The political machinations unveiled are entirely believable. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 20, 2018. While the initial barrage of political details may confuse American viewers, … RRP: £8.99. There was an error retrieving your Wish Lists. Please try again. Reviewed in the United States on January 9, 2010. --This text refers to the, A delicious fantasy... crisply written and the story belts along (, By the respected Labour back-bencher and diarist Chris Mullin|, Former steel worker Harry Mullins, has, against all the odds, led the Labour Party to a stunning victory at the general election. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading. If I had read this book six or seven years ago I would have probably have considered this tale far fetched but when you consider the media onslaught against the Labour party in general and Jeremy Corbyn in particular, then all of a sudden it may make you think doesn't it? A Very British Coup comes from a slightly earlier era(Thatcher) but demonstrates Mullin has a keen eye for how power works in the British system and the writing chops to make a firecracker of a story out of observations. Your recently viewed items and featured recommendations, Select the department you want to search in. Today, any radical British PM would not have to cope with the context of a Cold War against a communist enemy potentially undermining his position. My only disappointment in this fast paced story-line was that it was too short and too easy to finish off Harry. Against the odds, former steel worker Harry Perkins has led the Labour party to a stunning victory. . Try again. Details. This shopping feature will continue to load items when the Enter key is pressed. Nevertheless, it seems highly unlikely that a radical Labour government would not face the additional challenges faced by Harry Perkins. While the initial barrage of political details may confuse American viewers, the complexity soon clears and this miniseries becomes a gripping, dazzling feast of government machinations, media deviousness, and internal power struggles--leading up to murder, blackmail, and extortion. McAnally presents a much lighter character, more innocent times the 80s I guess. It morphs into a poor man's Frederick Forsyth novel in lots of way - plenty of descriptions of how things work, and you kind of feel you're getting some insider information now and then, but none of it hangs together that well as a story. Enter your mobile number or email address below and we'll send you a link to download the free Kindle App. "The Times" described it 'as rattling along with great speed and credibility'; the "New Statesman" saw it as 'a world of power struggle in Downing Street, Fleet Street, Whitehall and Washington'; while the "Observer" called it 'a delicious fantasy.' It also analyses reviews to verify trustworthiness. We use cookies and similar tools to enhance your shopping experience, to provide our services, understand how customers use our services so we can make improvements, and display ads. A Very British Coup: The novel that foretold the rise of Corbyn, Choose from over 13,000 locations across the UK, Prime members get unlimited deliveries at no additional cost, Dispatch to this address when you check out. The power of the unions, big business, finance and the press all play their part in how the story of Harry Perkins comes to an end, but it's a personal relationship outlined at the start of the book that comes back to haunt him in the final chapters. Its success as a TV series focused attention on the activities of people who would rather not have been noticed. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. Prime members enjoy fast & free shipping, unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows with Prime Video and many more exclusive benefits. --Bret Fetzer, "The entire cast is superb. A Very British Coup cunningly displays the tooth and claw of real politics, how personality and policy meld into action and subterfuge. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 21 October 2019. Sorry, there was a problem saving your cookie preferences. A Walk-On Part: Diaries 1994-1999 (Mullin Diaires 3), Head of State: The Bestselling Brexit Thriller, A View From The Foothills: The Diaries of Chris Mullin, As fascinating as it was entertaining when it was first published ... it's disturbing how much still resonates. Sadly, as the story unfolds, Mullin spreads his net too widely, so the bigger global themes (US-UK relations for example), don't really get developed fully. -- The Washington Post. Ray McAnally is fascinating as Prime Minister Harry Perkins, leading a fantastically skilled cast. Your recently viewed items and featured recommendations, Select the department you want to search in, Choose delivery method and buy Kindle Books. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 October 2018. McAnally is brilliant." First published in 1982, Mullin's A Very British Coup starts well and shows some real insights into how an extremist politician could take hold of a major political party and end up as PM. Before being elected as an MP, he worked as a journalist on the ITV documentary programme, The Final Cut (House of Cards Trilogy, Book 3), The Intellectual Life of the British Working Classes. Then there followed 'A very British Coup', a book serialised on British Television, which goes 'all-out' to describe how the likes of Harry Perkins could be dealt with if they ever came to power.