On the Back of an Envelope - by Peter Hennessy (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

New and selected writings by one of the United Kingdom's leading contemporary historians.

As one of Britain's foremost constitutional experts and contemporary historians, Peter Hennessy has spent his professional life unpicking the arcane world of Whitehall and Westminster. He began his career as a journalist for the Times, the Economist, and the Financial Times, developing a network of insider contacts who helped him shine a light on some of the dustiest corners of the British establishment. As a journalist, prize-winning contemporary historian, and political commentator, he has chronicled the workings of the British state with wit, affection, and a healthy sense of the absurd over a five-decade career. Now a crossbench peer, he has, in his own words, "moved in with his exhibits." Hennessy is also a stalwart of BBC election night coverage and a regular commentator on BBC Radio 4, bringing a historical and constitutional perspective on current events.

In this new volume, he brings together selected journalism, unpublished lectures, and new writing alongside personal recollections and reflections on his time observing postwar Britain, how it is governed, and those who do the governing. He reflects on the making and unmaking of prime ministers from Attlee to Truss, life in the House of Lords, and the changing constitutional landscape in the wake of Brexit and amid uncertainty about the future of the Union. Interspersed with lectures, journalism, and new pieces, Hennessy also looks back at a fascinating career, reflecting on his own experiences as a young green graduate navigating the hard-nosed world of Fleet Street in the 1970s, bringing to life a cast of characters from a world now largely gone. He revisits his time as a public historian, academic, and crossbench peer with a levity reflected in his belief that history is "gossip with footnotes."

Review Quotes

"An entertaining, and often sobering collection. . . . In its pithy, personal yet panoptic tone, it is strongly reminiscent of Orwell's wartime essays--with the author's deep knowledge of contemporary politics and society worn very lightly."-- "Ian Cawood, the TLS"

"Hennessy is...driven by a romantic, almost sensual, fascination with British history, culture, and the quirky intricacies of British democracy and the government machine. His curiosity is insatiable, his memory infinitely capacious."
-- "The Spectator"

"Hennessy, unique among contemporary historians, understands politics from the inside out."
-- "The Times"

"No current historian is as versed as Hennessy in the internal cogs and springs of the British state, but he also has a keen eye for the luminous face of passing time."
-- "The Observer"

"One of the country's finest contemporary historians, Hennessy has tracked Westminster like no one else."-- "Financial Times"

"What makes him such a deft public historian is the way he stitches patches of rich local colour into a narrative with the widest possible reach."-- "The Guardian"

About the Author

Peter Hennessy is one of the United Kingdom's leading contemporary historians and is the Attlee Professor of Contemporary British History at Queen Mary University of London. He is the author of definitive books on the United Kingdom's prime ministers, constitution, civil service, and intelligence agencies. His award-winning works of contemporary history include Never Again: Britain, 1945-51, Having it So Good: Britain in the Fifties, and Winds of Change: Britain in the Early Sixties. He is the series editor of the Haus Curiosities, and his books published with Haus include The Bonfire of the Decencies, The Complete Reflections, and Land of Shame and Glory. Polly Coupar-Hennessy is a freelance editor and writer.