The centenary of Tony Benn’s birth in 2025 is an opportunity to reflect on the life and legacy of one of Britain’s most influential political figures. Known for his unwavering principles and dedication to democracy, Benn left a profound impact on the nation’s political landscape. Here, his friend Jad Adams shares personal insights into Benn’s humour, values and the enduring relevance of his vision in today’s world.
When and how did you meet Tony Benn?
My first job was as a newspaper reporter. In the early 1980s, I was working for Fleet Street titles, so I met a lot of people who were in the news and Tony Benn was one of them. However, my close association with him came in the late ’80s when I approached him to say I would like to write a biography.
How would you sum up Benn in three words?
Honest, articulate, pipe-smoking.
What is your favourite memory of him?
At Tony’s seventieth birthday party in the House of Commons, with all his friends and family there, he made a speech in which he talked about growing up around Westminster and how he could still remember running down the road when he was five thinking how silly he had been when he was four. Now, he said, he stood there at seventy years old, thinking how silly he had been at sixty-nine.
What is a common misconception of Benn and why do you think this is?
People still sometimes link Benn’s vision of socialism with the state socialism of other countries. I think they do that because they are unaware of the facts or are deliberately obtuse. In fact, the roots of socialism are deeper in Britain than anywhere else. Karl Marx came to Britain because there was already a flourishing socialist tradition rooted in the trade unions and co-operatives. Benn did more than anyone else to celebrate the history of the Peasants’ Revolt, the Levellers, the Chartists and others of this radical tradition.
How is Benn’s influence still felt today?
In many ways, from the colourful stamps on our letters (which he instigated when he was Postmaster General) to the fact that we have broken away from the EU. He was, at an early stage, the only one who argued for a referendum on our continued membership of the EU, which eventually happened in 1975. As our membership had been confirmed by that referendum, leaving the EU could only be achieved by another one, hence the 2016 referendum where the Leave side made ample use of quotes from Benn (who had died two years previously).
What do you think Benn would make of Starmer’s Labour government?
He would celebrate the positive actions of the government, like taking railways back into public ownership after the failure of private enterprise, but would be critical of their lack of ambition to bring about real change in the country. He would support the Labour Party, however, as he always did; it is the right wing which splits from the party when they don’t get their own way, not the left.
Who would you like to play Benn in a biopic?
I wouldn’t have thought this before I saw A Very English Scandal, but Hugh Grant did such an excellent job as Jeremy Thorpe in that series that I would suggest him. Thorpe was a parliamentary colleague of Benn’s, of course. I think Grant would bring the right mix of steely determination and mischievousness to a portrayal of Benn.
The new, updated edition of Tony Benn: A Biography is out 13 February.
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