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GREAT POLITICAL MISTAKES
Churchill | Thatcher | Attlee
Winston Churchill
Wednesday 11 May 2005 11pm-11.50pm; 2.50am-3.40am
This programme explains what to many is one of the great mysteries
of the pre-war years: how Churchill, who was so right about the
Nazi threat, was out of power for so long. This is the story of
his opposition to giving India a degree of independence at the beginning
of the 1930s - a campaign which confirmed his reputation as a man
of impulsiveness, bad judgement and disloyalty. The programme explains
why he supported the idea that a nation of 300 million should be
ruled by 100,000 British soldiers and administrators - when virtually
all mainstream politicians knew the Empire’s days were numbered.
And the programme also shows how, just as he was about to redeem
his reputation, Churchill made another political mistake over the
abdication.
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Margaret Thatcher
The story of Thatcher’s conversion to, and unwavering support for,
the poll tax - an inflexibility which played a major part in her
downfall. It played a part in her breach with Nigel Lawson, it provoked
the challenge to her leadership in 1989 by an obscure backbench
MP, which she failed to take seriously, and it encouraged the challenge
from Michael Heseltine and the desertion by her cabinet colleagues.
Throughout the history of the poll tax, Thatcher was warned of the
dangers, but failed to take them seriously - a politician brought
down by her own hubris.
Listen to BBC archive audio
interviews with Thatcher. She talks about privatisation,
and also about her regret that the community charge didn't work.
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Clement Attlee
The story of the signing of the Anglo-American Loan Agreement of
1945 - which was eventually to contribute to the downfall of the
Attlee government, the domination of the dollar in international
markets and the subservient relationship of Britain to the United
States. The programme starts with the mistake which Attlee made
only a month into office, when he trusted John Maynard Keynes to
pull off a deal on generous terms with the Americans. As the programme
shows there was no chance of this - as Keynes well knew. The ensuing
negotiations culminated in the signing of the Anglo-American Loan
Agreement, under which Britain had to borrow money on harsh terms
- every man woman and child in the country still owes £4.50 to the
Americans under this deal.
Hear BBC archive interviews with Clement Attlee from the 1940s and 50s. He talks about post-war economics and his life growing up.
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