Podcast
Churchill: The Finest Half Hour
Hosted by Prof. Richard Toye and Dr. Warren Dockter · EN
The life of Winston Churchill discussed by Professor Richard Toye and Dr. Warren Dockter.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
10episodes
Episodes
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Series 8: Up Close and Personal Episode 3
5d ago00:29:17Tap to summarizeJohn 'Jock' Colville was a civil servant in 10 Downing Streeet in 1940 - and he viewed Churchill's arrival as Prime Minister with much scepticism.Professor Richard Toye and Dr. Warren Dockter explain why Colville's doubts about Churchill evaporated - and how he recorded his wartime experiences working at Churchill's side in a diary which is an invaluable resource for historians.They reveal too how Colville's loyalty continued in Churchill's second premiership, when Colville played a key role in keeping Churchill's health problems from the public. And how Colville became one of the great defenders of Churchill's reputation and builders of his legacy, leading the successful efforts to create Churchill College, Cambridge, as national memorial to the politician he'd served so faithfully. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Series 8: Up Close and Personal Episode 2
2w ago00:30:07Tap to summarizeIn the Second World War. one of Churchill's closest working relationships - and perhaps the most significant - was with the senior commander Alan Brooke, Chief of the Imperial General Staff from December 1941.It was a relationship which Brooke frequently found maddening, as he recalled in his diaries. But it was also productive.Professor Richard Toye and Dr. Warren Dockter analyse a partnership which helped shape British and Allied military strategy. And which arguably showed Churchill - brilliant, energetic, impetuous and frustrating - at his most Churchillian. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Series 8: Up Close and Personal Episode 1
3w ago00:30:20Tap to summarizeOne man was right by Churchill's side from the dramatic summer of 1940 right throught to Churchill's death in 1965: his doctor, Charles Wilson, aka Lord Moran. In 1966, Lord Moran published a book - 'Churchill: The Struggle for Survival' - which discussed Churchill's physical health and alleged that he suffered from depression, the so-called 'black dog'.Professor Richard Toye and Dr. Warren Dockter discuss the contents of Moran's book, its value as a source on Churchill's life and the hostile reaction to its publication from Churchill's family, who believed Moran had abandoned medical ethics. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Series 7: Churchill and Ireland Episode 3
4w ago00:29:18Tap to summarizeWinston Churchill's relationship with Ireland and Irish politics was complex and controversial.Churchill had a hand in partition and the creation of the Irish Free State. In the Irish Civil War. Then in the Second World War, Churchill's desire to access Irish ports led to testy dealings with the Irish government - and radical plans for the unification of north and south.Professor Richard Toye and Dr. Warren Dockter explore the complexity, controversy - and drama - in this episode of Churchill: The Finest Half Hour. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Series 7: Churchill and Ireland Episode 2
May 2800:31:35Tap to summarizeProfessor Richard Toye and Dr Warren Dockter discuss Churchill's role in the war which began in Ireland in 1919, including Churchill's journey from the 'hawk' who refused to condemn atrocities by British troops to the 'dove' who argued for a negotiated settlement.They explore Churchill's role in the treaty of 1921 which led to the creation of the Irish Free State and Churchill's relationship with the Irish military and political leader Michael Collins, who established a rapport with Churchill but noted to himself: "Don't actually trust him." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Series 7: Churchill and Ireland Episode 1
May 2100:32:07Tap to summarizeProfessor Richard Toye and Dr. Warren Dockter explore Winston Churchill's long, complex and controversial relationship with Ireland and Irish politics.Beginning with Churchill's earliest childhood memories, they follow Churchill's political journey on most intractable political issue of the age, Irish Home Rule. They explain how Churchill abandoned the Conservative Party and the outspoken Unionism of his father, joining the Liberals and, as a Cabinet minister, making forthright speeches in favour of Home Rule - endangering his personal safety in the process. Until the outbreak of the Great War changed everything... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Series 6: Churchill and the General Strike Episode 3
May 1400:31:09Tap to summarizeProfessor Richard Toye and Dr. Warren Dockter discuss Winston Churchill's role in ending the General Strike on the government's terms, the enduring effect on his relationships with trades unions and the Labour Party - and the impact on his reputation in subsequent decades. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Series 6: Churchill and the General Strike Episode 2
May 700:29:13Tap to summarizeMay 1926. The General Strike is underway and dividing the nation. Winston Churchill leads the government's propaganda effort through its newspaper 'The British Gazette' highlighting alleged Soviet support for the strikers and casting the dispute as a threat to the parliamentary democracy. Professor Richard Toye and Dr. Warren Dockter deliver the inside story in this episode, 'The Red Menace and the Blue Pencil'. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Series 6: Churchill and the General Strike Episode 1
Apr 3000:31:13Tap to summarizeMarking 100 years since Britain's General Strike in May 1926, Professor Richard Toye and Dr. Warren Dockter explore Winston Churchill's central - and controversial - role in the government's response to the nation's first and only General Strike.They tell how Chancellor of the Exchequer Winston Churchill put himself in the front line of a propaganda war, founding a newspaper to promote the government's line, attempting to take over the BBC and casting the strike as an attack on the constitution rather than an industrial dispute. For Churchill, there was no middle ground here. It was a case of being on the side of the fire or the fire brigade. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Series 5: Young Man in a Hurry Episode 5
Apr 2300:28:44Tap to summarizeProfessor Richard Toye and Dr. Warren Dockter discuss Winston Churchill's dramatic involvement in the Battle of Omdurman in 1898, when the British cavalry charged the Dervish army - and Churchill sought the fame and glory which might fuel his political ambitions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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