HAROLD WILSON | THE WINNER

TITLE - HAROLD WILSON | THE WINNER

WRITTEN BY - NICK THOMAS-SYMONDS

GENRE - POLITICS/BIOGRAPHY/BRITISH HISTORY

PUBLISHED BY - W&N

PUBLICATION DATE - AVAILABLE NOW 

I’ve always been fascinated by this period of Britain’s political history as it was a little before my time, even as a child of the ‘70s. At such a young age I had no concept of politics and the shenanigans going on in the country (but I knew Harold Wilson smoked a pipe). So, when I heard about Nick Thomas-Symonds’ book I saw an opportunity to fill the gaps in my knowledge. However, I should add that due to my being unfamiliar with the political history of the time, I am not in a position to comment on the author’s conclusions about Wilson’s policies etc. I am simply reviewing the book on its merits as a biography.

Symonds has had unprecedented access to Harold Wilson’s handwritten notes, letters and various other papers which have been hitherto unavailable, which have enabled him to perform a timely reevaluation of one of the most progressive Prime Ministers the United Kingdom has ever had, dealing with issues that will resonate today - membership of the EEC, women’s rights, British involvement in conflicts overseas etc.

An academic youngster with an exemplary record of scholastic achievement, with an unwavering childhood dream to go into politics and become Prime Minister, (a prescient photo shows the young Harold outside No. 10 Downing Street) Wilson leads an almost charmed life to get to the position he is best remembered for. He was, it seems, always the “winner” of the book’s title. Even the seemingly spontaneous quips and retorts in the Commons that he became famous for were the result of determined hard work and practice, having been accused of giving stuffy and boring speeches.

Symonds recounts Wilson’s political career in riveting detail, and whilst the political jargon can get complex at times, he has an accessible style that shouldn’t put off the casual reader without a grounding in politics. Much more fluid and easier to read than I expected, but not lightweight by any means, “The Winner” is an enjoyable and informative book, but not without its faults. I frequently got the impression that the author believes Wilson could do no wrong and that any failures or shortcomings in the Wilson government were the fault of other people. At times the book borders on hagiography. The reader is left in no doubt that NT-S is a big fan, even taking into account the fact he is a Labour MP, and I think it will be a matter of personal opinion whether this impresses or grates.

Overall, NT-S does a thorough job of reassessing Harold Wilson for a new generation and giving him his due credit for the enduring societal changes he brought about; he also humanises and rediscovers Wilson for those born too late to see him in action. This was truly a different time: today it generally follows that if you lose an election, you lose the leadership, but back then it was normal for the same person to remain leader even after a defeat. If nothing else, Symonds’ book proves that, with the current Labour Party now an inept shadow of the party Harold Wilson so successfully led, we will probably never see his like again.

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FURY OF PAST TIME | A LIFE OF GWYN THOMAS

TITLE - FURY OF PAST TIME | A LIFE OF GWYN THOMAS

WRITTEN BY - DARYL LEEWORTHY 

GENRE - WELSH WRITERS/ BIOGRAPHY 

PUBLISHED BY - PARTHIAN BOOKS 

PUBLICATION DATE - OCTOBER 2022 

Gwyn Thomas once admitted that whilst his novels were full of the love of people, they were not full of the love of life, an effect of the nihilistic worldview inherited from his mother. It was this cynicism, albeit with a strain of dark humour running through it, that coloured his life as a coruscating writer and celebrated raconteur. 

In the most in-depth biography of Gwyn Thomas yet published, Daryl Leeworthy makes use of letters and documents, many published for the first time, to deliver an unprecedented portrait of a complex and often contradictory man. Fiercely political (at least in his heart) with communist leanings, Gwyn Thomas was an angry young man who experienced the “split-personality” due to the dwindling use of the Welsh language in his hometown and own home, in a sense growing up as both Welsh and English.

Affected at a young age by the early death of his mother which gave Thomas a cynical, often bleak worldview which informed his written work. Ill-health, both physical and mental, and the widespread unemployment and decline of his native South Wales also marked his writing. But the humour that would see him become a popular mainstay of ‘70s television never wavered. He drifted through a multitude of jobs, most of which drove him to various kinds of utter despair, before settling into married life and teaching in Barry.

Thomas’ skilful and lyrical way with words bursts from the page thanks to the many, sometimes lengthy, quotes from Gwyn’s letters and books, and his voice is clear and resonant throughout. There is also a wealth of welcome information about the many foreign editions of Gwyn’s novels, and his vast influence in Europe and the USA in general, although he was banned in Ireland. The longest chapter in the book is devoted to Thomas’ famed television and radio appearances, the media in which he made his biggest and best remembered impact. There is also deep insight into his mostly successful yet chequered life as a playwright. 

Part biography and part savage, excoriating political and social history of South Wales and the wider world in the mid-20th century, Daryl Leeworthy makes a bold attempt at capturing Gwyn Thomas the man, but, through no fault of the author, he remains somewhat elusive. Nevertheless, this is an excellent and readable book, and as thorough a biography of the towering man of Welsh letters as we’re ever likely to get.

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A KIND OF LOVING

TITLE - A KIND OF LOVING 

WRITTEN BY - STAN BARSTOW 

GENRE - CONTEMPORARY FICTION 

PUBLISHED BY - PARTHIAN BOOKS 

PUBLICATION DATE - 10TH JUNE 2022 

A Kind Of Loving” was a “kitchen-sink drama” classic in its day, its reputation bolstered by the celebrated film starring Alan Bates. The novel returns in a brand new edition from Parthian Books - which is fitting because author Stan Barstow lived in South Wales in later life until his death - but does this slice of Northern life have any relevance today? 

It is, without doubt, somewhat dated, with characters and attitudes very much of their time; the language, for example, will surprise a modern reader, and it is not a novel that is likely to be a feminist “Book of the Month Club” pick - this is very much a book for men, with much talk of “bints” and other even less savoury epithets. Although Vic Brown is not a hero, or even an anti-hero; he’s just as flawed and human as any young man. 

Barstow makes Vic a likeable narrator despite his faults, and gives him some breathtakingly beautiful turns of phrase in his inner monologues which counterpoint the “bloke-iness” of the character. Vic’s rather awkward and fumbling pursuit of Ingrid is endearing, and there is a very funny section where Vic reads Molly Bloom’s soliloquy from “Ulysses” and can’t believe such sexual frankness is allowed in print. He is also a bit of a snob in his occasional scorn of certain Northern working-class traits; always restless and wanting something better. His treatment of Ingrid, (a character who is, by accident or design, not as well drawn as Vic, but she engenders sympathy from the reader) seems callous, and when he admits to himself that he doesn’t truly love her, it comes as a quite a shock. 

The story is timeless, but, more than anything, the novel, originally published in 1960, is a vivid snapshot of early ‘60s Britain, the North of England in particular. The politics and class divides of the time are prominent, especially in the factory where Vic works. Bus fares cost threepence, there are jobs for life, men work in coal-mines and go to the football on Saturdays, while their wives run the house. There is much talk of a “boom” in industry and business during the novel’s time period, and whether it can last. 

Stan Barstow was a very skilled and naturalistic writer, with a gift for observing the realities of life. The characters’ journey is one that virtually anybody can relate to. Ultimately, “A Kind of Loving” is an immensely readable, honest and captivating story from an era when you could have a red-blooded male as a hero without incurring a jail sentence, and the story itself can be enjoyed, with an open mind, on its own terms.

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CARRY ON REGARDLESS

TITLE - CARRY ON REGARDLESS

WRITTEN BY - CAROLINE FROST 

PUBLISHED BY - WHITE OWL/PEN & SWORD BOOKS 

PUBLICATION DATE - 30TH APRIL 2022 
 

“I was once a weak man”. 

“Well, once a week’s enough for any man”. 

This and many other pearls of wisdom are to be found in the evergreen National Treasure that is the Carry On films. A phenomenally successful legend of British cinema, now a mainstay of Bank Holiday telly, no entendre was ever knowingly left undoubled by the likes of Sid James, Barbara Windsor and Kenneth Williams. Many books have been written on them, but there’s always room for one more especially when they’re as good as Caroline Frost’s “Carry On Regardless”. (It takes its title from the fifth Carry On, which features Kenneth Williams taking a chimpanzee for a walk and attempting to hail a taxi only to be told by the driver -“I'll take you, but not your brother!”)

Frost takes a deep dive into the history of the Carry Ons from their genesis and early days in the late ‘50s, through its heyday in the ‘60s and it’s slow demise in the ‘70s, a decade which was certainly not the franchise’s golden age. She also examines the not-so-successful relaunch film “Carry On Columbus” and the many recent attempts to revive the series. Personally, I don’t think this should happen as a modern version could never match the sheer innocent fun of the originals. 

The Carry Ons rarely get any kind of serious appraisal as the general consensus has always been that they were and are very lightweight, offensive rubbish, guilty of every “ism” under the sun, that belongs in the unenlightened past and which have no place in the “woke” future. However, Caroline Frost discovers that the films were far more progressive than they are given credit for. 

There are many contemporary photographs and interviews with surviving cast members who offer a firsthand insight into what it was really like on the set of a Carry On. Part academic critique, part nostalgia-trip, this is a scholarly yet fun book, highly recommended.

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