Fortress London: The definitive book about Levelling Up and why it matters

by Sam Bright

‘Intelligently written and powerfully argued.’ Paul Mason ‘Witty, scathing, and entertaining.’ Danny Dorling Journalist Sam Bright is a Northerner living in London. He is just one of the millions of people clinging on to the coattails of the capital, sucked in by the prospect of opportunities that the rest of the United Kingdom does not enjoy. Our capital is a vast melting pot of languages, cultures, and ideas, and rightly celebrated for it. For many, though, there is no other option. The only place to access the opportunities this country offers is London. Banking, law, politics, advertising, architecture, the arts and the media are all concentrated here. It is almost impossible to reach the heights of any profession without joining the grey hoards queuing for the next tube. As the economic, political, and cultural epicentre of the country, Fortress London acts more like a renaissance city-state like Florence or Venice than the capital of a modern nation-state. And the gluttony of London, compared to the malnourishment of our regions, dramatically affects life chances in Britain. Fortress London argues that to address Britain’s manifold problems, we need first to end the hegemony of its capital. Enriched by a vast array of interviews and statistics, it will examine how our individual destinies, from childhood to death, are determined by the disproportionate power of London. It will explain why regional inequality has fallen off the Left’s radar, even as the Right pays lip service to it, and it will draw on international comparisons to show where we have gone wrong and, crucially, how we can fix it. Sam Bright’s clear-eyed intervention will convince you that regional inequality is the problem ― and that now is the time for change. Featuring exclusive interviews with: Andy Burnham, Lisa Nandy, Steve Rotheram, Aditya Chakrabortty, David Blunkett, Jess Phillips, Andrew Adonis and more…

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, Audiobook

336 pages, Paperback

First published April 28, 2022

About the author

Sam Bright is an English journalist writing on corruption, regional inequality, populism and the far-right, and meritocracy. He writes for the BBC, Byline Times, New Statesman, VICE, The Yorkshire Post, Big Issue and Huffington Post.

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice! An urgent message about the self-destructive feedback loop of Putting Everything In London(TM).

It feels like there's slightly too many stats than necessary in some areas, which makes the readability suffer. (Perhaps using tables/diagrams for some of the stats could have helped with readability?). It could maybe also benefit from subchapters/clearer separation of subsections within the chapter. Otherwise an interesting read.

[Will · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some absolutely crazy stats about London’s pre-eminence 😯

[martin]

I’m deliberately not giving a star rating for this one, mainly because I feel incapable of reflecting my impressions in so judgmental and concrete a fashion. There was much that was good and useful, alongside much that had me groaning and regretting what I felt was a missed opportunity.

The author has done enormous amounts of research and I learned a lot about what regional inequality actually means for those affected by it in the UK. I felt by the end that i understood a lot better the perceptions, attitudes and needs of people in the formerly industrial heartlands. The author brings his own personal experiences and grievances in often and that too, though subjective, was useful. The support for Brexit and Boris Johnson among those who would benefit little from either, is now less of a mystery to me and I shall no longer be quite so fast to condemn those who did vote for them.

I also now understand the value of a PR voting system and devolved decision making in promoting regional development. A valuable insight.

The sad thing for me is that many who should read and learn from this, will not. It’s simply too angry and too intolerant of disagreement to be an easy read for anyone except the already converted. I’d love to be able to share something like this with those I know are interested in solutions to Britain’s current mess but I fear they will lose heart - being shouted at, even in the written word, is not an enjoyable or effective way to learn. This is very sad because the author does have a good case to make. By alienating part of his potential audience he is losing a chance to influence them.

I read the kindle version which is all text and has no illustrations or charts, tables etc. There are lots of stats in here and it really needed the clarity of illustrative pictures, graphs and tables.

I also thought the “What needs to be done?” and “Who’s going to pay for it and how?” needed expanding with more detail. This will be a key issue for any genuine attempts to level up and a more concrete and realistic plan would possibly convert more to the cause.

[Jess Milner · Rating 4 out of 5]

wake up besties, a new manifesto just dropped

[Andrew Balog · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listen, I love statistics and data. My whole career pretty much revolves around it. But there might be a point where you have too much of that, and this book certainly crosses that line.

First off, I did love the book. It's something different from what I normally read, and it was clear that the author has thoroughly thought out root causes, researched, and put time into devising a better way forward for London. There is very real inequality in the UK, and London's preeminence holds the rest of the nation back.

But, at times it feels like the chapters stumble over themselves a little. Almost like playing a game of "how many statistics can we fit into one sentence?". It is necessary, but makes the book very dense and difficult to read for extended periods of time. And that begs the question of how easily the target audience will be able to absorb the information.

What I came away wondering is whether all of this is going to be just pointless shouting into the chasm. Is there any real desire to change the way things work in the UK? What realistic chance do any of the reforms proposed in this book have for being implemented? It's sobering to think about, but this book is still vital for making people confront an easily ignored issue.

[Robert Cain · Rating 4 out of 5]

London is the most well-known city in the UK, but it also represents the country’s greatest imbalance, a Metropolitan area that commands all the influence. Sam Bright shows why we need to change this in Fortress London.

At less than 300 pages, we’re given a compact yet detailed look at all the key components and how they are stacked against the wider population; housing, education, politics and devolution are heavily concentrated in London. This is down to a number of factors; schools in the capital received the most support and they therefore produce the highest educational outcomes for students while others lag behind. Those lucky enough to have parents who own property reap near endless financial benefits. The media interest and coverage is defined by the Westminster lobby with very little interest in towns that feel left behind. Many individuals, especially graduates, feel they have to leave their communities and enter London to make something of themselves, only to come up against financial difficulties. We see a clear pattern at every stage of the book.

Fortress London is one part social critique and the other a history lesson; how the city came to dominate the rest of Britain is presented as a long series of political mistakes; the narrow attitudes of both politicians and the media, a lack of representation for the northern regions. On a fundamental level, Bright shows that the structure of power is flawed and needs to change if . The book concludes with some of his own ideas on how to rectify the biggest problems. The author’s opinions are formed by several interviews with leading figures while drawing on his own experiences as a journalist. I would have liked to see more northern communities talk about their own experiences of downturn, but the main points remain well argued.

Recommended?

YES: Sam Bright doesn’t hold back with the scathing criticism in several chapters, but Fortress London offers up a detailed view of how the capital sucks in much of the wealth, power and opportunity from across the UK. The book shows how political events and attitudes have hollowed out communities and tipped the nation off balance with a good set of facts and figures. Be it Londoner or non-Londoner, there are plenty of well-researched and often damning details to take note of.

[Morrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first third of the book was eye opening, the second scathing and probably for good reason. The final third seemed unrelated and boring as a result.

This book is easily today's version of George Orwell's Road To Wigan Pier. It is an incredible record of how the north has been subdued over London and it's after effects.

The author is angry with the lived experience and it shows in his writing. It's great to actually see authors take a view and stick to it even if I don't fully agree.

The final chapters of the book were a blur of comparing the UK to Europe. It felt out of place and was a number jumble. I do praise the author for his attempt on how to fix the system. Many complain with out a plan so this was refreshing.

Absolutely recommended and I wish more Southerns would read it to.

[Martin Lowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dissects the term 'London centric' like a skilled surgeon, giving new and wide/wise insights into how London dominates our lives. It is immensely readable. Conclusions appear throughout the book which makes the concluding chapter a little weak, as a reader I wanted more conclusions but on reflection I had already read them earlier.
The author is perhaps picking his battles - there is nothing on how the City of London Corporation sits outside the UK tax system and has an officer, the Remembrancer, sitting opposite The Speaker protecting its interests, which no UK government has ever tackled, even though it builds London domination.

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply excellent. No doubt this will hurt the pride of some of the private school graduates who read it but with some introspection I think they’ll enjoy it also. Having lived in London and the north west I can attest that much of what is written and backed up by multiple references (always a good sign) is anecdotally true. Most refreshingly it offered actual ideas and potential solutions to the problems the book discusses which are tangible. Too often opinion pieces around political issues come across as long rants and not much more than a cry into the abyss. I will be recommending to others.

[Alexandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

A much needed summary of the decades of underinvestment in the UK (England) and its consequences. For people who deny the North-South divide or like to brush off concerns of northerners I urge you to read this book to understand how Tories view the rest of the country.

[Ernie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emotionally mixed having read this. I migrated to London from Malaysia, and the reasons for why I love London are probably the reasons for why we should instead be encouraging growth in other uk cities / regions :(

[Tommy Royds · Rating 4 out of 5]

London has its cake and then goes on to eat everyone else’s. In this engaging read, Sam Bright argues how the capital’s hog on investment and its inward looking political and media bodies have caused a widening gap with pretty much everywhere else outside the M25.

[Cerys · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF @ 40% - once you have read one chapter you have read them all. Felt like a bombardment of statistics and wasn’t very nuanced.

[Ioan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good section on Port Talbot, book as a whole was good will make you infuriated.

[Jakob · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little repetetive, but a highly interesting case study of regional inequality - a topic and important factor that hasn't been covered enough