#clement attlee

Recently I was skimming through PM ranking polls and found a gem in the footnotes. I stumbled upon a PDF of Facts about the British Prime Ministers — perhaps the ultimate compilation of stories and statistics about every Prime Minister up to John Major — who happened to write the book's foreword in 1995 as then-current Prime Minister.

These hefty reference books seem to have become a lost art with the proliferation of the internet since the century's turn — but its value as a research tool remains strong for those interested in both the personal and political lives of Prime Ministers.

Even the most overlooked Prime Ministers take on new dimensions in the book. Yes, names and dates remain central, but so do their own quotes and others' anecdotes about them — engaging a perspective blending both the office and the people holding it.

As an example, I've gathered a few excerpts on David Lloyd George:

Phew! That was a lot. Isn't it great we have Prime Ministerial profiles that show behind the office they were perhaps just little guys? Blorbo-esque, even?

By far the best section of each profile is the anecdotes list for every PM. Some are longer and more substantial than others, but very surprisingly, some of the best stories come from the most overlooked PMs — particularly Campbell-Bannerman ("CB") —

and Bonar Law —

but also John Major —

and some of the biggest names in British political history, too —

Aside from the very detailed personal and political histories of every PM until Major, what I appreciate most about this book is its versatile utility. It suits the research needs of both the RPF writer and the serious history enthusiast, but is rigorous enough to be cited in serious academic work, such as this journal article comparing various rankings of PMs in popular memory.

One major weakness, though, is that personal aspects like the anecdotes, quotes, and hobbies sections rely on the assumption that the secondary descriptor is being truthful, which doesn't always hold. For example, Philip Snowden cited this supposed quote by Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald in his autobiography, which appears in MacDonald's quotes section—

—although multiple MacDonald historians debate whether he actually said this and cannot agree on the exact wording:

Walter Reid, The Cancelled Prime Minister, ch. 13.

David Marquand, Ramsay MacDonald, p. 782. Marquand does not identify any direct MacDonald or Snowden quote of this sort, only that it was employed by MacDonald's enemies against him.

However, every Prime Minister has a further reading section in addition to many precise quotes from other works within the anecdotes and quotes sections:

Occasionally, I'll find multiple PMs in one quote, as with the Baldwin and Churchill excerpt earlier, but also with Wilson and Douglas-Home as well as Heath and Thatcher. It's great to see the connections between different PMs, especially before and/or after they attained the role.

But overall... I'd say despite being a chance find, this book has been a great discovery bridging the gravitas of formal political history with the whimsy of lolitics and historical RPF.

Do you have a favorite Prime Minister between Walpole and Major — or want specific information about a certain figure? Do let me know, and I'll dive back in to find whatever I can about your PM(s) of choice — some of these facts are shocking even to the seasoned PM enthusiast!

Day 2831, 15 March 2026

The Clement Attlee pub, Limehouse, London.