wysall
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Post by wysall on Oct 8, 2023 16:12:54 GMT
Does anyone have any books on by-elections (or specific constituencies at general elections) to recommend? Anything in the last fifty years would be greatly appreciated.
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Post by greenhert on Oct 8, 2023 20:10:36 GMT
Does anyone have any books on by-elections (or specific constituencies at general elections) to recommend? Anything in the last fifty years would be greatly appreciated. Anything by F.W.S. Craig. Otherwise look for media articles. |
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andrewp
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Post by andrewp on Oct 8, 2023 22:12:39 GMT
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ColinJ
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Post by ColinJ on Oct 9, 2023 4:19:54 GMT
The first edition of this book was published in 1973 and includes chapters on notable by-elections from the period after WW1 up to and including the 1973 Lincoln by-election (I think). I found it an absolutely fascinating read and strongly recommended the item to the OP, even though it falls outside their main years of interest. Careful hunting on the internet should lead to a clean copy at reasonable price. |
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Post by carlton43 on Oct 9, 2023 7:28:59 GMT
The phrase you employ 'it is a bit dated' struck home with me! It was published in 1997, a full 4-years AFTER I had retired from the day job. |
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Post by arnieg on Oct 9, 2023 7:32:57 GMT
It is very specific to the circumstances, but I strongly recommend [in addition to the Chris Cook book]
Purple Homicide by John Sweeny about the Martin Bell v Neil Hamilton contest in 1997.
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wysall
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Post by wysall on Oct 9, 2023 9:35:25 GMT
Thanks to all for the recommendations. I’d searched for books about the Bermondsey by-election but alas to no avail; the only one I could find was by Tatchell from the aftermath. I’ll probably have better results searching for articles, having read one on the Darlington by-election and the Alliance campaign there a while back.
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Post by finsobruce on Oct 9, 2023 10:06:36 GMT
Robert Holt and John Turner's "Political Parties in Action : the Battle of Barons Court". (1964) An analysis (by two American academics) of the Barons Court seat at the 1964 General Election. Turner was also the author of "Labour's Doorstep Politics in London" (1978) "The General Election in Glasgow 1950" ed S B Chrimes - a series of essays by staff at Glasgow University R S Milne's "Marginal Seat - a study of voting behaviour in the Constituency of Bristol North East at the General Election of 1955". I can't find my copy of this at the moment, but iirc it's a bit dry.
Bealey, Blondel and McCann's "Constituency Politics - a study of Newcastle Under Lyme". (1965). Also not very exciting. ;(
It's surprising in a way that there aren't more books about constituencies, and by elections. I suspect there are many, many doctoral theses though. There is some sort of academic database for them I seem to remember?
Hugh Jenkins the Labour MP for Putney (1964-79) wrote a book about his constituency Labour party called "Rank and File" (1980).
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The Bishop
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Post by The Bishop on Oct 9, 2023 11:33:42 GMT
The earlier editions of the Nuffield series (The "British General Election Of....." books) had some very interesting and readable profiles of individual seat battles as well as the stuff they still do now, though I think these went by the wayside in the 1970s.
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ColinJ
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Post by ColinJ on Oct 9, 2023 12:40:22 GMT
Finso mentioned Milne's book. He also wrote one with H.C. Mackenzie on the 1951 election in Bristol N.E. It was called 'Straight Fight' and was published by the Hansard Society in 1954.
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wysall
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Post by wysall on Oct 9, 2023 12:48:59 GMT
The earlier editions of the Nuffield series (The "British General Election Of....." books) had some very interesting and readable profiles of individual seat battles in their earlier editions, though I think these went by the wayside in the 1970s. Indeed: they inspired me to ask the question! |
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ColinJ
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Post by ColinJ on Oct 9, 2023 12:50:03 GMT
And don't forget 'This England', written by Pete Davies. It is an entertaining portrait of the Calder Valley constituency at the 1997 GE.
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kevinf
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Post by kevinf on Oct 9, 2023 14:20:24 GMT
For data, the House of Commons Library publishes full details of by-election results each Parliament, which are handy.
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kevinf
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Post by kevinf on Oct 9, 2023 14:23:12 GMT
Eddie Milne, No Shining Armour, includes his by-election win in Blyth. Published 1976. Others will know, was ‘Our friends in the North’ partly based on this?
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kevinf
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Post by kevinf on Oct 9, 2023 14:29:03 GMT
It’s over 50 years ago, but ‘Hamilton - the by-election that transformed Scotland’ by James Mitchell (published 2017) about Winnie Ewing’s win is a good read and well researched.
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Sibboleth
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Post by Sibboleth on Oct 9, 2023 15:35:53 GMT
Eddie Milne, No Shining Armour, includes his by-election win in Blyth. Published 1976. Others will know, was ‘Our friends in the North’ partly based on this? Partially, though Eddie Wells was written as a much more moderate and agreeable figure than Milne (and so is back in the Party by 1979) and the character has elements of some other MPs in the area at the time as well.* And of course, like everything else, action was shifted to Newcastle. *And then, randomly and out of nowhere, Kevin Barron in the 1984 episode, in which a lot of things that happened in Yorkshire were shifted North. |
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Sibboleth
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Post by Sibboleth on Oct 9, 2023 15:42:27 GMT
Does anyone have any books on by-elections (or specific constituencies at general elections) to recommend? Anything in the last fifty years would be greatly appreciated. Marc Collinson is writing a book on the Smethwick constituency in the 50s and 60s, though it has not been published yet. He did a paper on the 1964 election and also the ensuing Leyton by-election about six years ago and has also published an article on the Ilford North by-election of 1978. |
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Post by matureleft on Oct 9, 2023 15:44:33 GMT
Joe Ashton's Grass Roots novel portrays a by-election campaign, heavily based on his 1968 Bassetlaw by-election.
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Post by yellowperil on Oct 9, 2023 17:53:01 GMT
It’s over 50 years ago, but ‘Hamilton - the by-election that transformed Scotland’ by James Mitchell (published 2017) about Winnie Ewing’s win is a good read and well researched. Perhaps someone should make it into a musical...  |
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Post by johnloony on Oct 9, 2023 19:50:03 GMT
“Lord Cledwyn of Penrhos” by Emyr Price, translated into English by Cris Jones, 1990, ISBN 0 905775 79 1
A biography, but it includes substantial information about his election campaigns in Anglesey - including three epic battles against the Liberal candidate Megan Lloyd George.
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