A History of Modern Britain

An astonishing accomplishment and an intriguing read. Andrew Marr is a political journalist with a respected career. He currently has his own television show in which he discusses the top stories of the week from the political world and this is definitely his main hook for the book in which he tackles over 60 years of British history. Focusing mainly on the politics since world war two, Marr gives his an impartial look at the premiership of each PM right up to the closing stages of the Blair years. He focuses on their blunders and their successes and tries to give a different spin on the premiership of those who are historically called a disaster, such as the Callaghan Labour government of the 70s.

His writing ability is superb as he manages to discuss an event which, to some, may be one of the biggest events in post war Britain and make it understandable yet, at the same time, detailed. His writing style is effective and makes the entire book fun to read and when I engage in it I find myself reading on and on and the time flies by. Some of my favourite moments are his discussions of the politics when he's talking about such things as the formation of the NHS under the Atlee Labour government, the fall of the Churchill era during his final term as PM and also such things as the three day week and the unforeseeable rise of Thatcher. I enjoyed the odd dip into non-political subjects such as music and fashion, but he really shines during his political analysis.

He is a very sympathetic story teller and doesn't have an agenda when discussing the lives of some of the most disastrous people in a particular government. One thing I did seem to resent was that he just sailed over the Irish conflict and never really gave it much of a talking point as he simply pointed out that events such as Bloody Sunday occurred and then moved on. It's understandable why he couldn't go into too much detail, but I would have preferred if he had committed a bit more time to the troubles. Otherwise this is a really well written book and it's fantastic to know that he's currently working on a book that focuses on the first half of the century which I will definitely be picking up.

I would rate this very highly and recommend it to anyone with even a light interest in the history of Britain. Ignoring all the typing errors that occurred from time to time you can really enjoy this as a casual book on history and can give you some great points that you can explore in much more detail.

the book was filled with interesting stories and analyses of how britain resurrected itself from the devastation of WWII to its present day (pre-Iraq) prosperity, with its dark undercurrent of nationalistic pride slowly eroded and later replaced by consumerism. as a non-brit, i learned of many interesting politicians in post WWII britain and the enormous and near-impossible task of running a country. the complexity and frustrations of governance were well captured by the initial optimism, no matter how well meaning, of each newly elected government, only to be constrained and shackled by the slow slog of any meaningful social change. no one was unscathed in mr. marr's incisive portrayal. i would recommend this book.

Like a lot of reviewers I enjoyed travelling down memory lane and revisiting the politics of the era in the Britain I grew up in (mid fifties to 1971). I hoped to learn what I missed out on 1971-77 and then some insight into the Thatcher years where I was living in London and the post years 1981 onwards. I did not mind the context of fashion/music/popular culture. I think coming into the bright lights of the sixties these were powerful influences on youth culture and much resented by the generation who had austerity of the depression then the war and post war years. But populist did strike me as a descriptor for this book and I was a little taken aback to think it was set reading for schools. Probably because critical thinking it is not, there appears to be too much opinion and speculation disguised as history. I found the Thatcher passages depressing in their predictability, particularly as Mr Marr appears to have caught well the malaise we face currently-world-wide not just Britain. That consumerism has overtaken and colonised politics. Thatcher and what she stood for and set free has a lot to do with that. I found the descriptions of the loss of industry such as the miners marginalised. I reflect on events such as the bravery of the women in the pickets who provided community support through food, shelter and emotional sustenance to families cracking under strain. Not perfect but better than anything celebrities from things such as Big Brother or cooking shows can offer. It also did little to give balance to Blair's term of office and his destruction of socialism for some nice fence sitting new labour that strangled the bollocks out of meaningful opposition to greed is good. Lastly, I guess I was disappointed as I was expecting more critique of the media and the control of most of us by a few who are basically off to hell in a trolley and taking us all down with them. I almost gave this four stars for it being such a good read but I think it could have provided more useful an insight.