Lessons in Diplomacy: Politics, Power and Parties

by Leigh Turner

Leigh Turner's witty globe-trotting adventure through one of the most intriguing careers a person can have offers astute reflections on Brexit, Russia’s War with Ukraine and the chaos of modern politics, shedding new light on the intricacies of modern statecraft, including what we all can learn from a good diplomat or ambassador.

Genres: Politics, International Relations, Nonfiction

256 pages, Hardcover

Published September 24, 2024

About the author

Leigh Turner is a former British ambassador to Ukraine and Austria. His career took him to Vienna, Moscow, Kyiv, Berlin, Hong Kong, Washington D.C., St Helena, Buenos Aires, Beijing, Tokyo, Samarkand, Istanbul and Las Vegas. In Berlin, he took four years off diplomacy to look after his two children and become a travel writer for “The Financial Times”.

Leigh's latest book is LESSONS IN DIPLOMACY: POLITICS, POWER AND PARTIES, published by Bristol University Press in September 2024. His other books include Berlin thriller BLOOD SUMMIT, Istanbul thriller PALLADIUM, speculative comedy thriller ETERNAL LIFE and the black comedy collection, SEVEN HOTEL STORIES.

Reviews

[Elaine Stock · Rating 5 out of 5]

With many global happenings and tensions, Lessons in Diplomacy was eye-opening. Leigh Turner does an excellent job of showing what a diplomat needs to know and accomplish every day, mostly in crisis mode. The book also points out that our times are not necessarily unique.

[J. Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Turner's latest book contains wonderfully organized chapters with delightful stories, provocative points and a wealth of decades of experience and observation. I especially enjoyed the interesting references and comparisons, often humourous. (eg. – to scene in Mitchell and Webb’s series Ambassadors, which I had just rewatched). A skillful and experienced author, Leigh Turner's relevant anecdotes might be introduced by opening sentences which many would consider fine enough to begin an entire book! For instance: “A grisly encounter with a fruit salad illustrates the enduring benefits of diplomatic etiquette.” Or: “If you think lifelong learning sounds dull, you’re doing it wrong.”
Some writings from his journals at the time prove prescient: when assisting in the organization of a visit of Charles and Diana, the Prince and Princess of Wales, to Vienna in 1986, he penned: ‘The interests of the press are usually in being where they are supposed not to be.’
If you are fascinated by other cultures, traditions, worlds, past decades ---and manners as well as mannerisms, you'll need this on your shelves!

[Terri Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know Leigh Turner’s excellent novels and am delighted to see he’s equally talented at non-fiction. Diplomacy is a tricky subject to present with insight and humour, but Turner achieves both. I thoroughly enjoyed a wade through 45 odd years of recent history from someone who either had a seat at the table or one an awful lot closer than the rest of us. His meticulous use of a journal over the years adds to both the recollections and the texture of the stories. The book was also a fascinating insight into the workings of the Foreign Office and those gifted individuals who work on our behalf overseas in places ranging from glamorous to dangerous to exotic. For anyone contemplating work in this sphere, Lessons in Diplomacy is as honest a read as you could ever hope to encounter. For the remainder of us, it’s a fine read.

[T Munro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lesson in Diplomacy is an absolute must read for anyone interested in modern global affairs and geopolitics. Broken down into dip-into sections, and related with an expert and often wry eye, it covers the vagaries and challenges of international diplomacy. Leigh Turner achieves what, for me, is the holy grail of non-fiction writing, a book that is insightful, informative, but also highly entertaining

[Iulia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leigh Turner’s book introduces you to the seas of a career diplomat’s professional life.

From sound analysis of existing international disputes to professional anecdotes about how to navigate a career in diplomacy, this book is fit for anyone from IR aficionados to anyone curious about the art and science of diplomacy.

[Caitlin Miller :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leigh Turner’s book is an engaging and realistic look at the highs and lows of diplomacy, offering practical lessons that go far beyond foreign affairs. Definitely a recommended read for anyone interested in international relations and diplomacy!

[Jennifer McGill-Sadera · Rating 5 out of 5]

As we go through life, we learn a lot of things, but the lessons are rarely as enticing and exciting as those shared by former British Ambassador Leigh Turner in his most recent release, Lessons In Diplomacy: Politics, Power and Parties. As a diplomat who led posts in Austria, Ukraine, and Turkey, Turner’s storied career exploits are the stuff of glamorous fantasies. Except that they are all true stories.

Whether being chased by a wild boar in Vienna, discovering in the midst of a dance party in Istanbul that a coup was in progress, navigating the intricacies of Brexit, tackling terrorism and chasing spies across the globe, or consulting the ever-present card in his wallet--the First 15 minutes crisis leader checklist--this former diplomat draws from a wide variety of unusual experiences to relay what a life in Her Majesty’s Service is really like.

The knowledge gleaned over decades of diplomatic interactions is both exotic (not many of us will ever have to navigate the experience of being interrogated by the media) and pragmatic (there is a chapter on building vital career skills, including recruiting other diplomats and matching people to jobs). I found this mash-up of the mundane and the magical fascinating!

The vast number of interesting people a diplomat encounters is also intriguing. Leigh Turner rubbed shoulders with everyone from Boris Johnson and Prince (now King) Charles to Vivienne Westwood and the band members of Deep Purple. He befriended other diplomats the world over and visited places I had to look up on the map. Yet the core values he promotes—building expertise in your field, focusing on people, and loving what you do—translate to happiness, whatever your career choice. A wildly entertaining read as well as a primer for creating a career in or out of the spotlight. I highly recommend!

[Jinny Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating insight into things I never really understood before!

I'm only partway through this but wanted to get a review written quickly to help spread awareness of this fascinating fly-on-wall insight into the life of a diplomat - or, more importantly, the easy-to-follow explanations and peeled-back, honest observations of the lead-up to ongoing conflict in today's world. I have to confess I didn't really know what a diplomat did, or have any understanding of why Russia decided to pick a fight with Ukraine, or how the disaster that is Brexit actually came about but in the pages of this book, Leigh Turner, in clear, jargon-free, accessible language laced with humour and personal anecdotes has not only explained, but also totally immersed me into his world. Turner's writing skills shine through and bring a wonderful readability to what, until now, has been 'stuff I should know but couldn't get my head around'. I'm reading this on my Kindle, but will buy a physical copy for my husband, as I know he will enjoy this too. Above all, I feel immensely educated by reading this book and suggest it to anyone who wants to better understand what's going on in the world today and in our recent (in my lifetime) history. Iron Curtain? Check. Berlin Wall? Check. Falklands? Check. Bojo? Check. Meeting the queen? Check? Running out of petrol in the depths of Russian winter? Surviving terrorist attacks? Tiny islands in the Pacific I'd never even heard of? It's all here.

(BTW, I've read Leigh Turner's fiction before, which is how I ended up reading this, and they are good too!)

[Tamas F · Rating 5 out of 5]

We may say that doctors, diplomats, soldiers and priests are born; while professors,
ambassadors, generals and bishops are made.
“Lessons in Diplomacy” sets out the Confessions & Teachings of a Cambridge-
educated, born-to-be Ambassador. A peaceful Bruce Lockhart, minus the Russian
revolution of 1917, set against the turbulent decades bracketing the millennium. We
get a Bayeux-tapestry-like presentation of diplomatic games from the 1980s
onwards: a vertigo-producing territorial sweep from the Falkland Islands through
Moscow, Kyiv, Istanbul to Hong Kong and return. It’s a fast read: from what we know
of the rules of the game called diplomacy, you can’t help feeling that there are 10
untold stories for each of Turner’s brilliantly composed anecdotes. We get a very
British, at places tongue-in-cheek but always honest picture of world politics, where
even his home ground is not spared witty criticism. I highly recommend this volume
to all youngsters with an eye on a career in politics or diplomacy, or a desire to
understand recent history.
For those, like me, who might be considered contemporaries of the author, this is
also a tutorial in how the events of Central Europe are seen from above, by cool
minds with much more information than the average mortal.
Prof Tamás F Molnar PhD DSc FETS
( + MA(hist) )

[Nan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A friend recommended this and I’m glad she did. Former British diplomat Leigh Turner has had an enviably diverse, entertaining 40-some-year career in foreign service, and he clearly made the most of it. In writing both lively and wise, he describes parties, meetings, and crises in world cities and remote islands you’ve heard of -- and some you probably haven’t -- that made me wish I’d been a fly on the wall, and reminded me that a comfortable American life has its limitations. (A spotty knowledge of world geography being one.) This is a Brit who writes with humor and engaging modesty about world events—recent and ancient—and of lessons learned from famous political figures to embassy staff and local natives. During postings in Hong Kong, Istanbul, Kyiv, Austria and Moscow, he describes life lessons he’s been lucky enough to survive with the air of someone who’s enjoyed the process immensely--and the enjoyment is contagious. If you can’t travel to Britain’s far-flung outposts (and even if you can), read this book. It’s the next best thing to being there, by a guide who won’t steer you wrong.

[Liz Webb · Rating 5 out of 5]

If ever there was a time for a book about diplomacy, it is now! But this timely book isn’t a weighty establishment tome expounding dry theories, it’s a witty, thought-provoking memoir from someone who has juggled the complex pressures of real-life diplomacy, a former UK Ambassador from Ukraine, Turkey and Austria. This excellent book lifts the lid on what is a simultaneously difficult and fascinating job and the many skills it requires to perform it. To quote from the book: ‘If you’re after concrete examples of how diplomats really work with spies, how immunity allows killers to escape justice, how Russia broke up the Soviet Union then nursed its resentment at the consequences, or what we can learn from a good diplomat or ambassador – read on…’

[Ann Sei Lin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lessons in Diplomacy is an interesting and accessible read for anyone dipping their toes into memoir. I found it fascinating the number of world-changing events one could witness first-hand. More than an interesting account of one's globe-trotting experiences, however, it's also a very boots-on-the-ground, frank look at the lives and experiences (good, bad and ugly) of those in diplomatic service. A very enjoyable read.

[Laura Kinhansa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Insightful book, full of zest for life and fascinating accounts of first-hand experiences in the realm of diplomacy. Informative and entertaining.

[Sam Goodman · Rating 1 out of 5]

Largely waffle