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.

1956 was the year that saw the Suez crisis and the brutal suppression of the Hungarian uprising. But before either of those events, Soviet leader Nikita Khruschev made a nine day visit to the United Kingdom. Included on a packed agenda, which saw the Soviet delegation tour the country, was a dinner with the Labour Shadow Cabinet. Almost immediately, the set-piece between Britain's left-wing party and the Russian communist leader got off to an awkward start - and ended with shouts of 'God forgive you!' across the dinner table.

In this episode, Lee and Richard mention the following books:

'The Last Liberal Republican: An Insider's Perspective on Nixon's Surprising Social Policy' by John Roy Price. Available here: https://amzn.to/3E7E9nd

'Ungovernable: The Political Diaries of a Chief Whip' by Simon Hart. Available here: https://amzn.to/4jpBlSx

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.

In a special episode recorded in Palm Beach, Florida, Lee and Richard interview presidential historian Alvin S. Felzenberg about two centuries of relations between American Presidents and British monarchs. Topics include: who was the first President to meet a monarch - before, during, and after their presidency? And who did the late Queen Elizabeth II like most of her American counterparts?

In this episode, we mention the following books:

'American Psychosis: A Historical Investigation of How the Republican Party Went Crazy' by David Corn.

'The Leaders We Deserved (and a Few We Didn't): Rethinking the Presidential Scorecard' by Alvin S. Felzenberg.

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.