“I did not enter politics out of philanthropy but rather as an extension of my own annoyance and resentment at having inherited freedoms infringed by power-crazed idiots spouting gibberish. It gives me particular pleasure, then, to know that we have empowered many others and caused them too to doubt the authority whereby such people presume to grant us rights where we can manage perfectly well with innate freedoms.”
In an age of colourless bureaucrats, Nigel Farage is a politician you are unable to ignore, causing controversy and admiration in equal measure. What cannot be denied is the effect he has had on British and European politics. A fun-loving iconoclast whose motto is “work hard and play harder”, Farage’s charismatic leadership and determination to battle the forces of anti-libertarianism have made him a Robin Hood figure to many, and propelled his party, UKIP, into a position of real power in the country.
A passionate advocate of living life to the full, Farage’s journey into politics has been fuelled by a desire to resist unnecessary authority. He resents being told what to do, especially by faceless bureaucrats in Europe.
Told with Farage’s customary wit and humour, Fighting Bull is a thoroughly engaging look at an extraordinary life, including the spills – a near fatal car accident and surviving testicular cancer – and the thrills – a boisterous boyhood in London and a career as a City trader, to battling bureaucracy in Europe and defending the nation’s hard-won freedoms against erosion from without and within.
His account of his journey into the Brussels labyrinth is compelling. The book tells of loyalty and treachery in his own ranks and of his struggle to overcome media preconceptions. It features sometimes hilarious and often terrifying encounters with a stellar supporting cast, including Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, Nicolas Sarkozy,José Manuel Barroso, and UKIP’s short-lived, silver-gilt mascot – Robert Kilroy-Silk. In September 2009 Nigel Farage announced he would stand against John Bercow, the newly elected Speaker of the House of Commons, in his Buckingham constituency in the next election, despite a modern convention that the speaker is not challenged for re-election. Fighting Bull is a candid, colourful life story by a fascinating and controversial character. It also shows that one fearless, determined individual can still make a difference.