Most politicians have at least one hero, someone in whose footsteps they hope to walk and whose achievements they hope to emulate. In this episode, Richard and Lee discuss whom senior Conservative and Labour politicians have named as their heroes - from the sublime to the occasionally ridiculous - and also share their own political lodestars.

In this episode, the following books are mentioned:

'Loyalists and Loners' by Michael Foot. Available at: https://amzn.to/3CUo9of

'A Fabulous Failure: The Clinton Presidency and the Transformation of American Capitalism' by Nelson Lichtenstein & Judith Stein. Available at: https://amzn.to/4hC484Y

'Politics on the Edge' by Rory Stewart. Available at: https://amzn.to/4hDiQsv

Support the show

Since Attlee & Churchill is the podcast all about post-war British political history, hosted by:

Lee David Evans is an historian of the Conservative Party and the John Ramsden Fellow at the Mile End Institute, Queen Mary, University of London. He is on social media @LeeDavidEvansUK.

Richard Johnson is a Senior Lecturer at Queen Mary, University of London, and among his other areas of expertise is an historian of the Labour Party. He tweets at @richardmarcj.

For much of its history, Labour was Britain's most pro-Zionist party - with MPs on the left of Labour the most supportive of the Jewish state. But from the 1960s, things began to change and, ultimately, the factional dynamics reversed. In this episode, Richard and Lee discuss how Labour went from being an enthusiast for Israel to being fiercely divided about the existence, and actions, of the world's only Jewish state.

In this episode, the following books are mentioned:

'The Betrayal of Anne Frank: Less a Mystery Unsolved Than a Secret Well Kept' by Rosemary Sullivan. Available here: https://amzn.to/42MUPdP

'Failed State' by Sam Freedman. Available here: https://amzn.to/42SJqcF

Support the show

Since Attlee & Churchill is the podcast all about post-war British political history, hosted by:

Lee David Evans is an historian of the Conservative Party and the John Ramsden Fellow at the Mile End Institute, Queen Mary, University of London. He is on social media @LeeDavidEvansUK.

Richard Johnson is a Senior Lecturer at Queen Mary, University of London, and among his other areas of expertise is an historian of the Labour Party. He tweets at @richardmarcj.

February 2025 marks fifty years since the election of Margaret Thatcher as leader of the Conservative Party. To mark this anniversary, Lee and Richard discuss the blockbuster leadership contest that elevated her to the top of the Tories, the first woman to lead a British political party.

It’s a story that is full of drama: from the stubbornness of Ted Heath to the rebelliousness of Conservative MPs, right up to the moment that Thatcher wins and a new age in British politics begins.

In this episode, the following books are mentioned:

‘Kingmaker’ by Graham Brady

‘Harold Wilson: The Winner’ by Nick Thomas-Symonds

Support the show

Since Attlee & Churchill is the podcast all about post-war British political history, hosted by:

Lee David Evans is an historian of the Conservative Party and the John Ramsden Fellow at the Mile End Institute, Queen Mary, University of London. He is on social media @LeeDavidEvansUK.

Richard Johnson is a Senior Lecturer at Queen Mary, University of London, and among his other areas of expertise is an historian of the Labour Party. He tweets at @richardmarcj.