Why did Soviet premier Nikita Khruschev say, if he were British, he'd vote Conservative?
1956 was the year that saw the Suez crisis and the brutal suppression of the Hungarian uprising. But before either of those events, Soviet leader Nikita Khruschev made a nine day visit to the United Kingdom. Included on a packed agenda, which saw the Soviet delegation tour the country, was a dinner with the Labour Shadow Cabinet. Almost immediately, the set-piece between Britain's left-wing party and the Russian communist leader got off to an awkward start - and ended with shouts of 'God forgive you!' across the dinner table.
In this episode, Lee and Richard mention the following books:
'The Last Liberal Republican: An Insider's Perspective on Nixon's Surprising Social Policy' by John Roy Price. Available here: https://amzn.to/3E7E9nd
'Ungovernable: The Political Diaries of a Chief Whip' by Simon Hart. Available here: https://amzn.to/4jpBlSx
Since Attlee & Churchill is the podcast all about post-war British political history, hosted by:
Lee David Evans is an historian of the Conservative Party and the John Ramsden Fellow at the Mile End Institute, Queen Mary, University of London. He is on social media @LeeDavidEvansUK.
Richard Johnson is a Senior Lecturer at Queen Mary, University of London, and among his other areas of expertise is an historian of the Labour Party. He tweets at @richardmarcj.