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Number 10
Crisis in Africa... and a crisis in the Cabinet. A head-on clash between the Foreign Secretary and the Minister of Defence. The cunning and persuasive Prime Minister walks a tightrope for six electric days... and someone has to lose!
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1966
About the author
William Clark
475 books9 followersWilliam Donaldson Clark was a prominent British journalist and public servant who blended a career in writing with high-level politics.
He was born on 28 July 1916, the son of John McClare Clark and Marion Jackson. He was educated at the independent Oundle School and graduated from Oriel College, Oxford with a First Class degree in modern history. He later attended the University of Chicago in 1938 as a Commonwealth Fellow. During World War II he worked doing public relations for Britain in the United States.
He became the London editor of Encyclopædia Britannica in 1946, a post he left for journalism in 1949 and later he was a foreign affairs correspondent for The Observer (1950–1955), and wrote political novels, including 'Number 10' (1966) and 'Cataclysm: The North-South Conflict of 1987' (1984).
He was also the first director of the Overseas Development Institute (1960–1968) and later served as Vice President for External Affairs at the World Bank (1974–1980).
In addition, he was the press secretary to Prime Minister Anthony Eden from 1955 to 1956, eventually resigning in protest over the Suez Canal Crisis.
He died of liver cancer at his home in Cuxham, Oxfordshire and was survived by his two brothers, Kenneth and Nicholas.
Librarian's note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. This is William^Clark.
He was born on 28 July 1916, the son of John McClare Clark and Marion Jackson. He was educated at the independent Oundle School and graduated from Oriel College, Oxford with a First Class degree in modern history. He later attended the University of Chicago in 1938 as a Commonwealth Fellow. During World War II he worked doing public relations for Britain in the United States.
He became the London editor of Encyclopædia Britannica in 1946, a post he left for journalism in 1949 and later he was a foreign affairs correspondent for The Observer (1950–1955), and wrote political novels, including 'Number 10' (1966) and 'Cataclysm: The North-South Conflict of 1987' (1984).
He was also the first director of the Overseas Development Institute (1960–1968) and later served as Vice President for External Affairs at the World Bank (1974–1980).
In addition, he was the press secretary to Prime Minister Anthony Eden from 1955 to 1956, eventually resigning in protest over the Suez Canal Crisis.
He died of liver cancer at his home in Cuxham, Oxfordshire and was survived by his two brothers, Kenneth and Nicholas.
Librarian's note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. This is William^Clark.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
October 8, 2012
Number 10 is an interesting look at the (supposed) happenings in 10 Downing Street during a political crisis. It's an old British book, so it's not half as exciting as modern American thrillers but steadily plods along with crisp language and pretty words.
January 31, 2026
As a one-time advisor to Sir Anthony Eden at the time of Suez, William Clark is ideally placed to write a political novel that centres on central Africa and his attention to detail both in the political setting in and around Whitehall and his portrayal of the upheavals that can happen in Africa reflect his knowledge.
The Prime Minister is the principal character in the story as he tries to keep control of his warring cabinet ministers who fall out between themselves about the political situation in the fictional Zambabia. What should they do about it? They just can't agree and a wavering Prime Minister does not always help smooth troubled waters.
Much of the action, if it can be called that because most of the story takes place in arguments and debates, centres around the offices in Whitehall with the Foreign Secretary and the Defence Secretary playing the main two quarrelling parties. As such there is much about civil service protocol and this resonates with me after my time in Whitehall (indeed if it weren't for this aspect of the novel, I would definitely have given it just one star). Indeed one of the issues that I had on my arrival in HM Treasury was receiving letters introduced by Dear Wolstenholme, which I thought impolite having been brought up to prefix the surname at the beginning of a letter with a Mr/Mrs or Miss (no Ms in my youth!). Well, the author in discussing protocol within Whitehall happened to mention that the old fashioned Foreign Office/civil service method of writing Dear surname was coming to an end. This (1966) ties in with my time there which began in 1963 and at last I felt justified in my earlier views. Incidentally I did not follow them myself because I always (as a junior) sent my letters to the typing pool without any Dear and I always wrote it by hand so I could tailor it to how well I knew the correspondent.
As for the African problems they (rather topically at this time) are affected by the involvement of the Chinese and this does not help the overall situation. And so it goes on over a period of six days at the end of which neither Birtwell or Fleming (the secretaries primarily involved) could agree because they were men of different natures and whatever arguments were put forward, the gap between them could not be bridged. And so it all ends .... Well, enough said.
The Prime Minister is the principal character in the story as he tries to keep control of his warring cabinet ministers who fall out between themselves about the political situation in the fictional Zambabia. What should they do about it? They just can't agree and a wavering Prime Minister does not always help smooth troubled waters.
Much of the action, if it can be called that because most of the story takes place in arguments and debates, centres around the offices in Whitehall with the Foreign Secretary and the Defence Secretary playing the main two quarrelling parties. As such there is much about civil service protocol and this resonates with me after my time in Whitehall (indeed if it weren't for this aspect of the novel, I would definitely have given it just one star). Indeed one of the issues that I had on my arrival in HM Treasury was receiving letters introduced by Dear Wolstenholme, which I thought impolite having been brought up to prefix the surname at the beginning of a letter with a Mr/Mrs or Miss (no Ms in my youth!). Well, the author in discussing protocol within Whitehall happened to mention that the old fashioned Foreign Office/civil service method of writing Dear surname was coming to an end. This (1966) ties in with my time there which began in 1963 and at last I felt justified in my earlier views. Incidentally I did not follow them myself because I always (as a junior) sent my letters to the typing pool without any Dear and I always wrote it by hand so I could tailor it to how well I knew the correspondent.
As for the African problems they (rather topically at this time) are affected by the involvement of the Chinese and this does not help the overall situation. And so it goes on over a period of six days at the end of which neither Birtwell or Fleming (the secretaries primarily involved) could agree because they were men of different natures and whatever arguments were put forward, the gap between them could not be bridged. And so it all ends .... Well, enough said.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews