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Taken As Red: The ‘must-read’ first account of Labour’s ascent to power and time in government, as revealed by those involved
The inside story behind the most seismic election in a generation
In Taken As Red acclaimed political journalist Anushka Asthana takes us behind the scenes of the 2024 general election campaign.
As the political landscape undergoes a seismic shift, this gripping account provides an unprecedented insider’s perspective on the inner workings of Keir Starmer’s Labour and Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives, and the events of this high-stakes electoral contest as it unfolded.
With unparalleled access to key players and exclusive insights, it delves into the strategic decisions, campaign dynamics and unexpected twists that defined the election. From the battle bus to the corridors of power, Asthana analyses just how the result came about. Was it evidence of Labour’s strategic brilliance or the inevitable result of a spiralling decline of trust in the Tories? And what of Reform’s role?
Lively, analytical and compelling, Taken As Red reveals the calculated gambles and innovative strategies at play, and the people behind them. And in doing so, it looks forward as well as back.
In Taken As Red acclaimed political journalist Anushka Asthana takes us behind the scenes of the 2024 general election campaign.
As the political landscape undergoes a seismic shift, this gripping account provides an unprecedented insider’s perspective on the inner workings of Keir Starmer’s Labour and Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives, and the events of this high-stakes electoral contest as it unfolded.
With unparalleled access to key players and exclusive insights, it delves into the strategic decisions, campaign dynamics and unexpected twists that defined the election. From the battle bus to the corridors of power, Asthana analyses just how the result came about. Was it evidence of Labour’s strategic brilliance or the inevitable result of a spiralling decline of trust in the Tories? And what of Reform’s role?
Lively, analytical and compelling, Taken As Red reveals the calculated gambles and innovative strategies at play, and the people behind them. And in doing so, it looks forward as well as back.
352 pages, Paperback
First published September 26, 2024
32 people are currently reading
139 people want to read
About the author
Anushka Asthana
1 bookAnushka Asthana (b. 1980) is an English journalist, television presenter and author. She is the US editor for Channel 4 News, having previously been the deputy Political Editor of ITV News.
She was born in Scunthorpe and raised in Stalybridge, Greater Manchester. Her parents, both doctors, moved to the United Kingdom from New Delhi, India in the 1970s.[2] Asthana attended the private school Manchester High School for Girls and studied Economics at St. John's College, Cambridge.
She was born in Scunthorpe and raised in Stalybridge, Greater Manchester. Her parents, both doctors, moved to the United Kingdom from New Delhi, India in the 1970s.[2] Asthana attended the private school Manchester High School for Girls and studied Economics at St. John's College, Cambridge.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
October 30, 2024
detailed and informative look at the 2024 general elections with events leading up to it with Labour defeat in 2019 on brexit. enjoyed reading this book.
January 16, 2026
This is a well-researched, albeit brief, history of the Starmer project and the 2024 election. It’s smoothly written, and the narrative moves along perfectly well, but it sometimes lacks detail. It’s an interesting guide to the personalities involved in the Starmer team, but I would have thought that if you’re buying this book, you probably know a few details about Morgan McSweeney and Pat McFadden already. Nevertheless, it’s a very strong introduction to the topic.
October 28, 2024
A brilliant insider account of the turbulent times in the lead up to the 2024 election campaign, with insights into both the Conservative and Labour camps and with first-hand access to the key individuals involved.
Asthana offers prescient analysis alongside the narrative, allowing the reader to understand the reasons why Labour were able to win the election by taking a long-duree approach to the campaign.
Overall a fantastic read which did much to highlight the deep-rooted issues faced by the Tories, whilst also dispelling the myth that Labour only won due to their opponents’ weaknesses by demonstrating their lengthy preparations and ruthless strategy.
Asthana offers prescient analysis alongside the narrative, allowing the reader to understand the reasons why Labour were able to win the election by taking a long-duree approach to the campaign.
Overall a fantastic read which did much to highlight the deep-rooted issues faced by the Tories, whilst also dispelling the myth that Labour only won due to their opponents’ weaknesses by demonstrating their lengthy preparations and ruthless strategy.
October 8, 2024
Balanced (without bias)
An excellent read. In everyday language we can all understand. A non biased study of Labour and Starmers 2024 election victory. I found every page interesting and informative
An excellent read. In everyday language we can all understand. A non biased study of Labour and Starmers 2024 election victory. I found every page interesting and informative
October 15, 2024
Very insightful, good analysis, enjoyed a lot
January 5, 2025
Last year i got interested in the British political scene and the election called for last summer as our political situation over here was a dumpster fire. I started by reading a biography of Keir Starmer and listening to The Rest is Politics, a podcast with former Tory and Laborites, which is how I heard about this book. it was not available on the US so i ordered from Blackwell’s in England. The book was interesting and enlightening, providing a background and history of the modern day Labour party that goes far beyond what was portrayed in the Keir Starmer biography (and I came away from the biography greatly admiring Starmer from a worning/middle class family and state school to Leeds U, Oxford, a career as an international human rights lawyer and then as chief prosecutor of the UK prior to becoming a politician) . The machinations related to Starmer’s assumption of the position as Labour leader were unknown to me and not covered in the other book. The author clearly knows her subject. This is a terrific book and it stopped short of being 5 stars only because of my own lack of knowledge about the details of British politics- in some sections the author talked about people and events assuming knowledge that i didn’t have. But I’m working in acquiring more knowledge about the British system and this book provided a lot of key background.
February 13, 2025
A creditably even-handed, fast-paced and well-sourced account of everything from the last few months of Jeremy Corbyn's leadership, right up to the first days of Keir Starmer's Labour government, this crams a lot of information and events into a short, readable narrative.
As an ITV political correspondent, Asthana includes the (vital to the story) big events happing on the blue team as well - most notably the chaos and Covid-rule breaking of de Pfeffel's government, the human-sized, lettuce-scented epic fail of Liz Truss and the desperate flailings of Rishi who, it turns out, definitely wasn't ready.
That Labour were going to win the 2024 election was obvious for a long, long time but this book reveals plenty of detail about just how the landslide came about. Asthana writes clearly, and convincingly about just how fragile a majority it could still be, given just how much the 2024 vote was a 'punish the Tories at all costs' operation by the electorate.
If anything, my biggest critique is that by cramming in so much, important events don't really get the space, or the detail they deserve. While Asthana writes about how damaging the Downing Street parties were to the Tories' reputation, she doesn't manage to get across just how deep and widespread the anger was - right up to Tory backbenchers standing up in the Commons and laying into Johnson to his face (as former Newcastle-under-Lyme MP Aaron Bell did).
But this is largely a book about Keir Starmer and his mission to drag the Labour party back from Corbynite sanctimony to actually winning elections. It's not always been a pretty sight and even just a few months into his term, the picture of a driven, committed, upright and largely decent (if ruthless) man, that Asthana paints, is looking tarnished already.
Asthana's account of the 2029 election might be one to look forward to.
As an ITV political correspondent, Asthana includes the (vital to the story) big events happing on the blue team as well - most notably the chaos and Covid-rule breaking of de Pfeffel's government, the human-sized, lettuce-scented epic fail of Liz Truss and the desperate flailings of Rishi who, it turns out, definitely wasn't ready.
That Labour were going to win the 2024 election was obvious for a long, long time but this book reveals plenty of detail about just how the landslide came about. Asthana writes clearly, and convincingly about just how fragile a majority it could still be, given just how much the 2024 vote was a 'punish the Tories at all costs' operation by the electorate.
If anything, my biggest critique is that by cramming in so much, important events don't really get the space, or the detail they deserve. While Asthana writes about how damaging the Downing Street parties were to the Tories' reputation, she doesn't manage to get across just how deep and widespread the anger was - right up to Tory backbenchers standing up in the Commons and laying into Johnson to his face (as former Newcastle-under-Lyme MP Aaron Bell did).
But this is largely a book about Keir Starmer and his mission to drag the Labour party back from Corbynite sanctimony to actually winning elections. It's not always been a pretty sight and even just a few months into his term, the picture of a driven, committed, upright and largely decent (if ruthless) man, that Asthana paints, is looking tarnished already.
Asthana's account of the 2029 election might be one to look forward to.
October 27, 2024
On the one hand it's a creditable account from someone with a huge source book and privileged access to the people who shape our lives. On the other hand it is a blood boiling confirmation that our lives are shaped by elitists, sociopaths and power-mad political animals so disconnected from our reality that a political journalist appears to find nothing alarming about relating stories of political analysts and number crunchers constructing laser guided computer modelled election campaigns designed to give the IMPRESSION of caring simply in order to win. Actually carrying out the manifesto pledges and promises appears to be completely secondary or an afterthought, if we're lucky.
The problem for these cash-in political books is that they date very badly very quickly; Sue Gray, herein given paragraphs of effusive praise, has already become last week's old news.
Even so, there's much to chew over; perhaps the most important thing to take from this is that for the past two decades, and for the foreseeable future, most of our political class don't actually care about the electorate they're supposed to represent. Increasingly it is the army of advisors and think tanks, political scientists and analysts, not the mention the big money donors who are running the country and shaping their own fortunes. The electorate are nothing more than collateral damage that has to be lied to in order to manipulate what's left of our 'democracy'. And most of it couldn't be achieved without the tacit involvement of the mainstream media.
The problem for these cash-in political books is that they date very badly very quickly; Sue Gray, herein given paragraphs of effusive praise, has already become last week's old news.
Even so, there's much to chew over; perhaps the most important thing to take from this is that for the past two decades, and for the foreseeable future, most of our political class don't actually care about the electorate they're supposed to represent. Increasingly it is the army of advisors and think tanks, political scientists and analysts, not the mention the big money donors who are running the country and shaping their own fortunes. The electorate are nothing more than collateral damage that has to be lied to in order to manipulate what's left of our 'democracy'. And most of it couldn't be achieved without the tacit involvement of the mainstream media.
December 2, 2024
Hot taken: Anoushka Asthana is a welcome counterbalance to the boys’ brigade vibe of ITV’s political coverage, even if it’s a struggle to make her voice heard on occasion when round the podcast table with Peston, Tom Bradby, Shehab Khan et al. Taken As Red is something of an as-it-happens account of the causes and course of the general election, and a useful reminder of the years of chaos we’ve recently experienced. It falls somewhat short of thrilling reading unless you’re a full-on spad, and some of the revelations from sources quoted struggle to reach the status of ‘quite interesting’, but its value may be more in years to come when, looking back, people can wonder ‘were we really like that?’
March 22, 2025
Interesting, detailed, well written and informative account of the 2024 General Election largely from the perspective of Labour's win. It took me a while to read!
It also covers the Conservative government's journey in its last few leadership iterations, through the Partygate debacle and onwards to the election from their perspective.
It's a cast of thousands, or so it feels as the names arrive as you read, for a start. It settles down and explains Keir Starmer's journey from the Corbyn era to his winning the election, changing the Labour Party and becoming Prime Minister.
Impressed by the level of research obviously needed to produce this book and in the election year too!
It also covers the Conservative government's journey in its last few leadership iterations, through the Partygate debacle and onwards to the election from their perspective.
It's a cast of thousands, or so it feels as the names arrive as you read, for a start. It settles down and explains Keir Starmer's journey from the Corbyn era to his winning the election, changing the Labour Party and becoming Prime Minister.
Impressed by the level of research obviously needed to produce this book and in the election year too!
May 22, 2025
Balanced and insightful analysis of the mind-blowing events that led up to the 2024 election from Starmer (and friends) securing control of the Labour Party after Corbyn’s fall from grace, through Brexit, Covid, Partygate, Truss, Sunak and finally Labour forming the government. I appreciated the focus on the organisation involved and also the strategies for getting messages across and reaching intended target groups. Its somewhat of a mystery how opposition parties fail to win elections when all they’ve got to do is prepare for them while the poor governing party has to run the country as well as finding time to run their campaigns.
September 4, 2025
a super detailed rundown of the minutia of the 2024 election. I don't think Anushka really challenged my view that whoever the leader of the labour party was would have won the election by virtue of not being the conservative party. I think as a result a lot of the background of futures in the labour campaign did not feel as interesting to me as it would have been had the election been more hotly contested.
i think a more critical reading of just how Starmer came to power (in the labour party rather than government) would have been more interesting to me but I think the book did a really good job of what it set out to do, and that's probably not on me for not reading the blurb!
i think a more critical reading of just how Starmer came to power (in the labour party rather than government) would have been more interesting to me but I think the book did a really good job of what it set out to do, and that's probably not on me for not reading the blurb!
February 23, 2025
It was fine, but nothing to write home about.
I picked this up thinking I’d get an in depth view of the Labour general election machine. That is not what you get.
You get a run down of what happened in the run up with some pen portrait of the political operators.
However, other books do this better. Just read the back end of Tim Shipman’s final book and you probably get most of it.
If the book was labelled differently - an overview of the route to Starmer being elected and not how Labour won - then I’d view the book differently.
I picked this up thinking I’d get an in depth view of the Labour general election machine. That is not what you get.
You get a run down of what happened in the run up with some pen portrait of the political operators.
However, other books do this better. Just read the back end of Tim Shipman’s final book and you probably get most of it.
If the book was labelled differently - an overview of the route to Starmer being elected and not how Labour won - then I’d view the book differently.
January 2, 2025
An interesting review of the 2019-2024 period in politics, detailing Keir Starmer’s rise to leadership of the Labour Party and the downfall of Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, unusually not stopping with the General Election the book touches on the first few weeks of Starmer’s administration, particularly the response to the Southport murders and subsequent race riots. Well written with no hint of political bias this is a valuable early contribution to the political history of the period.
April 29, 2025
3.5
I really enjoyed the middle of this book when it found its feet. It’s not as strong as Get In by Maguire and Pogrund but it covers more ground narratively. It’s not a thrilling book but it is informative.
The main bit that I found “new” was the insight on what exactly the recently created Baroness Owen did for Boris to get a peerage. Her role still appears too small to warrant a lifetime in the upper chamber but you can definitely see why she mattered so much to him.
I really enjoyed the middle of this book when it found its feet. It’s not as strong as Get In by Maguire and Pogrund but it covers more ground narratively. It’s not a thrilling book but it is informative.
The main bit that I found “new” was the insight on what exactly the recently created Baroness Owen did for Boris to get a peerage. Her role still appears too small to warrant a lifetime in the upper chamber but you can definitely see why she mattered so much to him.
December 7, 2025
I like Anushka Asthana as a broadcaster, so I was looking forward to reading it. But this is not a great book. It lacks interesting insights and original political stories. It read a bit like she had copied out edited versions of her notebooks, rather than write a well structured and thoughtful book. These books by their nature will date quickly. Perhaps she could have future-proofed it a little better. Tim Shipman and Anthony Seldon seem to manage that more effectively.
October 13, 2024
Jr bought me this for my birthday and a couple of chapters in I thought I could have written it myself from recent newspaper articles. But when the author gets into the “Starmer project” and backgrounds to key personalities, it is a strong, highly readable and interesting account of what led to the July 2024 General Election result and the fragility of Labour’s huge majority
February 8, 2025
Impeccably well sourced from a Labour perspective - which makes Asthana’s book an excellent read - but arguably struggles when covering the Conservative downfall and all but skims over other parties, which is surprising when the author identifies 2024 as the most fragmented election ever.
Definitely worth reading as part of a suite of other assessments of the 2024 general election.
Definitely worth reading as part of a suite of other assessments of the 2024 general election.
August 3, 2025
The benchmark of good governance is not just to make promises, but to deliver on those promises.
That appears to be a craft which Starmer and his Confederacy of Dunces seem unable to master, nor even aspire to.
That appears to be a craft which Starmer and his Confederacy of Dunces seem unable to master, nor even aspire to.
Read
October 17, 2024'A general election night is to politics what a World Cup final is to football'.
Highly engaging, informative and entertaining.
Highly engaging, informative and entertaining.
January 28, 2025
If anyone wants to relive the last 5 years, this is the one for you
February 1, 2025
Really good behind the scenes, shows a different side to a lot of events that wasn't obvious in public.
April 7, 2025
Ruthless
January 13, 2026
Good functional account of Labour campaign and victory. Already seems a bit dated
October 20, 2024
Unbiased and informative. Was good to be able to put events over the past 5 years in perspective and see the long road to Labour’s victory.
January 1, 2025
A very good book and well worth getting if you are interested in how Starmers labour got into power.
There are some good insights to be found here, a behind the scenes view of the election and its main players is intresting. Although it would of been nice if the book had focused a little bit more on the election campaign day to day, as in some places it felt a little rushed.
There are some good insights to be found here, a behind the scenes view of the election and its main players is intresting. Although it would of been nice if the book had focused a little bit more on the election campaign day to day, as in some places it felt a little rushed.
January 8, 2025
Fascinating account of how the country finally saw sense.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews