The Great British Speeches

by Simon Heffer

This work is a collection of 50 speeches from every period of British history from the medieval era to the present and a fascinating dip-in history title that will both inspire readers and give them a greater understanding of British history.

Genres: History, Politics, Nonfiction

224 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2011

About the author

Simon James Heffer is an English historian, journalist, author and political commentator.

Reviews

[Andri · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fifty speeches - some good, some stirring, much waffle. But we can access most, if not all, of the speeches on line and Heffer's contribution is minimal.

A book club member chose this expecting to learn more about British history but it's a motley assortment and one of the speeches is lifted from Shakespeare's King Henry V! Having read it, I'm none the wiser as to why the author chose these 50 speeches as opposed to any others. He doesn't even tell readers whether they've been chosen to demonstrate a particular thesis, linguistic or political.

Another book club member thought this was an easy money-maker for the author, the kind of book some might give as a Christmas present.

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[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too many of these speeches are frankly boring, poorly written, and by the same type of GreatWhiteMan. I had hoped for more.
Still, it's a starting point.