Unleashing Demons: The inspiration behind Channel 4 drama Brexit: The Uncivil War

by Craig Oliver

Overview

THE INSPIRATION BEHIND CHANNEL 4 DRAMA STARRING BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH - BREXIT: THE UNCIVIL WAR

MAIL ON SUNDAY BOOK OF THE YEAR

OBSERVER BOOK OF THE WEEK


'A compelling book' Evening Standard

'Essential' Sunday Times

'His soldier's dispatch is easy to read and vividly illustrates a sense of rising panic and embattlement. If you want to know what it was like to be there at the time, in the eye of a frenzied storm, then [Unleashing Demons] should be bought...' Andrew Marr, Sunday Times

'Vivid and immediate...It paints a brutally honest portrait of the British political class' Mail on Sunday

'A must-read account of history as it happened' Matt D'Ancona

'Jauntily written...naughty fun' Quentin Letts

'Unleashing Demons...has the vividness and pace of a political thriller. Extraordinarily candid...' Financial Times

'A fascinating book' Robert Elms, BBC

'The book that will set Westminster ablaze' Mail on Sunday

'Gripping reading' New Statesman

'Utterly fascinating...indispensable to appreciating this extraordinary phase in our history.' John Simpson

'The compelling insider's account' Nick Robinson

'This is one of the most vivid, frank and exciting inside accounts to have been written for years.' Anthony Seldon

'A gripping fly-on-the-wall account.' Robert Peston

As David Cameron's director of Politics and communications, Craig Oliver was in the room at every key moment during the EU referendum - the biggest political event in the UK since World War 2.

Craig Oliver worked with all the players, including David Cameron, George Osbourne, Barack Obama, Angela Merkel, Jeremy Corbyn, Boris Johnson, Michael Gove, Theresa May and Peter Mandelson.

Unleashing Demons is based on his extensive notes, detailing everything from the decision to call a referendum, to the subsequent civil war in the Conservative Party and the aftermath of the shocking result.

This is raw history at its very best, packed with enthralling detail and colourful anecdotes from behind the closed doors of the campaign that changed British history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781473652477
Publisher:	Hodder & Stoughton, Ltd.
Publication date:	10/04/2016
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Before entering 10 Downing Street as Director of Politics and Communications, Craig Oliver was an award-wining journalist. His roles included editing the BBC's News at Six and Ten, Controller of the World Service and Executive Editor of ITV's flagship news programmes. He has three daughters and lives in London.

Table of Contents

Preface: Referendum Night 1

Introduction 9

January

1 We Are All Just Prisoners Here 15

2 Famous Last Words 22

3 Remind Me Whose Idea This Was? 33

4 She Could Be PM in Six Months 43

February

5 Who Do EU Think You Are Kidding? 59

6 What It's Like to be Ed Miliband 68

7 The Domino Theory 79

8 Clash of the Titans 89

9 I Have No Other Agenda 101

March

10 The Price of Labour Will Go Up 111

11 An Honest Man 123

12 Well, This Is a Mess 135

13 The One Word He Didn't Use 144

April

14 It's Been a Difficult Few Days 157

15 We've Just Got to Win This Thing 170

16 Who's Up for a Threesome? 180

17 To the Back of the Queue 190

18 We'll Get Back to You 200

May

19 World War Three 215

20 Welcome to the Labour Party 227

21 We Can't Be Complacent 239

22 A Sticking Plaster on a Gaping Wound 250

23 Attempted Coup 260

June

24 I Know Waffle When I Hear It 273

25 You're Killing Us 282

26 This Is Giving Me a Heart Attack 294

27 We Need a Fluke to Win This Now 309

28 Nigel, You're No Fisherman's Friend 324

29 A Voice of Compassion 333

30 This Truly Is a Leap in the Dark 343

31 It's Supposed to be About Europe 353

32 Referendum Day 362

After

33 Like Jokers at an Auction 375

34 What Went Wrong? 382

35 The Last One Standing 390

Epilogue: 'And so …?' 395

Acknowledgements 407

Index 409

Editorial Reviews

A compelling book—Evening Standard

Part memoir, part diary, this is one of the most vivid, frank and exciting inside accounts to have been written for years. It points its forensic beam into the inner sanctums of power during one of the most crucial episodes in British history since the war. Stunning and highly readable. It will make uncomfortable reading for a few, but hugely enlightening and enjoyable reading for the many.—Anthony Seldon

Craig Oliver's account of his time as David Cameron's Director of Communications in Downing Street during the EU referendum will almost certainly prove to be the most important document for understanding what happened and why it all ended as it did. Oliver has managed the difficult trick of being frank as well as loyal, and his words have a remarkable immediacy. I found his book utterly fascinating, and I suspect that every historian of the period will regard it as indispensable to appreciating this extraordinary phase in our history.—John Simpson

A gripping fly-on-the-wall account of the frenzy in Downing Street during the EU campaign.—Robert Peston

Wish you could have been a fly on the wall of Number 10 during the EU referendum campaign? No need. This is the compelling insider's account of the man who was at the centre of the Downing Street web as David Cameron took the decisions which led to Britain voting to leave the EU.—Nick Robinson

From the Publisher