Just thinking of a few possible PODs in post-war British politics. Was reading a biog of Michael Foot the other day and his entry into the 1980 Labour leadership race was quite unexpected. He was '67 and looked older' and Peter Shore was anticipated to be the candidate of the left.
What if Foot decided not to run? Does that hand the leadership to Healey? Shore never looked a convincing leader and Benn wouldn't have had enough support among MPs.
The interesting thing is if modern political preferences were in play David Owen, the glamorous young ex-Foreign Secretary, would have been the hot favourite. At the time he wasn't even a contender.
What if Foot decided not to run? Does that hand the leadership to Healey? Shore never looked a convincing leader and Benn wouldn't have had enough support among MPs.
The interesting thing is if modern political preferences were in play David Owen, the glamorous young ex-Foreign Secretary, would have been the hot favourite. At the time he wasn't even a contender.