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In this mid-week episode, Lee and Richard debate how Labour MPs can trigger a challenge (and maybe even bring about the downfall) of Sir Keir Starmer as Labour Party leader. After disagreeing, they invite rebellious Labour MPs to settle the matter once and for all. They then discuss the Prime Minister's travels, with both defending him from the attack that he is 'Never Here Keir' before exploring what his travel itinerary says about the government and its priorities for Britain in the world. Joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon offers ad-free listening and bonus episodes, among other perks, and is also a great way to support the production of the podcast. Find out more at https://www.patreon.com/cw/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week's episode, Lee & Richard look a little further back than usual to discuss the very first Labour government. Ramsay MacDonald 'kissed hands' upon his appointment as Prime Minister after Stanley Baldwin gambled his premiership on a snap election and lost the Conservatives' majority. But even so, Labour didn't have a majority of their own - and weren't even the largest party. So how did MacDonald become Prime Minister? What did his government achieve? How long did it last? And does this government have a legacy worth celebrating? In this episode, the following books are mentioned: 'Waiting for the Wave: The Reform Party and the Conservative Movement' by Tom Flanagan 'Britain’s First Labour Government' by John Shepherd & Keith Laybourn Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a follow-up to the last episode on the history of Prime Minister's Questions, Lee and Richard discuss how Parliament's biggest weekly event works today. What types of questions do MPs ask - and what do they expect to achieve with them? What are the opportunities and risks for party leaders? And is it really true that the public hate the theatrical, adversarial nature of PMQs? Richard and Lee attempt to answer those questions, and more. Joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon offers ad-free listening and bonus episodes, among other perks, and is also a great way to support the production of the podcast. Find out more at https://www.patreon.com/cw/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After a special visit to the House of Commons to watch PMQs, Lee and Richard discuss the long history of MPs interrogating the Prime Minister and how its evolved through the premierships of William Gladstone, Harold Macmillan, Jim Callaghan, Tony Blair and others. They finish by reflecting on who performed best in the format - and who flopped. On Wednesday, the next Matters of Interest will consider whether PMQs really matters, what its role is, if its unique to Britain and whether proposals for reform have any merit. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill In this episode, the following books are mentioned: ''The Last Leonardo: A Masterpiece, a Mystery and the Dirty World of Art' by Ben Lewis. Available at: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16406/9780008313449 'Heroes and Contemporaries' by Jonathan Aitken Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this mid-week episode of Since Attlee & Churchill, Richard shares his insights on whether, throughout history, it's paid off to be a 'traitor' by defecting away from your political party or a 'faithful' sticking with it - and finds it typically depends to whom you defect. And Lee discusses some newly published research into who joins our political parties - with surprises about, as well as good and bad news for, almost all of Britain's parties. Joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon offers ad-free listening and bonus episodes, among other perks, and is also a great way to support the production of the podcast. Find out more at https://www.patreon.com/cw/SinceAttleeAndChurchill You can find the research into party members here: https://esrcpartymembersproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/britains-party-members-bale-et-al.pdf Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Earlier this year, Sir Patrick Duffy died at the remarkable age of 105. As well as being a long-serving MP, with service in the Commons from the 1960s to the 1990s, Duffy saw politics first-hand from the General Strike of 1926 to the Starmer government of today. In this episode, Richard and Lee discuss his life and sometimes complex politics, reflecting on the lessons we can all learn from his more than a century on this planet. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill In this episode, the following books are mentioned: 'The Sparrow's Flight' by Lord Hailsham 'Radicals: The Working Classes and the Making of Modern Britain' by Geoff Andrews. Available for pre-order: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16406/9780300265897 Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this mid-week episode of Since Attlee & Churchill, Richard puts David Lammy's reforms to jury trials into the historic context of the Labour movement's fight for more trials by jury. And Lee comments on the approach Kemi Badenoch is taking to recruiting new members of the House of Lords - and commends her focus on creating interesting peers rather than satisfying short-term party political challenges. Joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon offers ad-free listening and bonus episodes, among other perks, and is also a great way to support the production of the podcast. Find out more at https://www.patreon.com/cw/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of the most iconic pictures in post-war British politics sees six Prime Ministers - Harold Macmillan, Alec Douglas-Home, Harold Wilson, Edward Heath, Jim Callaghan and Margaret Thatcher - all standing alongside the Queen. The occasion was one of Elizabeth II's rare visits to Number 10 Downing Street, on this occasion marking 250 years since the house became the official residence of the Prime Minister. In this episode, Lee and Richard discuss the remarkable night they were all reunited and consider what the Queen's various prime ministers were up to in the mid-1980s. In this episode, the following books are mentioned: 'Margaret Thatcher: Life After Downing Street' by Peter Just. Available at: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16406/9781785909207 'Time and Chance' by James Callaghan Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a special live recording, held at The Clement Attlee pub in Limehouse, London, Lee & Richard were joined by 50 listeners to toast the first year of the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast, share a birthday cake, and answer questions in their first ever live Q&A. Topics ranged from who is the best junior minister in post-war history to Britain's most toxic prime minister - via the most asked question of all: is the two-party system over? Thanks to everyone who joined in to celebrate the first year of the podcast. Here's to another year chewing over delightful morsels of British political history! Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the final instalment of their miniseries on the Heath vs Wilson elections, Lee and Richard look back on the October 1974 contest. After a frantic six months in office, Labour's Harold Wilson goes back to the country in search of a majority and a mandate to govern. Everything seems to be going well for him, but has enough changed since the people last voted for them to meaningfully change their verdict? Meanwhile Edward Heath, the Conservative leader, is hoping the second election of the year gives him a second chance with the voters. In this episode, the following books are discussed: 'Britannia Bright's Bewilderment in the Wilderness of Westminster' by Clive James 'Making Sense of the Troubles: A History of the Northern Ireland Conflict' by David McKittrick & David McVea. Available at: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16406/9780241962657 Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Richard and Lee mark the new year by looking back on the key events of 2025 that they expect to influence what happens in the year ahead. From Keir Starmer's decision to stick by Rachel Reeves to the removal of the hereditary peers from the House of Lords - via Nigel Farage's continuing centralised leadership style, Kemi Badenoch's growing confidence as Leader of the Opposition, and more. Happy new year! *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the latest instalment of their miniseries on the Heath vs Wilson elections, Lee and Richard consider Edward Heath's gamble on a general election in February 1974. Having u-turned on the policy agenda that got him elected in 1970 and run into intractable issues with the trade unions - leading to a state of emergency and energy rationing - Heath could see few better options than calling an election. But throughout the campaign it becomes clear that he doesn't really have a plan for overcoming the crisis, win or lose. Does the public think bringing back Harold Wilson would be a step in the right direction? Or are they beginning to look elsewhere, beyond the two major parties?  In this episode, the following books are discussed: 'Downing Street in Perspective' by Marcia Falkender 'The Spicer Diares' by Michael Spicer Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac The last few tickets are available for the 1st Birthday Party of the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast, featuring a live recording. Find out more here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/since-attlee-churchills-1st-birthday-party-tickets-1978627898307 Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a special Christmas edition of Since Attlee & Churchill, Lee and Richard have been searching through diaries, memoirs and other historical sources to find out how our politicians spend Christmas - and what some of them have contributed to our understanding of a traditional British Christmas. Featuring Ramsay MacDonald, Winston Churchill, Harold Macmillan, Tony Benn, Jim Callaghan, Barbara Castle, Margaret Thatcher and more. We wish you all a very happy Christmas. Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In part two of their miniseries on the Heath vs Wilson elections, Lee and Richard delve into the second of the contests fought between the pair. In May 1970, incumbent Prime Minister Harold Wilson asked the Queen for a dissolution of Parliament, judging it was his best opportunity to win a third successive election for Labour. Almost everyone expected Wilson to triumph. But when the votes were cast, Edward Heath and the Conservatives came out on top. How did it happen? And why did the polls and political commentators misjudge the views of the British people? In this episode, the following books are discussed: 'Downing Street Downfalls: The Misadventures of Britain's Prime Ministers Since Thatcher' by Mark Garnett. Available at: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16406/9781788218696 'Original Sin: President Biden's decline, its cover-up, and his disastrous choice to run again' by Alex Thompson & Jake Tapper. Available at: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16406/9781529155488 Tickets are now available for the 1st Birthday Party of the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast, featuring a live recording. Find out more here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/since-attlee-churchills-1st-birthday-party-tickets-1978627898307 *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week's Matters of Interest, Richard considers whether the Labour Party's internal rules - especially the power of the National Executive Committee over Parliamentary selections - could stand in the way of Andy Burnham's triumphant return to Parliament. And Lee considers whether the changing electoral landscape of Britain means parties no longer need to really make pacts with one another, because the voters are effectively doing it for them. Enjoy listening to the Since Attlee & Churchill podcast? If so, we would be very grateful if you could leave us a 5 star review! Buying books via the Since Attlee & Churchill Bookshop is a great way to support the podcast. Click here to visit the shop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/saac *** Since Attlee & Churchill is a podcast about post-war British politics - literally since Attlee & Churchill - and is hosted by Lee David Evans, an historian of the Conservative Party, and Richard Johnson, an historian of the Labour Party. Enjoy ad-free listening, bonus episodes and show your support for the podcast by joining the Since Attlee & Churchill Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/SinceAttleeAndChurchill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.