On the Back of an Envelope : A Life in Writing

Hennessy, Peter

Haus Publishing（2025/10発売）

Haus Publishing（2025/10発売）

• 製本 Paperback:紙装版/ペーパーバック版／ページ数 306 p.
• 言語 ENG
• 商品コード 9781914979323
• DDC分類 320.941

Full Description

One of Britain's foremost constitutional experts, Peter Hennessy has spent his five-decade career unpicking the arcane world of Whitehall and Westminster as a journalist, prize-winning historian, and political commentator. In doing so, he has chronicled the workings of the British state with wit, affection, and a healthy sense of absurd. 

In On the Back of an Envelope, he reflects in his time observing post-war Britain and its governance, considering the making and unmaking of prime ministers from Attlee to Truss, the role of the Monarchy, and the changing constitutional landscape in the wake of Brexit and in the midst of uncertainty about the Union. Interspersed with lectures, journalism, and new pieces, Hennessy looks back at a fascinating career, reflecting on his own experiences in the hard-nosed world of Fleet Street in the 1970s and bringing to life a cast of characters from a world now largely gone. He also revisits his time as a public historian, academic, and crossbench peer with a levity reflected in his belief that history is 'gossip with footnotes'.

Contents

Preface: (North) Circular Thoughts // xv

Part One: Formations // 5

Part Two: Crown and Constitution // 87

Part Three: Prime Ministers, Parliament, and Politicians // 152

Part Four: On Crown Service // 252

Acknowledgements // 303

Also by Peter Hennessy // 305