Outside, Inside, Diaries: Volume 5, 2003–2005
By Alastair Campbell
In the fifth volume of his explosive Diaries, Alastair Campbell, former Director of Communications and Strategy for Tony Blair, picks up in 2003 on the day after he ‘left’ Downing Street. As Lord Hutton prepares to publish his report and the Blair–Brown relationship becomes increasingly fractured, we soon learn that Campbell’s involvement in politics and strategy for the Labour government has barely abated.
While providing a fascinating and truly unique point of view of recent political history, Campbell also writes frankly about his continuing battle with mental health issues and trying to achieve a balance between work and family as he is pulled in multiple directions.
By Adrian Phillips
The actions taken by King Edward VIII are scrutinised in this behind-the-scenes exposé of his intimate relationship with American socialite Mrs Wallis Simpson. Outraged at the prospect of Simpson’s possible accession to the throne, the government orchestrated a plot to keep the King focused on the job at hand.
Despite their efforts, the royal abdication crisis of 1936 became one of the biggest scandals to face Britain in the past century. Adrian Phillips follows the slow decline and subsequent abdication of the King during a phase of erratic ideas and unreliable behaviour, despite desperate intervention from those in positions of power.
By Owen Bennett
On 23 June 2016, the people of Britain exercised their democratic right and voted to leave the European Union. With his behind-the-scenes access, Owen Bennett brings the reader into the Vote Leave camp, and into the inner circle of politicians who were keen to change Britain for what they thought was the greater good.
The book reveals the feuds between the Tory ‘posh boys’ and the toxic hardliners, as well as the civil war within Nigel Farage’s UKIP. You won’t want to miss this scoop on the most topical talking point in British politics this year.
Power and Glory: France’s Secret Wars with Britain and America, 1945–2016
By Roger Howard
In Power and Glory, Roger Howard investigates the tension between France, Britain and America over the past half-century.
Using archive material and quotes from interviews with authoritative diplomatic sources, secret missions by the French are revealed, including conducting a counter-espionage exercise in Madagascar, providing assistance to the Argentines during the Falklands War and fighting a proxy war with Britain in Nigeria. These anecdotes highlight and explain the tensions and relationships between France and the two fellow world powers to date.
By Sohrab Ahmari
Holding up a mirror to the Western world, Sohrab Ahmari demonstrates his qualms with the contemporary art world through invigorating and thought-provoking prose. He argues that where there was once a focus on promoting truth and freedom, contemporary art has now become obsessed with the identity politics of race, gender, privilege, power and sexuality.
Bringing to light the issue of politicisation of the arts, this latest addition to the Provocations series will make you delve deeper into your philosophical thoughts next time you find yourself in a gallery, theatre or museum.
By Iqbal Wahhab
‘Charity sucks because business does it better.’
A society evolving into a post-philanthropy era is touted as a new dawn for social entrepreneurs to discover new ways to solve problems. Iqbal Wahhab slams the myth that taxes produce a welfare state to fix problems. Instead, the way businesses expand through success provides a more sustainable and effective framework that charities should replicate in order to provide hope and faith for the people who need them most.
By John Sutherland
It seems the principle to ‘respect your elders’ has been overlooked in recent years. John Sutherland, now 77 years old, breaks the taboo over talking about the neglectful and indifferent attitudes to the elderly.
It is estimated that by 2020, one in five Britons will be pensioners and living a longer retirement than ever before. John Sutherland spells out why this may not necessarily be a good thing for them, with the elderly now considered a problem to solve rather than a benefit to British society.
By Arron Banks
Shocked at the status quo of Westminster politics, Arron Banks invested £8 million of his own money into Leave.EU in an attempt to appeal to the ordinary people of Britain.
Brexit was the topic everyone wanted to talk about and Banks’s anti-establishment attitude was clearly a refreshing change for those who wanted Britain to leave the European Union. Arron Banks was able to ruffle the feathers of Posh Spice, NASA and Nigel Farage and meet Donald Trump and the Queen along the way. The Bad Boys of Brexit is his unique perspective on the referendum campaign.
S
ummer Madness
By Harry Mount
The three chilling weeks following Britain’s exit from the European Union devastated the political landscape as we knew it. The Brexit vote shook the Tories and Labour and divided the country.
Harry Mount reveals how the biggest democratic exercise in the history of modern Britain resulted in Brexit being named a ‘mass murderer’ which ‘kills everything it touches’. With key appearances from Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage, Summer Madness leaves no stone unturned in an attempt to understand the aftershocks of 23 June 2016.