversitypress.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the podcast Will is joined by Nick Thomas Symonds, Shadow Secretary of State for International Trade, MP for Torfaen and author of the new book Harold Wilson: The Winner. They discuss Wilson's life, his upbringing, his career at Oxford, his time as a minister under Attlee, his periods as Prime Minister and Wilson's legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Veterans In Politics- Season 5, Episode 4  with Earl AttleeWe meet Earl Attlee who first entered the House in 1992 and in 1999 was elected to be one of the remaining hereditary Peers. In opposition he served as a Whip and Spokesperson for various departments and as a Lord in Waiting (Lords Whip) from 2010 to 2014 under the Cameron Government.Earl Attlee served as a Major in the Territorial Army and latterly Army Reserves (Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers) and served in Operation Lodestar and Operation Telic. He was also President of The Heavy Transport Association between 1994 and 2008 and was an In-Country Director (Rwanda) of British Direct Aid between 1995 and 1996.Our host first met Earl Attlee when he himself was a REME Cadet some 30 years ago, so this podcast is a special reunion via politics.He is of course, grandson to one of our greatest Prime Ministers- Clem Attlee.NOTE- Please rate us on Apple Podcasts, donate or become our mate on our website HERE:  Donate - CampaignForce

In this inspiring book James Attlee tells what happened when he rang the doorbells of houses that had homemade pictures of rainbows in their windows. The simple idea blossomed and grew and James found himself talking about Extinction Rebellion and Black LIves Matter. This conversation took place on the day after the hottest ever day in the UK.    

Caroline Claydon talks to Dr Ana Attlee, who stumbled upon property as a way to save the planet, and who used investment to leave her job just five months later! While juggling motherhood and building a business on the side, Dr Ana built an impressive portfolio of properties, and in today's show, Ana talks about how she overcame her lack of self-confidence, and used the guidance of others to help propel herself upwards in both business and property. KEY TAKEAWAYS Success comes through commitment. Financial backing, and lack of knowledge are things that can be overcome. We must have the will to succeed. Mentors can help to guide us through the tough periods, when our determination seems to be failing. To know that someone has been there before, and that they managed to push through, can mean the difference between success and failure. Do your best to make sure that you have some kind of presence, so that potential investors can see who you are and what you can do. We need to recognise that different people work with different property strategies. Just because something doesn't work for us, doesn't mean it won't work for someone else. BEST MOMENTS 'By January, I had made more money than I had ever made in all my life' 'It's all about the mindset behind the idea' 'It starts to get more and more heartbreaking, to give these amazing houses away!' 'I am really lucky to have built myself a passive income' VALUABLE RESOURCES Caroline Claydon - https://www.carolineclaydon.com Caroline Claydon Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/caroline_claydon_property/?hl=en Caroline Claydon LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/caroline-claydon-property/?originalSubdomain=uk Dr Ana Attlee - https://www.anaattlee.com Dr Ana Attlee Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/dranaattlee/?hl=en Dr Ana Attlee Twitter - https://twitter.com/dranaattlee?lang=en ABOUT THE SHOW This Property Life is hosted by the team at Property Wealth System. We are a collective of experienced active investors passionate about all things property. Mark Winship is an experienced property investor and mentor with a portfolio of HMO and Serviced Accommodation properties across the UK. Mark’s background in coaching high performance athletes has lead to a passion for mentoring people to achieve their life goals using property investment as a vehicle. Caroline Claydon Caroline Claydon has over 22 years experience in investing in property but it’s only the last 12 years she’s operated as a professional investor. Her and her husband have built their portfolio throughout the UK covering strategies from buy to let’s, social housing, HMOs, developments and more recently a hotel. She has travelled the world training people for the last 10 years on how to invest, scale and accelerate their UK property businesses regardless of where they are based. Caroline loves helping people reach their full potential by changing their mindsets to money, debt, property and investing. James D’Souza started investing in property from a young age and now owns a significant portfolio of buy-to-let properties, professional HMO’s and commercial developments. Whilst actively growing his own property business, James helps countless other people start and scale their own property journey. CONTACT METHOD You can join Mark, Caroline and James along with a whole host of other like-minded investors in the Property Wealth System Facebook Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/propertywealthcommunity Mark Email: mark@propertywealthsystem.co.uk Mark Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-winship-68b34833 Caroline Email: caroline@propertywealthsystem.co.uk Caroline Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caroline-claydon-property/ James Email: james@propertywealthsystem.co.uk James Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-d-souza-552342104/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rusland maakt grote strategische blunders in de oorlog in Oekraïne. Maar dat wil nog niet zeggen dat ze de oorlog daarmee gaan verliezen en dus ook niet of Oekraïne hem gaat winnen. Dat stelt Peter Wijninga, defensiespecialist van het Den Haag Centrum voor Strategische Studies. Luister ook | De laatste spartelingen van 'Homo Sovjeticus' Poetin 'Oxocratie' Groot-Brittannië Het Verenigd Koninkrijk wordt al decennia voornamelijk gerund voormalige studenten van de universiteit van Oxford. Van premiers Attlee en Thatcher tot Cameron en Johnson. Allemaal studeerden ze er. De Brexit is er zelfs geboren. Journalist Simon Kuper schreef er een boek over getiteld 'Chums'. Hij noemt het land een 'Oxocratie'. Luister ook | #63: RePowerEU: 300 miljard euro om voor 2030 van het Russische gas af te komen Europa Update | Finland en Zweden bij de NAVO Finland en Zweden hebben nu dan echt hun lidmaatschapsverzoeken ingediend bij NAVO-chef Jens Stoltenberg. Binnen drie maanden draaiden de meningen van de inwoners van de landen 180 graden. Hoe het toetredingsproces er nu uitziet en welke beren er nog op de weg liggen, bespreekt Europa-correspondent Stefan de Vries. Luister ook | #129 'WIT WORDT WEGGEDRUKT' Postma in Amerika | Pikante verspreking van Bush Voormalig president George W. Bush veroordeelde de oorlog van Rusland in Oekraïne tijdens een toespraak. Dat deed hij wel met een pijnlijke verspreking. Hij noemde niet de oorlog in Oekraïne, maar zijn eigen oorlog in Irak 'onrechtvaardig' en 'brutaal'. Amerika-correspondent Jan Postma zag het gebeuren. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What's better than a good read on the beach, even if we can't make the beach... and it's grey outside. With Parliament in recess, Christopher Hope brings you a taste of two political books that are sure to keep you busy. Iain Dale and Duncan Brack join Chris to talk about 'Prime Minister Priti: And Other Things that Never Happened', a collection of political 'what ifs'. Find out which scenario Duncan thinks should stay firmly in the horror section, and which unpredictable sliding door moment has actually come true.Plus Nigel Cawthorne, author of a new unauthorised biography of 'Keir Starmer: A Life of Contrasts', tells us why he thinks the Labour leader's only chance at power is to become the Attlee to Boris Johnson's Churchill. 'Prime Minister Priti And Other Things that Never Happened' edited by Duncan Brack and Iain Dale: https://books.telegraph.co.uk/Product/Iain-Dale/Prime-Minister-Priti-And-Other-Things-That-Never-Happened/25566262 |'Keir Starmer: A life of contrasts', the unauthorised biography, by Nigel Cawthorne: https://books.telegraph.co.uk/Product/Nigel-Cawthorne/Keir-Starmer--The-Unauthorised-Biography/25358441 |For 30 days' free access to The Telegraph: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/chopper |Listen to Imposters: www.playpodca.st/imposters |Email: chopperspolitics@telegraph.co.uk |See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

I mangel på gode forberedelser for å diskutere månedens snitt på en konstruktiv måte, bruker gutta tiden på å krangle om det er riktig å sammenligne Erna Solberg med Winston Churchill, eller Jonas Gahr Støre med Clement Attlee.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Leo McKinstry discusses Patrick Hamilton's novels, actress Constance Smith and the National Liberal Party Leo McKinstry discusses with Ivan six things which he thinks should be better known. Leo McKinstry is a journalist and author. His books include Boycs: The True Story (2000), Rosebery: Statesman in Turmoil (2005) and Attlee and Churchill: Allies in War, Adversaries in Peace (2020). The novels of Patrick Hamilton https://www.bookforum.com/print/1405/in-a-trio-of-novels-patrick-hamilton-offered-deft-portraits-of-the-english-working-class-as-world-war-ii-descended-their-republication-introduces-us-to-the-odd-booze-drenched-world-of-a-terrific-british-writer-2046 The New Brighton Tower in Wallesey http://www.hiddenwirral.org/the-new-brighton-tower/4590497180 Lord Rosebery https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v27/n18/ferdinand-mount/truffles-for-potatoes Constance Smith https://www.irishnews.com/news/northernirelandnews/2019/01/04/news/tale-of-limerick-actress-constance-smith-s-hollywood-tragedy-revealed-in-tv4-documentary-1520331/ The music of Andy Prior https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Zs3-NMKvD0 The National Liberal Party https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Liberal_Party_(UK,_1931) This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

# 209 - The Lion Heart Speech - Winston Churchill On 30th November, 1954, Winston Churchill gave a speech to both Houses of Parliament in Westminster Hall It was his 80th birthday and he shows he is still a master orator. “I am very glad that Mr Attlee described my speeches in the war as expressing the will not only of Parliament but of the whole nation. Their will was resolute and remorseless and, as it proved, unconquerable. It fell to me to express it, and if I found the right words you must remember that I have always earned my living by my pen and by my tongue. It was the nation and race dwelling all round the globe that had the lion heart. I had the luck to be called upon to give the roar." Enjoy! And don't forget 100 Days To Self Mastery Challenge is coming next week! You are only one habit away from changing your life! ✅  Get your FREE Theodore Roosevelt Autobiography in PDF here: https://bit.ly/2Jj1ciI ✅  Get your copy of Jordan Peterson's book, 12 Rules for Life here: https://amzn.to/3pu5Pqw ✅  Get your copy of DAVID GOGGINS Book CAN'T HURT ME here: https://amzn.to/3p8LFST ✅ GET YOUR FREE DOWNLOAD OF MARCUS AURELIUS MEDITATIONS HERE: https://bit.ly/3j7JRpK  ✅. Help Shrink your Prostate with PROSTATE PLUS Supplements here https://turmericheals.com/thaprilpost ✅ Please support our sponsor https://www.mealfan.com ✅ Follow and subscribe to our Podcast on Apple Podcasts here: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/inspired-healing-podcast/id1514925883 Do you want to change your life? Your host Kevin McNamara takes inspiring quotes from the Stoics like Marcus Aurelius, David Goggins, Jordan Peterson, Seneca, Epictetus as well as other ancient and modern Stoics, generals, nurses, athletes, prisoners of war survivors, US Presidents and brings their words of wisdom in to the modern day. Kevin healed prostate cancer through natural means without medical intervention, lost his daughter, Holly, to SIDS when she was 5 months old and was a member of the Police Force in Melbourne Australia for 20 years. Checkout the 5 Minute Stoic Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/the5minutestoic He is more qualified than most to talk about inspired healing, the Stoic philosophy and changing your life for the better He also interviews others who have defied the odds. people who have had their dark night of the soul and come through to become beacons of light for others going through tough times. Inspired Healing has the power to drag you up from where you are, get you to face your own fears and come out the other side a better version of yourself. For more information on how to heal click here: Get your FREE Secrets to Healing Book here: https://www.bethehealth.com/proplus FOLLOW US: FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/the5minutestoic WEBSITE - https://meditationforthesoul.com TWITTER - https://twitter.com/5minutestioc INSTA - https://www.instagram.com/inspired_healing_podcast/ AFFILIATE DISCLOSURE: Heads up my friends, my podcast show notes may contain affiliate links. If you buy something through one of them you wont pay a cent more but I will receive a small commission which helps keep the channel here going and the lights on! Thanks so much for your understanding. # 209 - The Lion Heart Speech - Winston Churchill  

SUBSCRIBE AND FOLLOW FOR MORE VIDEO CONTENT - https://www.youtube.com/c/propertywealthsystem This time, Caroline Claydon talks to Dr Ana Attlee, who stumbled upon property as a way to save the planet, and who used investment to leave her job just five months later! While juggling motherhood and building a business on the side, Dr Ana built an impressive portfolio of properties, and in today's show, Ana talks about how she overcame her lack of self-confidence, and used the guidance of others to help propel herself upwards in both business and property. KEY TAKEAWAYS Success comes through commitment. Financial backing, and lack of knowledge are things that can be overcome. We must have the will to succeed. Mentors can help to guide us through the tough periods, when our determination seems to be failing. To know that someone has been there before, and that they managed to push through, can mean the difference between success and failure. Do your best to make sure that you have some kind of presence, so that potential investors can see who you are and what you can do. We need to recognise that different people work with different property strategies. Just because something doesn't work for us, doesn't mean it won't work for someone else. BEST MOMENTS 'By January, I had made more money than I had ever made in all my life' 'It's all about the mindset behind the idea' 'It starts to get more and more heartbreaking, to give these amazing houses away!' 'I am really lucky to have built myself a passive income' VALUABLE RESOURCES Caroline Claydon - https://www.carolineclaydon.com Caroline Claydon Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/caroline_claydon_property/?hl=en Caroline Claydon LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/caroline-claydon-property/?originalSubdomain=uk Dr Ana Attlee - https://www.anaattlee.com Dr Ana Attlee Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/dranaattlee/?hl=en Dr Ana Attlee Twitter - https://twitter.com/dranaattlee?lang=en ABOUT THE SHOW This Property Life is hosted by the team at Property Wealth System. We are a collective of experienced active investors passionate about all things property. Mark Winship is an experienced property investor and mentor with a portfolio of HMO and Serviced Accommodation properties across the UK. Mark’s background in coaching high performance athletes has lead to a passion for mentoring people to achieve their life goals using property investment as a vehicle. Caroline Claydon Caroline Claydon has over 22 years experience in investing in property but it’s only the last 12 years she’s operated as a professional investor. Her and her husband have built their portfolio throughout the UK covering strategies from buy to let’s, social housing, HMOs, developments and more recently a hotel. She has travelled the world training people for the last 10 years on how to invest, scale and accelerate their UK property businesses regardless of where they are based. Caroline loves helping people reach their full potential by changing their mindsets to money, debt, property and investing. James D’Souza started investing in property from a young age and now owns a significant portfolio of buy-to-let properties, professional HMO’s and commercial developments. Whilst actively growing his own property business, James helps countless other people start and scale their own property journey. CONTACT METHOD You can join Mark, Caroline and James along with a whole host of other like-minded investors in the Property Wealth System Facebook Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/propertywealthcommunity Mark Email: mark@propertywealthsystem.co.uk Mark Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-winship-68b34833 Caroline Email: caroline@propertywealthsystem.co.uk Caroline Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caroline-claydon-property/ James Email: james@propertywealthsystem.co.uk James Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-d-souza-552342104/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Continuing the short series on Cynon Valley Icons, Dr Daryl Leeworthy presents a fascinating account of George Hall, MP for Aberdare who went from pit boy to peer of the realm and First Lord of the Admiralty under Attlee. It's a remarkable tale that explains much about the formation of working class politics in the valleys between the wars.

According to the influential French commentator and scholar, Raymond Aron, one the great un-answered questions of the post-1945 period is how and why the British went from being ‘Romans to Italians'. In an endeavor to answer this question and much more is Professor of History Emeritus at Exeter University Jeremy Black's book A History of Britain: 1945 to Brexit (Indiana UP, 2017) Spanning the period from Attlee's surprise victory over Winston Churchill in 1945, to the equally surprising decision to leave the European Union in the 2016 referendum, Black's book is a masterpiece of informed scholarly analysis and opinion. Coming from one of the historical profession's great polymath. Black's book is a treasure to behold for both the professional historian and the lay educated reader. Black not only deals expertly with the high politics of the period but also with the social changes, economic strains, and cultural and political upheavals that brought Britain to Brexit. This sweeping and engaging book traces Britain's path through the destruction left behind by World War II, Thatcherism, the threats of the IRA, the Scottish referendum, and on to the impact of waves of immigration from the European Union. Black overturns many conventional interpretations of significant historical events, provides context for current developments, and encourages the reader to question why we think the way we do about Britain's past. Charles Coutinho Ph. D. of the Royal Historical Society, received his doctorate from New York University. His area of specialization is 19th and 20th-century European, American diplomatic and political history. He has written recently for Chatham House's International Affairs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

According to the influential French commentator and scholar, Raymond Aron, one the great un-answered questions of the post-1945 period is how and why the British went from being ‘Romans to Italians’. In an endeavor to answer this question and much more is Professor of History Emeritus at Exeter University Jeremy Black’s book A History of Britain: 1945 to Brexit (Indiana UP, 2017) Spanning the period from Attlee’s surprise victory over Winston Churchill in 1945, to the equally surprising decision to leave the European Union in the 2016 referendum, Black’s book is a masterpiece of informed scholarly analysis and opinion. Coming from one of the historical profession’s great polymath. Black’s book is a treasure to behold for both the professional historian and the lay educated reader. Black not only deals expertly with the high politics of the period but also with the social changes, economic strains, and cultural and political upheavals that brought Britain to Brexit. This sweeping and engaging book traces Britain's path through the destruction left behind by World War II, Thatcherism, the threats of the IRA, the Scottish referendum, and on to the impact of waves of immigration from the European Union. Black overturns many conventional interpretations of significant historical events, provides context for current developments, and encourages the reader to question why we think the way we do about Britain's past. Charles Coutinho Ph. D. of the Royal Historical Society, received his doctorate from New York University. His area of specialization is 19th and 20th-century European, American diplomatic and political history. He has written recently for Chatham House’s International Affairs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

According to the influential French commentator and scholar, Raymond Aron, one the great un-answered questions of the post-1945 period is how and why the British went from being ‘Romans to Italians’. In an endeavor to answer this question and much more is Professor of History Emeritus at Exeter University Jeremy Black’s book A History of Britain: 1945 to Brexit (Indiana UP, 2017) Spanning the period from Attlee’s surprise victory over Winston Churchill in 1945, to the equally surprising decision to leave the European Union in the 2016 referendum, Black’s book is a masterpiece of informed scholarly analysis and opinion. Coming from one of the historical profession’s great polymath. Black’s book is a treasure to behold for both the professional historian and the lay educated reader. Black not only deals expertly with the high politics of the period but also with the social changes, economic strains, and cultural and political upheavals that brought Britain to Brexit. This sweeping and engaging book traces Britain's path through the destruction left behind by World War II, Thatcherism, the threats of the IRA, the Scottish referendum, and on to the impact of waves of immigration from the European Union. Black overturns many conventional interpretations of significant historical events, provides context for current developments, and encourages the reader to question why we think the way we do about Britain's past. Charles Coutinho Ph. D. of the Royal Historical Society, received his doctorate from New York University. His area of specialization is 19th and 20th-century European, American diplomatic and political history. He has written recently for Chatham House’s International Affairs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

According to the influential French commentator and scholar, Raymond Aron, one the great un-answered questions of the post-1945 period is how and why the British went from being ‘Romans to Italians’. In an endeavor to answer this question and much more is Professor of History Emeritus at Exeter University Jeremy Black’s book A History of Britain: 1945 to Brexit (Indiana UP, 2017) Spanning the period from Attlee’s surprise victory over Winston Churchill in 1945, to the equally surprising decision to leave the European Union in the 2016 referendum, Black’s book is a masterpiece of informed scholarly analysis and opinion. Coming from one of the historical profession’s great polymath. Black’s book is a treasure to behold for both the professional historian and the lay educated reader. Black not only deals expertly with the high politics of the period but also with the social changes, economic strains, and cultural and political upheavals that brought Britain to Brexit. This sweeping and engaging book traces Britain's path through the destruction left behind by World War II, Thatcherism, the threats of the IRA, the Scottish referendum, and on to the impact of waves of immigration from the European Union. Black overturns many conventional interpretations of significant historical events, provides context for current developments, and encourages the reader to question why we think the way we do about Britain's past. Charles Coutinho Ph. D. of the Royal Historical Society, received his doctorate from New York University. His area of specialization is 19th and 20th-century European, American diplomatic and political history. He has written recently for Chatham House’s International Affairs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

According to the influential French commentator and scholar, Raymond Aron, one the great un-answered questions of the post-1945 period is how and why the British went from being ‘Romans to Italians'. In an endeavor to answer this question and much more is Professor of History Emeritus at Exeter University Jeremy Black's book A History of Britain: 1945 to Brexit (Indiana UP, 2017) Spanning the period from Attlee's surprise victory over Winston Churchill in 1945, to the equally surprising decision to leave the European Union in the 2016 referendum, Black's book is a masterpiece of informed scholarly analysis and opinion. Coming from one of the historical profession's great polymath. Black's book is a treasure to behold for both the professional historian and the lay educated reader. Black not only deals expertly with the high politics of the period but also with the social changes, economic strains, and cultural and political upheavals that brought Britain to Brexit. This sweeping and engaging book traces Britain's path through the destruction left behind by World War II, Thatcherism, the threats of the IRA, the Scottish referendum, and on to the impact of waves of immigration from the European Union. Black overturns many conventional interpretations of significant historical events, provides context for current developments, and encourages the reader to question why we think the way we do about Britain's past. Charles Coutinho Ph. D. of the Royal Historical Society, received his doctorate from New York University. His area of specialization is 19th and 20th-century European, American diplomatic and political history. He has written recently for Chatham House's International Affairs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

According to the influential French commentator and scholar, Raymond Aron, one the great un-answered questions of the post-1945 period is how and why the British went from being ‘Romans to Italians’. In an endeavor to answer this question and much more is Professor of History Emeritus at Exeter University Jeremy Black’s book A History of Britain: 1945 to Brexit (Indiana UP, 2017) Spanning the period from Attlee’s surprise victory over Winston Churchill in 1945, to the equally surprising decision to leave the European Union in the 2016 referendum, Black’s book is a masterpiece of informed scholarly analysis and opinion. Coming from one of the historical profession’s great polymath. Black’s book is a treasure to behold for both the professional historian and the lay educated reader. Black not only deals expertly with the high politics of the period but also with the social changes, economic strains, and cultural and political upheavals that brought Britain to Brexit. This sweeping and engaging book traces Britain's path through the destruction left behind by World War II, Thatcherism, the threats of the IRA, the Scottish referendum, and on to the impact of waves of immigration from the European Union. Black overturns many conventional interpretations of significant historical events, provides context for current developments, and encourages the reader to question why we think the way we do about Britain's past. Charles Coutinho Ph. D. of the Royal Historical Society, received his doctorate from New York University. His area of specialization is 19th and 20th-century European, American diplomatic and political history. He has written recently for Chatham House’s International Affairs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

No not Clement Attlee in space... Matt Chorley talks to Shadow Home Secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds and historian Steven Fielding about the 75th anniversary of Attlee's election as Prime Minister, followed by Sue Horne, Head of Space Exploration at the UK Space Agency, to talk us through the latest NASA launch See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Blackwell's Fiction Bookseller Ray was delighted to sit down with James Attlee, author of Isolarion, to discuss the republishing of this classic book. A travel writing classic, with a new preface by the author and an afterword by Geoff Dyer. ‘A time may come in your life’, Isolarion begins, ‘when you feel the need to make a pilgrimage.’ But when it does, how is a parent with a full-time job to respond to the call? Follow us: Twitter: @blackwelloxford Instagram: @blackwelloxford YouTube: Blackwell's Oxford Website: www.blackwells.co.uk

*NOT ENDORSED BY ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (YET)* Sometimes nature writing is just silly people being silly in a pond. Walk and talk with nature writer, reader, and reviewer Alice Attlee. Suitable whether you have never read any nature writing before, or you just like puns about air pollution. Recorded in Highgate Woods on the hottest day of the year, so it even features an original nature soundscape playing live in the background! Hashtag calming, hashtag natural, hashtag there's also a few aeroplanes and an ice-cream van. ---  BIG DOG BOOKS DISCUSSED: WATERLOG by Roger ‘some kind of paternal figure’ Deakin (a.k.a. ’Freaky Deakin’) UNDERLAND by Robert Macfarlane Three (punny but not funny) books on air pollution ---  Get in touch if you have recommendations of funny books, quotes, or want to be a guest! You can contact me all formal on @witlitpod or @witlitpodcast, or all informal on twitter @lily_lindon & instagram @bookymcbookface. Alice can be followed around on twitter @AliceAttlee where you can also find links to her writing, reviewing, and YOGA INSTRUCTING! Truly she wears many hats, and she wears them very well. Stay silly, Lily

The “Old” and “New” Labour factions of the Labour Party existed long before Tony Blair coined the names. Indeed, the Attlee government was riven with internal divides, as the resignation of Nye Bevan showed. Yet Corbyn's elevation as party leader reflects a broader trend, perhaps started by Blair himself when he pressurised his chancellor to spend more on the NHS, of a Labour Party that is moving to the left, where it will likely stay for some time to come. (Paper 1)

Welcome to this edition of the Book Club, this week's guest is Leo McKinstry, he's here to discuss Attlee and Churchill: Allies in War, Adversaries in Peace. If you enjoyed this podcast, make sure you check through the archive for one you may have missed or why not listen to For The Many, Iain's podcast with Jacqui Smith, Cross Question or the brand new podcast All Talk! Iain Dale Monday - Thursday, 7-10pm on LBC. https://www.iaindale.com/

One of the most famous Churchill-isms is “an empty taxi pulled up and Clement Attlee stepped out of it.” It implies, of course, that Attlee was a political non-entity, weak and ineffective. But did Churchill ever say it? And what do skinny French actresses have to do with it? We explain all in this episode of Quote or No Quote!

Welcome to the History of Computing Podcast, where we explore the history of information technology. Because understanding the past prepares us for the innovations of the future! Today we're going to look at the Tech Model Railroad Club, an obsessive group of young computer hackers that helped to shape a new vision for the young computer industry through the late 50s and early 60s. We've all seen parodies it in the movies. Queue up a montage. Iron Man just can't help but tinker with new models of his armor. Then viola, these castaway hack jobs are there when a new foe comes along. As is inspiration to finish them. The Lambda Lamda Lamda guys get back at the jock frat boys in Revenge of the Nerds. The driven inventor in Honey I Shrunk the Kids just can't help himself but build the most insane inventions. Peter Venkman in Ghostbusters. There's a drive. And those who need to understand, to comprehend, to make sense of what was non-sensical before. I guess it even goes back to Dr Frankenstein. Some science just isn't meant to be conquered. But trains. Those are meant to be conquered. They're the golden spike into the engineering chasm that young freshman who looked like the cast of Stand By Me, but at MIT, wanted to conquer. You went to MIT in the 50s and 60s because you wanted a deeper understanding of how the world worked. But can you imagine a world where the unofficial motto of the MIT math department was that “there's no such thing as computer science. It's witchcraft!” The Tech Model Railroad Club, or TMRC, had started in 1946. World War II had ended the year before and the first first UN General Assembly and Security Council met, with Iran filing the first complaint against the Soviet Union and UNICEF being created. Syria got their independence from France. Jordan got their independence from Britain. The Philippines gained their independence from the US. Truman enacted the CIA, Stalin accounted a 5 year plan for Russia, ushering in the era of Soviet reconstruction and signaling the beginning of the col war, which would begin the next year. Anti-British protests exploded in India, and Attlee agreed to their independence. Ho Chi Minh became president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and France recognized their statehood days later, with war between his forces and the French breaking out later that year resulting in French martial law. Churchill gave his famous Iron Curtain Speech. Italy and Bulgaria abolished their monarchies. The US Supreme Court ordered desegregation of busses and Truman ordered desegregation of the armed forces and created the Committee on Civil Rights using an executive order. And there was no true computer industry. But the ENIAC went into production in 1946. And a group of kids at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology weren't thinking much about the new world order being formed nor about the ENIAC which was being installed just a 5 or 6 hour drive away. They were thinking about model trains. And over the next few years they would build, paint, and make these trains run on model tracks. Started by Walter Marvin and John Fitzallen Moore, who would end up with over a dozen patents after earning his PhD from Columbia and having a long career at Lockheed, EMI Medical who invented the CT scan. By the mid-50s the club had grown and there were a few groups of people who were really in it for different things. Some wanted to drink cocacola while they painted trains. But the thing that drew many a student though was the ARRC, or Automatic Railroad Running Computer. This was built by the Signals and Power Subcommittee who used relays from telephone switches to make the trains do all kinds of crazy things, even cleaning the tracks. Today there we're hacking genes, going to lifehacker.com, and sometimes regrettably getting hacked, or losing data in a breach. But the term came from one who chops or cuts, going back to the 1200s. But on a cool day in 1955, on the third floor of Build 20, known as the Plywood Palace, that would change. Minutes of a meeting at the Tech Model Railroad Club note “Mr. Eccles requests that anyone working or hacking on the electrical system turn the power off to avoid fuse blowing.” Maybe they were chopping parts of train tracks up. Maybe the term was derived from something altogether separate. But this was the beginning of a whole new culture. One that survives and thrives today. Hacking began to mean to do technical things for enjoyment in the club. And those who hacked became hackers. The OG hacker was Jack Dennis, an alumni of the TMRC. Jack Dennis had gotten his bachelors from MIT in 1953 and moved on to get his Masters then Doctorate by 1958, staying until he retired in 1987, teaching and influencing many subsequent generations of young hackers. You see, he studied artificial intelligence, or taking these computers built by companies like IBM to do math, and making them… intelligent. These switches and relays under the table of the model railroad were a lot of logical circuits strung together and in the days before what we think of as computers now, these were just a poor college student's way of building a computer. Having skipped two grades in high school, this “computer” was what drew Alan Kotok to the TMRC in 1958. And incoming freshman Peter Samson. And Bob Saunders, a bit older than the rest. Then grad student Jack Dennis introduced the TMRC to the IBM 704. A marvel of human engineering. It was like your dad's shiny new red 1958 corvette. Way too expensive to touch. But you just couldn't help it. The young hackers didn't know it yet, but Marvin Minsky had shown up to MIT in 1958. John McCarthy was a research fellow there. Jack Dennis got his PhD that year. Outside of MIT, Robert Noyce and Jack Kilby were giving us the Integrated Circuit, we got FORTRAN II, and that McCarthy guy. He gave us LISP. No, he didn't speak with a LISP. He spoke IN LISP. And then president Lyndon Johnson established ARPA in response to Sputnik, to speed up technological progress. Fernando Corbato got his PhD in physics in 1956 and stayed on with the nerds until he retired as well. Kotok ended up writing the first chess program with McCarthy on the IBM 7090 while still a teenager. Everything changed when Lincoln Lab got the TX-0, lovingly referred to as the tikso. Suddenly, they weren't loading cards into batch processing computers. The old IBM way was the enemy. The new machines allowed them to actually program. They wrote calculators and did work for courses. But Dennis kinda' let them do most anything they wanted. So of course we ended up with very early computer games as well, with tic tac toe and Mouse in the Maze. These kids would write anything. Compilers? Sure. Assemblers? Got it. They would hover around the signup sheet for access to the tikso and consume every minute that wasn't being used for official research. At this point, the kids were like the budding laser inventors in Weird Science. They were driven, crazed. And young Peter Deutsch joined them, writing the Lisp 1.5 implementation for the PDP at 12. Can you imagine being a 12 year old and holding your own around a group of some of the most influential people in the computer industry. Bill Gosper got to MIT in 1961 and so did the second PDP-1 ever built. Steve Russell joined the team and ended up working on Spacewar! When he wasn't working on Lisp. Speaking of video games. They made Spacewar during this time with a little help from Kotok Steve Piner, Samson, Suanders, and Dan Edwards. In fact, Kotok and Saunders created the first gamepad, later made popular for Nintendo, so they could play Spacewar without using the keyboard. This was work that would eventually be celebrated by the likes of Rolling Stone and Space War and in fact would later become the software used to smoke test the PDP once it entered into the buying tornado. Ricky Greenblatt got to MIT in 1962. And this unruly, unkempt, and extremely talented group of kids hacked their way through the PDP, with Greenblatt becoming famous for his hacks, hacking away the first FORTRAN compiler for the PDP and spending so much time at the terminal that he didn't make it through his junior year at MIT. These formative years in their lives were consumed with cocacola, Chinese food, and establishing many paradigms we now consider fundamental in computer science. The real shift from a batch process mode of operations, fed by paper tape and punchcards, to a interactive computer was upon us. And they were the pioneers who through countless hours of hacking away, found “the right thing.” Project MAC was established at MIT in 1963 using a DARPA grant and was initially run by legendary J. C. R. Licklider. MAC would influence operating systems with Multics which served as the inspiration for Unix, and the forming of what we now know as computer science through the 1960s and 70s. This represented a higher level of funding and a shift towards the era of development that led to the Internet and many of the standards we still use today. More generations of hackers would follow and continue to push the envelope. But that one special glimpse in time, let's just say if you listen at just the right frequency you can hear screaming at terminals when a game of Spacewar didn't go someone's way, or when something crashed, or with glee when you got “the right thing.” And if you listen hard enough at your next hackathon, you can sometimes hear a Kotok or a Deutsch or a Saunders whisper in your ear exactly what “the right thing” is - but only after sufficient amounts of trial, error, and Spacewar. This free exercise gives way to innovation. That's why Google famously gives employees free time to pursue their passions. That's why companies run hackathons. That's why everyone from DARPA to Netflix has run bounty programs. These young mathematicians, scientists, physicists, and engineers would go on to change the world in their own ways. Uncle John McCarthy would later move to Stanford, where he started the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. From there he influenced Sun Microsystems (the S in Sun is for Stanford), Cisco, and dozens of other Silicon Valley powerhouses. Dennis would go on to found Multics and be an inspiration for Ken Thompson with the first versions of Unix. And after retiring he would go to NASA and then Acorn Networks. Slug Russell would go on to a long career as a developer and then executive, including a stop mentoring two nerdy high school kids at Lakeside School in Seattle. They were Paul Allen and Bill Gates, who would go on to found Microsoft. Alan Kotok would go on to join DEC where he would work for 30 years, influencing much of the computing through the 70s and into the 80s. He would work on the Titan chip at DEC and in the various consortiums around the emergent Internet. He would be a founding member of the World Wide Web Consortium. Ricky Greenblatt ended up spending too much of his time hacking. He would go on to found Lisp Machines, coauthor the time sharing software for the PDP-6 and PDP-10, write Maclisp, and write the first computer chess program to beat world class players in Hubert Dreyfus. Peter Samson wrote the Tech Model Railroad Club's official dictionary which would evolve into the now-famous Jargon file. He wrote the Harmony compiler, a FORTRAN compiler for the PDP-6, made music for the first time with computers, became an architect at DEC, would oversee hardware engineering at NASA, and continues to act as a docent at the Computer History Museum. Bob Saunders would go on to be a professor at the University of California, becoming president of the IEEE, and Chairman of the Board during some of the most influential years in that great body of engineers and scientists. Peter Deutsch would go on to get his PhD from Berkeley, found Aladdin Enterprises, write Ghostscript, create free Postscript and PDF alternatives, work on Smalltalk, work at Sun, be an influential mind at Xerox PARC, and is now a composer. We owe a great deal to them. So thank you to these pioneers. And thank you, listeners, for sticking through to the end of this episode of the History of Computing Podcast. We're lucky to have you.

What did Gideon Rachman of the Financial Times and Professor John Bew - biographer of Attlee make of the week when President Trump came to town? Subscribe to Politics: Where Next? for more in-depth discussions every Friday.

As a nod to the discussions of sovereignty and independence that have surrounded the EU elections this month Emma and Steve have watched Passport to Pimlico. This Ealing comedy is a pean to the collectivism of the Attlee government. But it's also good at tweaking the nose of bureaucracy. 

John Bew (@JohnBew) is a celebrated biographer and historian. His recent book about Labour Prime Minister Clement Attlee won several awards, including the Orwell Prize. He and Aaron (@aaronhughellis) discuss why Attlee is suddenly loved by everyone from Theresa May to Jeremy Corbyn and Andrew Adonis; whether he would have succeeded today; as well as talking about John’s penchant for post-apocalyptic fiction… You can buy ‘Citizen Clem’ here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Citizen-Clem-Biography-Attlee-Winner/dp/178087992X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1520350692&sr=8-1&keywords=citizen+clem ‘Open Country’ is over halfway to our £1000 fundraising goal. If you’d like to help us get to a grand, click this link and donate: https://www.crowdpac.co.uk/campaigns/3882/podcast-for-progressives If you would like to get in touch, @ either @aaronhughellis or @opencountrypod - or email open@ulixes.co.uk Music: ‘Surprising Power’ by Art of Escapism

* The Potsdam declaration on Japan was tricky. * It was drafted while Churchill was still PM. * In fact it was probably one of the last things he did as PM. * But it was signed by Attlee. * Stalin had to be involved, but he couldn’t sign it because the U.S.S.R. was still […]

Well the election result shocked everyone.  And the rest of the contingent at Potsdam weren’t very happy about it either.  We might think that the Soviets would be please to be dealing with a British government made up of socialists.  But that wasn’t the case.  Stalin didn’t like Attlee or the British Labour Party.  Despite […]

Attlee was Churchill’s lame duck deputy PM.  In fact he was the first Deputy PM the UK ever had.  I didn’t realise this, but in the UK the role of the Deputy PM isn’t like you’d expect, like it is in Australia or like the Vice-President in the USA.  The Deputy PM doesn’t take over […]

John Bew talks to host Red Szell about the Orwell Prize winning Citizen Clem: A Biography of Attlee ... at the Wigtown Book Festival we chat to Marian Veevers, author of 'Jane and Dorothy: A True Tale of Sense and Sensibility' and Robert Kirkwood hears Jonathan Dimbleby's Churchill impression.

The General Election of June 2017, and the massive Labour surge under Jeremy Corbyn's socialist leadership, has provided a new sense of optimism for those hoping for an end to utilitarian approaches to culture and swingeing cuts to arts funding. This month, Juliet talks to Loraine Leeson, Hassan Mahamdallie and Hilary Wainwright about the concept of cultural democracy, the recent The World Transformed conference and the Arts for Labour initiative. What are Jeremy Corbyn's arts policies, and how are they informed by the anti-austerity movement? What has been learned from the Greater London Council's arts programmes of the 1980s, or the Attlee government's cultural policies? How did writers and thinkers such as William Morris, E.P. Thompson and Raymond Williams establish a long British tradition of 'cultural democracy', and what can we take from them in the 21st century? WORKS REFERENCED: Campaign to save The Cinema Museum: www.cinemamuseum.org.uk 'A Creative Future for All' - https://www.policyforum.labour.org.uk/news/a-creative-future-for-all The Great Exhibition of the North - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-43324069 The Gay Sweatshop Theatre Company - http://www.unfinishedhistories.com/history/companies/gay-sweatshop/ LORAINE LEESON, Art : Process : Change (2017) - https://www.routledge.com/Art--Process--Change-Inside-a-Socially-Situated-Practice/Leeson/p/book/9781138670631 KEN LOACH, The Spirit of '45 (2017) - http://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/reviews-recommendations/film-week-spirit-45 HASSAN MAHAMDALLIE on William Morris - https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/newspape/isj2/1996/isj2-071/mahamdallie.htm WILLIAM MORRIS, News from Nowhere (1890) - https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/from-the-archive-blog/2011/may/17/guardian190-william-morris-news-from-nowhere HILARY WAINWRIGHT, A New Politics from the Left (2017) - https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/persuasive-points-on-new-politics-from-the-left

In this weeks episode of THE LIKES OF US podcast, dedicated to Working-Class Life, Art, Politics and Culture, your host, Neil Bradley offers up another conversation with his friend in the coffee shop in San Francisco, where they discuss politics, American domestic air travel, the buses, Chili-Palmer and the zoo! And with nothing to report on the home front, once again, it's Day 13 of the Great San Francisco Adventure with a trip to AT&T Park for a baseball game between the San Francisco Giants and the New York Mets. Don't stop believing!

As Labour Party leader, member of Winston Churchill’s governing coalition during the Second World War, and prime minister of the epochal postwar government that established the welfare state, Clement Attlee played a decisive role in the history of modern Britain. In Clement Attlee: The Man Who Made Modern Britain (Oxford University Press, 2017; published in the UK as Citizen Clem), John Bew recounts the life and career of this modest yet deeply patriotic individual who dedicated his life to improving the condition of his fellow Britons. The son of a successful lawyer, Attlee enjoyed a comfortable upbringing until a trip to London’s East End exposed him to the degree of poverty in which many Britons lived. Dedicating himself to social work, he lived in the London slums until the outbreak of war in 1914 led him to volunteer for service. After the war he was elected to the House of Commons, where he often was overshadowed by the more dynamic personalities among his colleagues. Despite this, he weathered the tumult created by the fracturing of the Labour Party in 1931 and, as one of his party’s few remaining leaders in Parliament, he was quickly catapulted into the top post. As Bew demonstrates, this was not just a matter of luck but a reflection of political skills that his opponents frequently underestimated and which made it possible for him to lead so successfully both a cabinet of ambitious rivals and a nation recovering from the most debilitating war in its history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Labour Party leader, member of Winston Churchill’s governing coalition during the Second World War, and prime minister of the epochal postwar government that established the welfare state, Clement Attlee played a decisive role in the history of modern Britain. In Clement Attlee: The Man Who Made Modern Britain (Oxford University Press, 2017; published in the UK as Citizen Clem), John Bew recounts the life and career of this modest yet deeply patriotic individual who dedicated his life to improving the condition of his fellow Britons. The son of a successful lawyer, Attlee enjoyed a comfortable upbringing until a trip to London’s East End exposed him to the degree of poverty in which many Britons lived. Dedicating himself to social work, he lived in the London slums until the outbreak of war in 1914 led him to volunteer for service. After the war he was elected to the House of Commons, where he often was overshadowed by the more dynamic personalities among his colleagues. Despite this, he weathered the tumult created by the fracturing of the Labour Party in 1931 and, as one of his party’s few remaining leaders in Parliament, he was quickly catapulted into the top post. As Bew demonstrates, this was not just a matter of luck but a reflection of political skills that his opponents frequently underestimated and which made it possible for him to lead so successfully both a cabinet of ambitious rivals and a nation recovering from the most debilitating war in its history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Labour Party leader, member of Winston Churchill’s governing coalition during the Second World War, and prime minister of the epochal postwar government that established the welfare state, Clement Attlee played a decisive role in the history of modern Britain. In Clement Attlee: The Man Who Made Modern Britain (Oxford University Press, 2017; published in the UK as Citizen Clem), John Bew recounts the life and career of this modest yet deeply patriotic individual who dedicated his life to improving the condition of his fellow Britons. The son of a successful lawyer, Attlee enjoyed a comfortable upbringing until a trip to London’s East End exposed him to the degree of poverty in which many Britons lived. Dedicating himself to social work, he lived in the London slums until the outbreak of war in 1914 led him to volunteer for service. After the war he was elected to the House of Commons, where he often was overshadowed by the more dynamic personalities among his colleagues. Despite this, he weathered the tumult created by the fracturing of the Labour Party in 1931 and, as one of his party’s few remaining leaders in Parliament, he was quickly catapulted into the top post. As Bew demonstrates, this was not just a matter of luck but a reflection of political skills that his opponents frequently underestimated and which made it possible for him to lead so successfully both a cabinet of ambitious rivals and a nation recovering from the most debilitating war in its history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Labour Party leader, member of Winston Churchill’s governing coalition during the Second World War, and prime minister of the epochal postwar government that established the welfare state, Clement Attlee played a decisive role in the history of modern Britain. In Clement Attlee: The Man Who Made Modern Britain (Oxford University Press, 2017; published in the UK as Citizen Clem), John Bew recounts the life and career of this modest yet deeply patriotic individual who dedicated his life to improving the condition of his fellow Britons. The son of a successful lawyer, Attlee enjoyed a comfortable upbringing until a trip to London’s East End exposed him to the degree of poverty in which many Britons lived. Dedicating himself to social work, he lived in the London slums until the outbreak of war in 1914 led him to volunteer for service. After the war he was elected to the House of Commons, where he often was overshadowed by the more dynamic personalities among his colleagues. Despite this, he weathered the tumult created by the fracturing of the Labour Party in 1931 and, as one of his party’s few remaining leaders in Parliament, he was quickly catapulted into the top post. As Bew demonstrates, this was not just a matter of luck but a reflection of political skills that his opponents frequently underestimated and which made it possible for him to lead so successfully both a cabinet of ambitious rivals and a nation recovering from the most debilitating war in its history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Labour Party leader, member of Winston Churchill's governing coalition during the Second World War, and prime minister of the epochal postwar government that established the welfare state, Clement Attlee played a decisive role in the history of modern Britain. In Clement Attlee: The Man Who Made Modern Britain (Oxford University Press, 2017; published in the UK as Citizen Clem), John Bew recounts the life and career of this modest yet deeply patriotic individual who dedicated his life to improving the condition of his fellow Britons. The son of a successful lawyer, Attlee enjoyed a comfortable upbringing until a trip to London's East End exposed him to the degree of poverty in which many Britons lived. Dedicating himself to social work, he lived in the London slums until the outbreak of war in 1914 led him to volunteer for service. After the war he was elected to the House of Commons, where he often was overshadowed by the more dynamic personalities among his colleagues. Despite this, he weathered the tumult created by the fracturing of the Labour Party in 1931 and, as one of his party's few remaining leaders in Parliament, he was quickly catapulted into the top post. As Bew demonstrates, this was not just a matter of luck but a reflection of political skills that his opponents frequently underestimated and which made it possible for him to lead so successfully both a cabinet of ambitious rivals and a nation recovering from the most debilitating war in its history.

At the end of the Second World War, the USA reshaped the world economy in its own interests. The acute economic problems facing great Britain due to the cost of the war were a matter of indifference to many US policy makers and large sections of the American public. When John Maynard Keynes, Britain's pre-eminent economist proposed that Britain seek a loan from the USA, tough negotiations followed which would have a profound effect on post war Britain's economy and society. Also, if you can spare a dime in the annual crowd funding drive, I'd be terrifically grateful: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/help-fund-the-explaining-history-podcast/x/13613771#/ See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Performance poet Hollie McNish has written a book and a series of poems about motherhood. Composer Emily Hall has been commissioned to write a childrens' opera for Hull 2017. Scientist Helen Pearson has researched and written about the longest runnning study of human development. Edwina Attlee is a writer with an interest in launderettes, sleeper trains, fire escapes, greasy spoons, postcards, and the working lives of women. She'll be sharing audio tales from the National Life Stories Archive at the British Library, where women talk about working lives spent on oil rigs, in steel plants, and a host of other places. Ailsa Grant Ferguson has studied Dorothy Leigh's 'Mother's Blessing', which was the bestselling book by a woman of the 17th century. They join Anne McElvoy for a programme for International Women's Day which looks at the ways in which everyday experiences in the lives of women feed into creativity. Helen Pearson is the author of The Life Project: The extraordinary story of 70,000 Ordinary Lives. Hollie McNish is the author of Nobody Told Me: The Poetry of Parenthood. You can find more on her website Holliepoetry.com Emily Hall's compositions include the operas Folie a Deux, Sante and a children's opera for Hull 2017. Song Cycles including Love Songs and Life Cycle and a whole range of compositions for chamber ensembles, string quartets, orchestras and soloists. http://www.emilyhall.co.uk/ Producer: Jane Thurlow

In this episode we will look at early leaders of the cold war. Who were they and what made them tick: Truman and Attlee.

In 1945, after the devastation of a long war across Asia, Britain's hold over her Indian empire was greatly weakened. The new Labour Government was notionally committed to Indian independence, but it was the inability of Britain to continue ruling and the development of India as a powerful new military force in the region that made independence an inevitability. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week we explore the effects of World War 2 ending. We see the Egyptian reaction to Attlee and the creation of Israel.

In 1945, at the end of the Second World War, the Labour Party swept to power on a mandate of social reform. Six years later, despite the creation of an almost universally popular National Health Service, the party was defeated in the 1951 election and spent 13 years in opposition. What explains their success and failure in one term in office? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This episode is a repeat of one first published in October 2014, and the reason is that it has been nominated for a James Beard Foundation Award. I'm utterly thrilled by the news, and gratified that more people have downloaded episodes and subscribed to the show. Strangely (at least to me) the original did not see huge renewed interest, which is why I thought it worthwhile repeating. If you've heard it, and don't feel like listening again, you could go and listen to one of the other two nominees, in the notes below. Being nominated is an immense honour. I won't know whether I have actually won until the award ceremony on 24 April. The original show notes:Citrus, thanks to what writer Helena Attlee calls their great “suggestibility,” confound the botanist and the shopper alike. What is the difference between a clementine and a mandarin? That was one of the few questions I didn’t ask Helena Attlee when we met recently to talk about citrus in Italy, the subject of her new book The Land Where Lemons Grow. And not just lemons. Attlee writes beautifully about all the citrus and all of Italy, from Lake Garda in the north to Palermo in the south. She covers not merely the tendency of citrus to interbreed and mutate, but also history and economics, culture, cooking and organised crime. Through it all runs a continuous thread that links the very difficulties of growing citrus productively to the desirability of the finished products, on which fortunes and entire communities were built. The Land Where Lemons Grow proves, as if it needed proving, that food provides a perfect lens through which to view the entire world, as a result of which I had to cut some choice sections from our conversation. That, however, has prompted me to try something new here, which will become apparent in a day or two as I also attempt to tidy up a bit here. Notes More about Helena Attlee at her website The other award nominees are Gravy and The Feed. Intro music by Podington Bear.

Institute of Historical Research 70 years since the 1945 Attlee Government Francis Beckett, Ian Birchall and Mike Sheridan Socialist History seminar series

Meritocracy, then and now. Laurie Taylor talks to Peter Hennessy, Attlee professor of contemporary British history at Queen Mary, University of London. How did meritocracy arise as a concept and has it ever been realised in practice given the persistence of notions of a British Establishment with control over access to the centres of power? They are joined by Danny Dorling, professor of Geography at the University of Oxford. Also, doctors' choice of desert island discs - what do they tell us about the possession of cultural capital? Ruth McDonald, professor of health science research at Manchester University, discusses the meaning of elite musical tastes. Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Citrus, thanks to what writer Helena Attlee calls their great “suggestibility,” confound the botanist and the shopper alike. What is the difference between a clementine and a mandarin? That was one of the few questions I didn’t ask Helena Attlee when we met recently to talk about citrus in Italy, the subject of her new book The Land Where Lemons Grow. And not just lemons. Attlee writes beautifully about all the citrus and all of Italy, from Lake Garda in the north to Palermo in the south. She covers not merely the tendency of citrus to interbreed and mutate, but also history and economics, culture, cooking and organised crime. Through it all runs a continuous thread that links the very difficulties of growing citrus productively to the desirability of the finished products, on which fortunes and entire communities were built. The Land Where Lemons Grow proves, as if it needed proving, that food provides a perfect lens through which to view the entire world, as a result of which I had to cut some choice sections from our conversation. That, however, has prompted me to try something new here, which will become apparent in a day or two as I also attempt to tidy up a bit here. Notes More about Helena Attlee at her website

This year's University College Clement Attlee Memorial Lecture will be given by Frances O'Grady, General Secretary of the TUC. Frances O'Grady has been an active trade unionist and campaigner all her working life. In 1994 Frances was appointed as TUC Campaigns Officer and ran campaigns for equal rights for part-timers and against low pay. In 1997, she was appointed to head up the New Unionism campaign and launched the TUC's Organising Academy. In January 2013 Frances became the General Secretary of the TUC, the first woman ever to hold this post. Fair pay remains a core ambition - she was on the Resolution Foundation's Commission on Living Standards, and has been a member of the Low Pay and the High Pay Commissions. Frances is a strong believer in protecting the public service ethos, opposes privatisation and leads the TUC campaign to save the NHS.

To the surprise of many, the 1945 general election led to the return of Britain's first Labour majority government. Labour's 1945 election manifesto declared that it was a socialist party and proud of it. The Attlee government created the modern welfare state and the National Health Service, and...

A lecture to mark the publication of Vernon Bogdanor's book based on the series of lectures delivered at Gresham College during 2006 and 2007, ...

Après la Seconde Guerre Mondiale, un large mouvement de décolonisation traversa l’Asie et l’Afrique. Dès 1947, c’est l’Inde, le “joyau” de l’empire britannique qui accède à l’indépendance.Attlee, Gandhi, Mountbatten, Nehru... les élèves font le point sur le déroulement des événements ayant abouti à l’indépendance, et expliquent les conséquences de celles-ci.Vous pourrez entendre dans cet épisode les archives sonores suivantes: “Soldier of Peace”, de Gandhi; discours radiodiffusé de Nehru, premier président indien, le 15 août 1947 (jour de l’indépendance).

The sound on this lecture is of a very low quality.We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.