Out
How Brexit Got Done and the Tories Were Undone
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Narrated by:
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Leighton Pugh
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By:
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Tim Shipman
The hotly anticipated final book of bestselling author Tim Shipman’s Brexit quartet. The Johnson Years to Rishi Sunak
'Magnificent… Pacy and packed with delicious details… Shipman puts you in the room… His analysis is sharp and full of insight… For those seeking a moment-by-moment insider history it will not be topped' FT
How did Boris Johnson supersede Theresa May to become Britain's Prime Minister? How did he pursue his promise to Get Brexit Done amidst multiple Brexit secretaries, repeated coup attempts and reshuffles, and an extraordinarily terse relationship with Brussels? What really happened in Downing Street – from the political choices to the party place settings – as the pandemic took the world in its grip? Out follows from May's resignation through to the tussles over the final Brexit deal, the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic and our shortest serving PM ever.
If pre-Theresa May Westminster was largely obsessed with the clever idealism of The West Wing, marinated in the farce of The Thick of It, the parable of these years became Game of Thrones, the pseudo-medieval swords and shagging epic pitching warring factions against each other in the quest for the iron throne. At the centre of the action was Tim Shipman, chief political commentator for the Sunday Times, taking notes on the guts and gore and tears.
Out is a riveting, rambunctious account of the most dramatic years in modern British politics.
©2024 Tim Shipman (P)2024 HarperCollins PublishersCritic reviews
The authoritative story of Brexit and beyond
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While I sympathise with the author's desire to Get The Brexit Book Done, the last part of the book, covering Rishi Sunak's premiership, feels particularly rushed. It would probably have been better to close this book with the fall of Boris Johnson, and (if necessary) come back with another volume to cover Truss and Sunak.
The old flaws are still evident, particularly the lobby hack's tendency to uncritically repeat whatever they are told by their sources, however risible. Those who are not prolific sources are often portrayed in a very unbalanced way - Shipman's treatment of Jeremy Corbyn and Michel Barnier, for example, borders on unfairness.
All that said, this is an essential read/listen for anyone interested in the politics and personalities behind Brexit, or who wants (for some reason) to relive the dying years of the last Conservative administration. Shipman's books will certainly stand as a gripping account of the Brexit years, despite their drawbacks.
Should probably have been two books
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So awful it’s funny - not the book but the PMs we’ve endured
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Loved it!
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Great read
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