Simon Matthews

Every politician's rise to power is a story of success and failure, accompanied by tantalising what-might-have-beens. The career of Winston Churchill was no exception, with his eight months prior to becoming Prime Minister as First Lord of the Admiralty marked by the loss of important warships, the planning of disastrous expeditions and the design of impractical weapons. Based on archival and biographical research, this account argues that Churchill's actions at the Admiralty were for the most part misjudged and dangerous. Much of what happened could have been avoided, with lives saved and the defence of western Europe strengthened had other counsels prevailed. Very much the opposite of a hagiography, A Study in Failure provides an alternative perspective on the man regularly considered the UK's greatest ever leader.

Everything AND the Kitchen Sink analyses ''kitchen sink realism'' and the birth of ''pop cinema'' in the context of contemporaneous debates surrounding politics, civil liberties, sexuality, race, immigration and urbanisation. Covering the lives and careers of well-known figures such as Alan Sillitoe, Shelagh Delaney, David Storey, Edna O''Brien and Albert Finney, as well as charting the rise of iconic British series like Coronation Street and Z-Cars, Simon Matthews offers a fascinating blend of social history, pop culture, drama and cinema. Matthews also interviews contemporary figures - including Ken Loach - about the kitchen sink era and how it inspired their work.