The fascists' press baron Friday, 22 November, 2024 The following letter was published in The New Statesman on 22 November. Lord Northcliiffe was the greatest press baron of his time, but cannot be censured for supporting fascism. It got substantial press backing from elsewhere. Alison Phillips (The Critics, 8 November) states that “Northcliffe supported Oswald Mosley’s Blackshirts and the Nazis”. That would have been difficult since Northcliffe... Articles
Boris Johnson at No 10: a Conservative historian's verdict 6th September 2022 The Guardian asked a small number of historians for their assessments of Boris Johnson’s time as prime minister. Their comments were incorporated in an article... Articles
A Prime Minister in "Siberia" 3rd September 2022 That is what Lord Salisbury called Balmoral. Alistair Lexden quoted the remark in a letter published in The Times on 3 September, in which he corrected a... Articles
A church without integrity: the letter they wouldn't publish 1st September 2022 Speaking in the Lords last September, Alistair Lexden condemned the Church of England for driving a priest, whom he knew well long ago, to suicide. Replying to... Articles
Wanted: a sensible system for choosing Conservative Party leaders 8th August 2022 Should Conservative Party members have the final say? There are many who think the choice should be made by elected MPs, who have to work day by day with the... Articles
Sir Henry's lesson 5th August 2022 The following letter, which was published in The Daily Telegraph on 5 August, was prompted by Boris Johnson’s supporters’ attempts to get his name on the ballot... Articles
Supermac and his successor 29th July 2022 Writing in The Times on July 26, William Hague said that “it is a struggle to find a single one of our 55 prime ministers who have given sustained approval to... Articles
Another Mordaunt 19th July 2022 The following letter was published in The Daily Telegraph on 19 July about a woman who had the same name as the Conservative leadership candidate, but bears no... Articles
How a disgraced policeman lives the life of Riley 19th July 2022 At oral question time In the Lords on 18 July, Alistair Lexden returned to the extraordinary saga of a shameful former chief constable, Mike Veale. He reminded... Speeches
Beware attempts to rewrite history 15th July 2022 Revolutionaries and terrorists invariably try to rewrite history in order to conceal their own crimes, and destroy the reputations of those they want to... Speeches
