From the acclaimed author of Promised You a Miracle and When the Lights Went Out, the untold story of British politics in modern times, through the triumphs and disasters of its five most radical figuresLonglisted for the Bread & Roses Prize for Radical Publishing 2025 'A breath of fresh air: a vivid eye for detail meets narrative pacing that seems effortless.' Morgan Jones, LabourList‘An absorbing history of Labour’s radical left.’ Jason Cowley, Observer‘The Searchers should be studied closely by anyone with a stake in British politics.’ Patrick Maguire, The TimesIn the great revolutionary year of 1968, Tony Benn was a respectable Labour minister in his forties, and he was restless. While new social movements were shaking up Britain and much of the world, Westminster politics seemed stuck. It was time, he decided, for a different approach.Over the next half century, the radicalized Benn helped forge a new left in Britain. He was joined by four other politicians, who would become comrades, collaborators and rivals: Ken Livingstone, John McDonnell, Diane Abbott and Jeremy Corbyn.For Andy Beckett, the story of these admired and loathed political explorers - both their sudden breakthroughs and long stretches in the wilderness - is the untold story of British politics in modern times. As he reveals, their project to create a radically more equal, liberal and democratic Britain has been much more influential than electoral history might suggest, and can be seen from the shape of our city life to the causes of our culture wars.For their many detractors, this influence was and remains dangerous: a form of extremism that must be stamped out. But as these five searchers believed, in politics there is no total victory - nor total defeat.
Format: Paperback / softback
CONTRIBUTORS: Andy Beckett
EAN: 9780141990552
COUNTRY: United Kingdom
PAGES: 576
WEIGHT: 396 g
HEIGHT: 198 mm
PUBLISHED BY: Penguin Books Ltd
DATE PUBLISHED: 2025-05-01
CITY:
GENRE: HISTORY / Europe / Great Britain / 20th Century, HISTORY / Europe / Great Britain / 21st Century, POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Ideologies / Communism, Post-Communism & Socialism, POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Ideologies / Democracy, POLITICAL SCIENCE / History & Theory
WIDTH: 130 mm
SPINE:
Book Themes:
United Kingdom, Great Britain, Later 20th century c 1950 to c 1999, Early 21st century c 2000 to c 2050, Political science and theory, Left-of-centre democratic ideologies, European history
Andy Beckett is a Guardian columnist. He has also written for the Economist, The New York Times magazine, the London Review of Books and the Independent on Sunday. His previous books are Promised You A Miracle, When the Lights Went Out and Pinochet in Piccadilly.