Middleland: Dispatches from the Borders

by Rory Stewart

Rory Stewart spent nearly a decade as MP for Britain’s most rural constituency, Penrith and the Border. As he came to know and love this part of Cumbria, he found inspiration in the beauty of its landscape, its rugged history as a frontierland, and in the spirit of its people.

Drawing on pieces originally written for a local newspaper, Middleland is an urgent and inspiring portrait of rural Britain today – a place caught in tensions between farming and the natural world, between the need to preserve and to grow, between local and national politics – as well as a timeless evocation of the history, people and landscape of Cumbria.

These are stories of beauty and ingenuity, which also show us what a better politics might look like.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, Nature, Biography, History, Audiobook

9 pages, Audible Audio

Published October 30, 2025

About the author

Rory Stewart was born in Hong Kong and grew up in Malaysia. He served briefly as an officer in the British Army (the Black Watch), studied history and philosophy at Balliol College, Oxford and then joined the British Diplomatic Service. He worked in the British Embassy in Indonesia and then, in the wake of the Kosovo campaign, as the British Representative in Montenegro. In 2000 he took two years off and began walking from Turkey to Bangladesh. He covered 6000 miles on foot alone across Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Nepal -- a journey described in The Places in Between.

In 2003, he became the coalition Deputy Governor of Maysan and Dhi Qar -- two provinces in the Marsh Arab region of Southern Iraq. He has written for a range of publications including the New York Times Magazine, the London Review of Books, the Sunday Times, the Guardian, the Financial Times and Granta. In 2004, he was awarded the Order of the British Empire and became a Fellow of the Carr Centre at Harvard University. In 2006 he moved to Kabul, where he established the Turquoise Mountain Foundation.

In 2010 he was elected as a Conservative member of the British Parliament. In 2014 was elected chair of the Defence Select Committee. He served under David Cameron as Minister for the Environment from 2015 to 2016. He served as a minister throughout Theresa May’s government as Minister of State for International Development, Minister of State for Africa and Minister of State for Prisons. He ultimately joined the Cabinet and National Security Council as Secretary of State for International Development. After May announced she would be stepping down, Stewart stood as a candidate to be Leader of the Conservative Party and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the 2019 leadership contest. His campaign was defined by his unorthodox use of social media and opposition to a no-deal Brexit. He stated at the beginning of his campaign that he would not serve under Boris Johnson and when Johnson became prime minister, in July 2019, Stewart resigned from the cabinet.

On 3 October 2019 Stewart announced he had resigned from the Conservative Party and that he would stand down as an MP at the next general election. He initially put himself up to be an independent candidate in the 2021 London mayoral election but withdrew on 6 May 2020 on the grounds of the election being postponed due to COVID-19, saying he could not maintain the campaign so long against the big budgets of the Labour and Conservative campaigns. In September 2020 he became a fellow at Yale University, teaching politics and international relations.

Reviews

[Suzie Berendt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating history of Cumbria as well as thought provoking political messages. I especially liked the notion of how important local politics is, and how it can not only help at the individual level but can also transpire to national and international politics. This book made me fall in love with the Lake District even more!

[AmyAmyAmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

6/5 if only all MPs took this level of interest in their constituency!

[Julie Hudson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Penguin Random House for the advanced reading copy.

As a big Rory Stewart fan and dedicated follower of The Rest is Politics (and compiler of The Rest is Politics reading list on Bookshop.org (https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/the-res...), I even left my comfortable home in Herefordshire to go to Cumbria on the train to watch Rory in conversation with another of my favourite authors James Rebanks to talk about this book. It's fair to say expectation was high.

This is a collection of articles that Rory Stewart wrote for the Westmorland Gazette when he was MP for Penrith and the Borders and although most of the articles are around ten years old, the topics and issues that are raised in the articles are as relevant today as they were then.

Rory Stewart highlights that Cumbrians are victims and not beneficiaries of our tribal politics in Westminster, as indeed we all are. I agree with him that local autonomy and governance is crucial yet often conflicts with decisions made by central government. Another article comments on the fact that growth doesn't have to be about bigger and better, it can still be growth if successful small farms flourish and multiply.

It is a little Cumbria-centric and I did trawl through the first section on the history of the area a bit - it also feels a bit of a cop out just publishing a collection of essays that were written such a long time ago.

[Louie Bell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to this on some of my longer runs. Rory Stewart's paean to his adopted homeland of Cumbria (old Cumbric for 'our land') as an MP is evocative and wonderfully realised during his lengthy descriptions of the landscape and wildlife. One can't go away thinking that he didn't absolutely love his constituency and its inhabitants, a people of which he seems to have been anticipating to find a clear Cumbrian identity - but instead finds 'contradictory and totally improbable'.

Never again will I read (hear) the words 'small upland farms' as much as in this book, because it seems that he is the sole person in the entire government who is nostalgic about the people and their livelihoods that have existed for thousands of years on the slopes of Penrith and the Border. Sometimes his dedication to preserving these ancient livelihoods challenged my own beliefs around rewilding and habitat restoration, but by the end even this town boy felt deeply enraged at the loss of small pastoral living. I finished the book wanting to see the lands he describes myself, and wishing that we had more deep-thinking, serious and dedicated politicians like Rory Stewart.

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting insight into the mind of a passionate advocate for his area and, wider than that, for how we practice democracy in our country. Very readable and relatable, I enjoyed it. However ...
I wonder if people from outside the area (I live in the neighbouring constituency) will find it as engrossing
Many of the themes here were covered in Politics on the Edge, something Stewart does acknowledge.
The repetition of certain facts and themes gets a little irritating after a while.
There's a lot of white space in this book. The decision to start each 'letter' on a fresh page bulks the book out and perhaps makes it feel and seem like something more than it actually is - a publisher's decision?
Finally, a niggle this, whilst misspelling David Cameron's constituency as Whitney rather than Witney might be forgivable, talking of Reedsdale rather than Redesdale in Northumberland is perhaps less so.

Still, despite all this, worth a read.

[Chris Morris · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I started reading this I was wondering what the point of this book was supposed to be- a collection of abridged newspaper columns struck me as self-indulgent. But slowly I began to see this is as Stewarts tribute to his time representing an area which he obviously has a lot of affection for and feels a deep connection to.

It's comforting to think that there may be more MPs out there who are attempting to connect with their constituency in the same way- I certainly hope so.

The book is an insight into the life of an MP, the lives of those living in Penrith and the Border (as it was known), and I think the wider point being the disconnect between centralised government and local politics. The book does not offer much in the way of answers but I do not think that was the goal. I found it an interesting read moreso to hear about lives of people very different from mine and a nice tribute to some of the people working hard for their community.

3.5 stars.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of short articles and essays form a passionate paean to Cumbria as a whole and and, in particular, to the area which formed the now (disgracefully!) defunct constituency of Penrith and the Borders. Rory Stewart writes with clarity and insight about the rich, complex history of the county as a whole, as well as of the constituency he served so well during his time as its/my MP. He portrayed a comprehensive understanding the particular needs of rural communities and was always a wonderful advocate for them, more than any other MP I've known. He also had huge respect for local politics and was a keen supporter of various local initiatives, often becoming very actively involved in them ... just think how much better our country would be with more MPs like him!

[Nick Granger · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone with a lifelong affection for Cumbria and the Lake District and a growing understanding and respect for Rory Stewart, I really enjoyed this, but without those two things, frankly I think a reader might find this odd collection of abridged newspaper articles pretty pointless and maybe rather self-indulgent. If you have either of those things, there is real treasure in these pages - the whole is so much more than the individual parts here. You are left with not just a real sense of the history of Cumbria, but an insight into Stewart’s love for the place. Along the way there are strong and thought-provoking threads on the challenges of national vs local democracy and man’s continual impact on the landscape. Recommended with the above reservations.

[Darcy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like Rory Stewart, I too am ‘mesmerised’ by the different layers of history in any place, region or country. Many of these newspapers pieces have thoughtful reflections about the deeper histories he observed in Cumbria. Stewart’s insatiable curiosity is on display here. The anecdotes about his father illuminate all kinds of personal public and public matters. There are some particularly acute perceptions about service and empire, democracy and life matters. Very enjoyable and interesting read!

[Gordon Ironside · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having lived in the constituency for the first ten years of my life it brought back a lot of memories of a beautiful part of the country. My father worked for ADAS so knew many of the farmers and the hard work they had to make a living from the small farms.
I liked a lot of Rory Stewart's observations about the importance of local politics and democracy, when most decisions are made at a national level with too little thought about the impact of decisions on rural vs urban areas.

[Jonas Hirschi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I almost feel like I owe it to my favorite podcaster that I picked up this book. The structure makes it perfect bedtime reading – short chapters that are easy to sink into without feeling rushed.

The book introduces a very special region, one you gradually get to know and grow curious about. By the end, it feels like a place you’d like to visit someday.

[MR M W FAUST · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, and I was informed of things that I knew little about.
He writes very well but the dispatches were often somewhat repetitive.
He obviously has an abiding love for Cumbria and the Borders and would like to see the community continuing to carry on much as it has done for many, many years.
However we just have to accept that changes will happen, if we like it or not.

[WimD · Rating 4 out of 5]

Through a collection of letters Rory sketches an intimate picture of the history of Cumbria, the challenges of being an MP and above all his love for his constituency and its people. Very hard to put down. His energy, loyalty and commitment to various causes are contageous. Another great book from an extremely talented man.

[Carine Bambara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Different to politics on the edge, almost like a more interesting history book, I enjoyed learning about the history of Cumbria

[Kathleen Penrose · Rating 1 out of 5]

Recommended by Rory Stewart

[Aaron Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I understand very, very little of this strange little island.

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Want to come back to this one when have more tome to devote to it. Very interesting.

[Darcey Stickley]

good to read on a (cumbrian) walking holiday

[Michael G · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book made me think: did Rory Stewart run out of money? I'm not sure why he has written this, or rather, collated it from past articles. It is absolutely worth the 99p I paid for it on Kindle though. An interesting perspective on local issues from his former Lake District constituency, with its distinct identity and very strong sense of community.

[Lydia Rigby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting book and well written excerpts.

[James Walsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite it being a book of Rory Stewart’s letters to the local paper, the whole book hangs together well. Chapters precede with comment that draws the letters together in a coherent reflection on life as an MP. There’s fascinating views on rewilding and whether we should embrace our impact on the landscape, rather than apologetically turning into something so alien to human knowledge. He would be a fascinating walking companion!

[Archie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this collection of articles/ letters can be best summed up by the words of his mother included in the acknowledgements:

“an elegy to an ancient constituency which has now been abolished and to a vision of politics that is under threat everywhere”

Rory can really write and whilst some letter collections are sometimes a little underwhelming this is certainly not the case with Middleland.

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jan 6, 2018 p.100

[Martin Welsford · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant book. Great to read and a fun, and excellently stitched together walk through Cumbria and all its delights.

[Jim Bowen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rory Stewart is your typical old school British “conservative”. He has a respect for history, and how things used to be done. Where he differs is he is a supporter of the hyper local. This book looks at what used to be his constituency, through that lens.

The book isn’t one long continuous story. Stewart used to write a weekly article for the biggest local newspaper in the area, when he was MP. This book combines those articles, and groups them into areas that he thinks are worth exploring. The result is that he can repeat himself a little. The fact that Penrith had its own king, longer than it probably should have done, is mentioned a lot, along with the fact that that “country extended to Glasgow”, and the fact that the Romans needed a disproportionate number of troops to make the area stay settled.

The book isn’t one a decent read, and makes the point that empowering locals might be a good thing. It does have a rosy view of things, on occasion, that some might find infuriating.