The real story of the 2007 ‘election that never was’

‘The election that never was’ is one of the most important events, or non-events, in recent British political history; if it had gone ahead, David Cameron might never have become Prime Minister and there might not have been a coalition at all. Equally, Gordon Brown could have seen Labour’s majority slashed and had to quit long before the financial crisis hit.

The story of what happened that day has been told several times. But I don’t think I’ve read a more gripping account than Damian McBride’s. McBride did disgrace himself but he can sure as hell write. If you like the political game, you really sure read it. (There’s also something intriguing about how McBride is doing all this stuff for free rather than taking the publisher’s pound and penning a memoir).

In terms of today, one of the most interesting things is McBride’s description of his falling out with Ed Miliband.