Everyday is Like Sunday
1964-1968: Harold Wilson (Labour) † [1]
def. 1964: Alec Douglas-Home (Conservative), Jo Grimond (Liberal)
def. 1966: Edward Heath (Conservative), Jo Grimond (Liberal)
1968-1971: Roy Jenkins (Labour) [2]
1971-1973: Edward Heath (Conservative) [3]
def. 1971: Roy Jenkins (Labour), Jeremy Thorpe (Liberal)
1973-1974: Aiery Neave (Conservative) [4]
1974-1974: Airey Neave (Conservative minority) †
def. 1974: Peter Shore (Labour), Tony Crosland (Democratic Labour), Trevor Jones (Liberal), John O'Brien (National Front), Tony Whittaker (Ecological)
1974-1979: Harold Macmillan, Earl of Stockton (Peer led Government of National Unity including Conservative, Democratic Labour, Liberal, Ulster Unionist) [5]
1-On the Second of June, 1968, Harold Wilson was gunned down in the street. His assassin had shot him because of what he read in the Daily Mirror- that Wilson had to be stopped as he was slowly shuffling the Country to and over the brink into disaster. Whilst Cecil King, the author, advocated a vague notion Parliamentary impeachment of the Prime Minister, the assassin had other plans when it became evident that Wilson would not be removed, and thus made Wilson one of only two First Lord of the Treasuries to be killed in office. Wilson survived in the initial shooting, despite being fired upon seven times at near close range- just long enough that he could say goodbye to Mary and the Children. Mourned by the country and granted a rare State Funeral, not an eye in Britain was dry, but as the black suits were put away and damp handkerchiefs stuffed back into pockets, the future kept its murky funeral shroud as Wilson's successor moved into No. 10.
2-Jenkins entered office on a flurry of goodwill. Formerly and controversial Home Secretary, a tough Chancellor, a europhilic Oxfordite, and from the right of the Labour Party, he would, in a sense, preside over Labour's last Government. Quickly the issues emerged- the economy was struggling, Trade Unions were revolting, the Party was divided, and worst of all, Ted Heath had found his voice. The unassuming Jenkins would be at the centre of this storm, fighting with his old friend and new Chancellor Tony Crosland over the issue of the Unions, and unexpectedly finding common ground with Barbra Castle on the same matter. The economy fared little better, with the surplus becoming deficit in '69, though decimalisation went with some ease, not that the British Public took comfort in this. James Callaghan would resign from the Home Office in 1970 following the passing of the Commonwealth Immigration Act, citing the emotional stress and the enduring depression he developed thanks to the job. His successor, Denis Healy, would be responsible for the implementation of the new Local Governments. On his part, they were something of a success, but they were nothing more that popping the bubbly on a sinking ship. Jenkins would stumble into a March election on the heels of fresh strikes, and despite a surprisingly energetic campaign, lost quiet badly, Labour sinking down to some 270 seats.
3-When Heath entered Downing Street, it was common knowledge his Premiership was that of a dead man walking. Inheriting an economy that was- as Heath would later remark candidly to his old friend Denis Healy- "fucked", and a situation with the Trade Unions that threatened to tear the country apart, Heath would throw himself into his work. But as pressure mounted, he retreated behind closed doors, interacting from behind close colleagues and television screens. Some joked that Heath had died and a secret council had taken control. Others took this more seriously, with the Conservative Parliamentary Party sighing relief when the Prime Minister appeared in Parliament. He became known as the 'Hermit Minister'. With the Trade Unions, he entered a duel; taking a hard line on strikers in an effort to 'break them' and the grip the Unions had, the Government enacted emergency measures, such as the long-weekends, at the height of the strikes. Heath, nor the Union bosses, blinked, at least until Bloody Sunday. A soldier, guarding non-union workers, shot and killed four strikers at a coal mine in Kent whilst trying to protect a convoy they had blocked. The nation seemed to imploded over night, with riots on a scale unseen in generations, martial law enacted in certain regions, with some even saying that the Trouble ridden Ulster was preferably to Hackney. In an attempt to placate the rioters, Heath stepped down as Prime Minister, although violence would continue as it took a nasty ethnic bent, though this was limited and easily dealt with as the majority dissipated.
4-Airey Neave's motivation for becoming Prime Minister is one that was for him personal. Personally dismissed by Heath following his heart attack in 1959 and feeling that his career had been clipped, the former spy found himself thrust into the perfect opportunity to prove his predecessor wrong, and it was an opertunity that he took on with vigour. Despite having only held minor roles in Government and on various select committees, Neave found the cloth of Leadership to be one that he fit comfortably within. With workers on strike and the social and economic fibers of Britain unraveling, Marital law was the name of the game, and it was a game that Neave intended to play until he won. But he would need a larger majority, he felt. Following some short legislation, Neave unexpectedly thrust the nation into a General election, taking advantage of the recent Labour split and resurgence of the Liberals in hopes he could divide and conquer. The opposite happened- a hung parliament, part in thanks to surge of the Ecological Party and National Front. As a result Neave opted to run a minority Government until he could negotiate a Coalition. Unfortunately, the stress of it all was to much for him, and he suffered a catastrophic heart attack a few days later; he would die at his desk, slumped over a letter from Tony Crosland reluctantly agreeing to form a Government.
5-On the heels of Neave's death, the nation needed a strong (and healthy) Leadership. The decision by the Queen to ask Harold Macmillan to form Government was thus something of a surprise, though, at least to her, not without some logic. Having met with her Cousin, Lord Mountbatten, a day after the election, though before Neave's sudden death, Mountbatten related to her the story of Cecil King's offer, and how he had turned him down when it was apparent treason. Whilst laughing off the idea, the notion of appointing a peer to lead the Government rooted itself, and after the sudden death of Neave, Her Majesty seriously considered the matter. Assembling the Privy Council, she sought advice on the matter. The Council was rightly split- the appointment of a Peer was drastic, and in many respects undemocratic. Others however, some with a vested interest in the idea, and others who believed that as the nation sunk further into a chaos a firmer hand was needed, were more responsive to the idea. Eventually the decision to appoint a Peer to Leadership of a Government of National Unity was agreed upon, though not before both Peter Shore stormed out of the meeting, declaring he would have no part in a 'Dictatorship'. The question of who would lead was quickly bought up- Mountbatten declined the invitation, Baron Hailsham- then Conservative Leader in the House- was to become Lord Speaker, and even Baron Shackleton, the Labour Leader in the Lords, was unresponsive to the idea. Instead, a face emerged from the crowd to volunteer for the role, the familiar whiskered face of Harold Macmillan, who would form this Unity Government a scant month after the election, and to unprecedented Controversy...
