Abstract
Sooner or later every prime minister becomes a former prime minister. From Sir Robert Walpole to Gordon Brown, Britain has had 52 prime ministers. There have been up to 2009, 51 former prime ministers. It is a small, exclusive ‘club’ — there have never been more than five former prime ministers alive at the same time, and there are currently just three living ‘members’ of the ‘club’ (Lady Thatcher, Sir John Major and Tony Blair). This book explores the experience of former prime ministers in Britain from the 18th century to the present day. What do they do after leaving the topmost office in British government?
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Notes
Peter D. Just, ‘United Kingdom: Life after Number 10 — Premiers Emeritus and Parliament’, Journal of Legislative Studies, vol. 10, no. 2 /3, 2004, pp. 66–78.
A.J.P. Taylor, British Prime Ministers and Other Essays (London: Penguin, 1999), p. 13.
Philip Williamson and Edward Baldwin (eds), Baldwin Papers: A Conservative Statesman 1908–1947 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), p. 475
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2010 Kevin Theakston
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Theakston, K. (2010). Introduction. In: After Number 10. Understanding Governance. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230281387_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230281387_1
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-30031-0
Online ISBN: 978-0-230-28138-7
eBook Packages: Palgrave Political & Intern. Studies CollectionPolitical Science and International Studies (R0)