Working With Winston

by Cita Stelzer

All politicians adopt a public persona that they believe contributes to electoral success. Though they might reflect the character of the politician, they reveal only a part of the man. What we know less about are the characteristics that Winston Churchill revealed when he was out of the public eye.


Much has been written about Churchill, and of the important world leaders, politicians, high-ranking military personnel with whom he interacted.  But Churchill also required a vast staff to maintain the intense pace at which he worked. When Churchill strode the world stage, the secretarial and support staff positions were inevitably filled by women.  Though extraordinarily talented and valuable to Churchill and his work, these women remain unheralded. He was not an easy employer. He was intimidating, with never-ending demands who would impose his relentless and demanding schedules on those around him.  And yet these women were devoted to him, though there were times in his political career in which he was decidedly unpopular.  Many reflect upon their years working for him as the best years of their lives.


Intelligent and hard-working, these women were far from sycophants.  Just as Churchill was no ordinary Prime Minister, these women were not ordinary secretaries. Indeed, in today’s terms their titles would be much grander, as their work encompassed ultra-secret documents and decrypting and reading enemy codes.


A treasure trove of insight and research, Working with Winston reveals the man behind the statesman and as well as brings long-overdue recognition to the “hidden army” that, like Churchill, was never off-duty.  

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, History, Research

400 pages, Paperback

First published May 2, 2019

About the author

A freelance journalist and a Research Associate at the Hudson Institution, Cita Stelzer previously worked for John Lindsay, Mayor of New York, and Governor Hugh Carey.

Reviews

[Andrew Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

A complementary information about the great man, based on the oral histories collected from his 12 secretaries who had worked for him during his prime ministership and when he was writing his books. During these times he required a help of at least two secretaries to take his notes. His titanic work load continued till his eighties. He usually was starting at 7 a.m and continued till 3 a.m. in the following day, with two hours break for his afternoon nap. One secretary worked during the day, while the other in the evening till the early morning. After that they had to transcribe his dictations for a few hours, for his additional edits before their release.

The book gives us a view of Churchill as a person dealing with his staff, his family and environment. For example, it was a news for me to learn that he loved animals, always had his cats and dogs around, with his budgie flying around the room while he was working in bed. The bird was often travelling with him out of the cage in the car, to amusement of his secretaries or other people travelling with him.

A few notes to follow:
Often there two personal secretaries on duty, one to work from 7 a.m. until dinner time, the other to be on call from dinner until the prime minister went to bed, usually between 2 and 3 a.m. (p.139)

Portal confirms Churchill's daily routine: awake at 7 a.m. and, after breakfast, by 8 p.m. he would start working from his bed, going through the correspondence. (...) Staff members came and went during the morning bedroom hours, and usually the Chief Whip would come to see him to talk about what was going on in the party, then lunch. After lunch Churchill was taken on the short drive to the House, especially on days when it was Prime Minister's Questions. When he returned to Hide Park Gate he 'always fitted in a two-hour sleep'. (p.227)

Churchill loved animals. "
during the First World War when food was in short supply, he refused to carve a goose from his farm at Lullenden, saying: 'You'll have to carve it, Clemmie. He was a friend of mine'"(p.277)

Churchill's secretaries:
\begin{enumerate}
\item Violet Pearman (1929 - 1938)
\item Grace Hamblin (1932 - 1940), then she worked for Mrs Churchill and then as a housekeeper at Chrtwell till 1973.
\item Kathleen Hill (1937 - 1945)
\item Patrick Kinna (1941 - 1945)
\item Jo Sturdee (1942 - 1953)
\item Marian Holmes (1943 - 1945)
\item Elizabeth Gilliatt (1946 - 1955)
\item Lettice Marston (1946 - 1953)
\item Cecily 'Chips' Gemmell (1947 - 1951)
\item Jane Portal (1949 - 1955)
\item Doreen Pugh (1955 - 1965)
\item Catherine Snelling (1958 - 1965)
\end{enumerate}

[Mandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting insight into the work of Churchill told through his many secretaries. Portraying a man who never stopped working, was motivated, demanding and compassionate. So much so they would return work for him at busy periods ie his birthday.

[Cindy B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kindly remembrances of the ladies surrounding Sir W. Interesting and informative re: a man that I, apparently, knew little about personally. Good reading and fulfilling in the lack of disappointment. Well narrated.

[Daniel Kukwa · Rating 3 out of 5]

We'll call this a solid 3.5 stars. Not all the stories of the various secretaries lit a fire under my world, and there is some natural duplication. But other stories are full of interesting new details about Winston & Clementine Churchill, and it adds an extra layer to an already familiar tale.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book very much.if your a fan of W .Churchill you will too,all about the women who worked with him over his long career,they were so strong...had to be... and completely loyal to him. 5 *

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the individuals who worked for Winston Churchill and his family. I'm amazed for every individual who sacrificed so much to make Churchill's life and work possible. The learned to type on in cars and trains. During dinner. While he was in the tub. Dictation could come at any time day or night. The helped with speeches, books, opinion pieces, articles, feed the fish and swans.

Chapters are dedicated to each individual. They start with how they came to work for Churchill and where that life/career took them.

[The Library Lady · Rating 1 out of 5]

Yet another treasure trove of history, ruined by the author's inability to construct a coherent narrative. Instead of giving brief bios of Churchill's staff (and perhaps of Churchill himself), then creating a chronological story, Stelzer goes person by person through the same periods. For Pete's sake, Susan Elia MacNeal 's silly "Maggie Hope" books give a more vivid picture of Churchill at war. That's depressing.

[Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice read. It's a book of the reminiscences of the secretaries that worked for Winston Churchill and what it was like working for him. Nothing earth shattering or surprising here. Pretty much what we already know and that is it can be somewhat demanding working for someone who was demanding of himself as well.

[Jean Donze · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but, of course, quite repetitive stories of Churchill's secretaries through the years. He was undeniably the greatest statesman of WWII, and so much of his greatness was always dictated by him into the written word by his long suffering secretaries. They had to be accountable to him day and night.

[Andrea Engle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exposing a little known facet of Sir Winston Churchill’s life, this book tells the story of the women ( and one man, Patrick Kenna) who served as his shorthand/typists from 1929 until his death … judging from their memories, it must have been an exhilarating job despite the long hours … interesting …

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many books have been written about Churchhill, maybe more than any other person. And his wife, mother,father, son, almost everyone around him and now all the personal secretaries he had. It’s amazing how many there were and probably the world would be different if they hadn’t excelled at their jobs and helped him save the world. I doubt the women would do the same today, unfortunately.

[Liz marx · Rating 3 out of 5]

Didn’t finish just seemed like everyone had to work all the time.

[Stephanie Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sooo interesting. Not particularly well-written.

[Allison · Rating 1 out of 5]

I SO wanted to love this book. Even like it. But there is not enough meat on these bones. It should have been a magazine article and not individual profiles of Winnie's many secretaries going on for over 300 pages. Of course they were privy to mounds of top secret info and fascinating people but this is about them and their work for Winston. And with all due respect, they're secretaries! Taking a memo and typing in trains, planes and automobiles. Every one of them has the same story! How much dictation can you take and when is that ever interesting? Yawn. I'm sure if we drilled down on their personal lives it would have had far greater interest but that is not the angle here. I confess I only read about 2/3 of the book and I am abandoning it. On to the Erik Larson--now THAT is sure to be a story about Winston to savor.

[Erin-Lucy Bird · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I must remind you that this will be bugged [...] This had the opposite effect and Winston became more vitriolic against Stalin."
This was a really interesting introduction to Churchill. Yes, I knew the PM Churchill, but i always find that personal staff always tell of the true person.

[Priyanka · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have read some biographies on Winston Churchill and I have been really impressed by the productivity while he was in the Parliament and as the Prime Minister of the United kingdom. And I always said to myself that there's no way this man can do all of these things by himself. And this book perfectly gives us the answer to the question of how Winston Churchill was able to do so much while he was in the office. The hard work and determination of these secretaries, who worked insane hours and who tolerated his eccentricity on a day-to-day basis, was just commendable. The work of his secretaries acted as a catalyst for his productivity.

[Jill Vaughn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed this perspective on Churchill. I already knew a lot about is voracious work habits, but this showed how his staff viewed him. Although they had their issues with pace and demands, they all had tremendous respect for this at time difficult at times leader. Really liked the the story on Jane Portal and found humorous the times secretaries would type while in the car as he dictated.