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  • Blue Murder

  • The Rise and Fall of the Conservative Government, 2010–2024
  • By: Ben Riley-Smith
  • Narrated by: Ben Riley-Smith
  • Length: 14 hrs and 17 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (58 ratings)

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Blue Murder

By: Ben Riley-Smith
Narrated by: Ben Riley-Smith
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Summary

'BRILLIANT' ANDREW MARR

'HAD ME OPEN-MOUTHED WITH AMAZEMENT' ED BALLS

'ESSENTIAL' JON SOPEL

'A GRIPPINGLY WRITTEN, DETAILED BOOK THAT ANSWERS SO MANY QUESTIONS' ISABEL HARDMAN

'SUPERB' EVAN DAVIS

The explosive full story of the past dozen years of Tory rule, from coalition to self-destruction; fully updated to include the general election.

Over the last decade, the British people have seen five different Conservative Prime Ministers, with five different missions and five messages to the nation. From the ashes of a financial crisis, to a break from the EU, to a global pandemic, governments - and ideologies - have changed, but Tory power has clung on. Merciless rebellion and the swift ousting of leaders have enabled this, and yet the same ruthlessness may ultimately bring about their downfall.

Witty, hair-raising and brilliantly sourced, Blue Murder links as never before stories of betrayal in Cameron's Coalition, the rifts behind the Referendum, the travails of May, the chaos of the pandemic, the sagas of Johnson, the Truss implosion and the Sunak patch-job.

Through his unique access and unmissable inside stories, acclaimed Westminster journalist Ben Riley-Smith's explosive account is essential for anyone wondering how the Tories kept changing, kept revolting - and kept winning. For readers of Tim Shipman and Rory Stewart, this is the first, fullest and frankest story of the entire Tory government.

Previously published as The Right to Rule
©2023 Ben Riley-Smith (P)2023 Hodder & Stoughton Limited
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What listeners say about Blue Murder

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Balanced Expose

Unlike most of the other observers on this period of political history, the author remains objective throughout.

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Very interesting.

A very interesting read. Gives insight into a nightmare 13 years. Can recommend. Author narrating his own book.

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Interesting chronology of recent conservative rule

Lots of corroborated information on recent events in parliamentary history. And the turmoil and shape shifting of the leading players

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Very interesting and well narrated

Enjoyed this overview with its insights into different perspectives and personalities within our recent political history

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Unpicking the confusion and turmoil

I follow Politics with a concerned interest, This book is wonderfully insightful, digestible and superbly narrated. Anybody wanting to read the facts around the recent Conservative Government would enjoy this presentation.
Bringing together the News headlines without the Author being judgemental. It can be all to easy to be emotive around Politics,

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Excellent read

Whilst I know most of the individuals stories, scandals and limited successes of the Tory Party over the last 13 years, this book did a great job of connecting them together and explaining why the party does what it does!

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Excellent analysis and well researched

A compelling and thoughtful analysis of the last 13 years. Meticulously researched and a pacy narrative. Highly recommended

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Detailed account

A very detailed account of the Conservative Party, really well written and narrated. I found the author overt evangelical when discussing Boris Johnson, and very quick to mention all the good he enacted, though attempts were made to discuss his pitfalls. But this is a minor point, the author on the whole was objective and well researched

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Not entirely as impartial as I’d hoped but …

… well worth a listen. The story of the last 13 years of British politics has to be understood so we can ensure it never happens again!

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Absolutely recommend

I heard the author on a podcast talking about this book and although my sort of thing, I frankly I went in expecting it not to add a huge amount to what I knew whilst I waited for Shipman 4. Completely wrong - a thorough insight into 11 of the key political events of the past 14 years and some great analysis on top. Definitely worth a listen !

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