Harold Wilson: The Winner

by Nicklaus Thomas-Symonds

Harold Wilson is the only post-war leader of any party to serve as Britain's Prime Minister on two separate occasions. In total he won four General Elections, spending nearly eight years in Downing Street. Half a century later, he is still unbeaten, Labour's greatest ever election winner. How did he do it - and at what cost?Critics then and now have painted him as an opportunistic political calculator, even as a Soviet secret agent. In this powerful new portrait, drawing on previously unavailable sources and first-hand parliamentary insight, acclaimed biographer Nick Thomas-Symonds reveals a more complex figure. Wilson was a new kind of politician but, in his own way, this media-savvy harbinger of modernity was also a deeply traditional man, whose actions often suggest nothing less than a spiritual mission.In an intriguing paradox, Wilson, influenced by the distinctively democratic faith of his Yorkshire boyhood, united a fractured Labour Party, ushering in the cultural and social changes of the 'swinging sixties'. His was the government to decriminalise homosexuality, legalise abortion and abolish capital punishment. With a brilliant mind, sure-footed political moves and a feel for public opinion, he was a survivor who over and over again emerged from desperate crises - even, perhaps, conspiracies - to lead his party to victory. It is time at last to learn his secrets.

Genres: Politics

508 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 1, 2022

About the author

Nicklaus Thomas-Symonds FRHistS is a British academic, barrister and politician who has been Paymaster General, Minister for the Cabinet Office and Minister for the Constitution and European Union Relations since July 2024. A member of the Labour Party, he has been Member of Parliament for Torfaen since 2015.

Reviews

[Thekirkiepirate · Rating 4 out of 5]

An illuminating account covering all of the life of Harold Wilson - the most successful leader of the Labour Party.

Despite having been around for much of his Premiership, the book reminded me of how interventionist government was up until the 1980's. for example, much is made of his government's intervening in the economy, say to increase production.

The only negative for me was a tendency for the story to move around the years, resulting in some descriptions being out of linear sequence. However, that was partly down to having to run each event through to its conclusion.

[Oliver Russell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting!!!