Publisher's Synopsis
This is a collection of Brian Redhead's journalism from the last decade of his life, incorporating many of his idiosyncratic opinions, anecdotes and reflections. He brings a combination of outspokenness and humour to bear on great British obsessions, institutions and customs: the Welfare State, military bands, train travel, bank holidays, opinion polls, charities, honours, pensions and urban development. His appetite for local and global history is also apparent, with pieces on his adopted region, the North West, alongside articles on the Battle of the Somme and Thomas Jefferson. On the personal side, there are recollections of wartime evacuation and trips abroad, and reflections on being a grandparent.
