The Alastair Campbell Diaries, Vol. 1: Prelude to Power 1994-1997 - Hardcover

Campbell, Alastair

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9780091797263: The Alastair Campbell Diaries, Vol. 1: Prelude to Power 1994-1997

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0091797268 ISBN 13: 9780091797263

Publisher: Hutchinson, 2010

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As Alastair Campbell said in the introduction to The Blair Years, it was always his intention to publish the full version, covering his time as spokesman and chief strategist to Tony Blair. Prelude to Power is the first of four volumes, and covers the early days of New Labour, culminating in their victory at the polls in 1997.

Volume 1 details the extraordinary tensions between Tony Blair and Gordon Brown as they resolved the question as to which one should stand to become Labour leader. It shows that right from the start, relations at the top were prone to enormous strain, suspicions and accusations of betrayal. Yet it also shows the political and personal bonds that tied them together, and which made them one of the most feared and respected electoral machines anywhere in the world.

A story of politics in the raw, Prelude to Power is above all an intimate, detailed portrait of the people who have done so much to shape modern history.

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Review:

"There are plenty of nuggets here that are fascinating, some passages that make you wince and others that are gripping. It has historical value." (Observer)

"Campbell is a compelling diarist . . . [with] vivid set pieces . . . The Campbell Diaries provide the fullest insider account so far of new Labour's ascent to power." (The Times)

"Campbell's world is the brutal, angry, hard-driven, joky, football-crazed and intensely male world of tabloid journalism. He is a fluent and industrious reporter, with amazing stamina: it is quite a feat, at the end of days dealing with the press on Blair's behalf that he managed to get this account down." (Telegraph)

"Hugely gripping . . . all of human life is here. It makes The Thick of It look tame. And sane." (Sunday Times)

"The abundance of extra detail throws up some richly comic moments . . . Campbell's writing has much of the brutal honestly of [Alan] Clark's." (Sunday Telegraph)

Book Description:

The Blair Years was a taster. Prelude to Power reveals the diairies uncut. And it is just the beginning.

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