Philip M. Williams (1920–1984)

Hugh Gaitskell is often regarded as one of the best prime ministers Great Britain never had, a smart politician of great promise who was on the brink of what was widely expected to be a Labour victory in an impending general election before his sudden illness and death in January 1963. In this book, Williams provides a lengthy examination of Gaitskell's life and career, describing the events that shaped his outlook, his service in the Labour governments of the late 1940s and 1950s, and the internecine Labour Party battles in which he was involved. It is a mass of detail that often threatens to overwhelm the reader, yet Williams guides the readers knowledgeably though the specifics. The result in an indispensable book for anyone seeking to better understand the achievements and unfulfilled promise of this interesting figure.… (mais)

The author Philip Williams makes the argument that the death of Hugh Gaitskell at the age of 56 in 1963 robbed the Labour Party of Britain of its most promising leader of the late 20th century, and robbed Britain of a Prime Minister who might have been able to lead the country successfully through the shoals of decolonization, European integration, and postcolonial delcine.

It's not entirely convincing that one man could have carried Britain into the Promised Land of prosperity and good governance, but certainly if Gaitskell had not died (of complications from lupus!), Britain would have been spared the leadership of Harold Wilson in the latter part of the 1960s - which would have been blessing enough, in my humble opinion!

In the 1950s, as his political career was taking off, Gaitskell entered intio a romantic affair with Ann Fleming, wife of Ian Fleming and an important society hostess in her own right. (Yes, _that_ Ian Fleming.) Unfortunately, the Williams biography was published too close to Gaitskell's life - and to that of his wife - for him to delve into any of the details of this complication from his personal life. Any adultery is strictly off-bounds here. Too bad, because some insight into the "private Gaitskell" might have shed some insight on his willingness to take risks and to go against conformity in his political life.

Gaitskell himself only served one year in one of the important offices of state - he was Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government of 1950-51. Most of the rest of his political life he spent in Opposition. He seems to have been a principled and appealing political leader with strong intelligence and a moderating personality. 450 pages of small print makes this an extremely detailed biography - and that is 450 pages in an edited and condensed version of what was originally a longer book. It's not really balanced enough to be absolutely reliable, but it "does the job".… (mais)

This book felt a little like an ancient parchment: utterly dry and crumbly. Gaitskell's childhood and early life are covered within the first few pages and, despite an interesting section concerning his time in Vienna and how this affected his political thinking, we soon descend into a turgid round of reports of meetings and discussion groups that he attended.

This book would be ideal preparation for a place upon the TV show, Mastermind, were one's specialist subject to be, "the life of Hugh Gaitskell", but does not give any real feel for the man.… (mais)