Roger's latest book, 'Two Minutes To Midnight; 1953, The Year of Living Dangerously', is out in paperback from Biteback in February 2022 - with a set of new photographs inside. It's the story of one of the most tense years in the early Cold War, with the nuclear arms build-up, the death of Stalin, the malign influence of Joe McCarthy, and the continuing war in Korea.
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In 14 May 1940, the Evening Standard published a cartoon ‘All Behind You, Winston’. It showed Churchill, the freshly installed prime minister, rolling up his sleeves to confront the oncoming menace of Nazi Germany. In his wake, leading the endless ranks of the British people, marches the most prominent figures of his new coalition government. It was a potent expression of a moment when Britons of every class were truly all in it together.
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On 3 May 1961, after a trial conducted largely in secret, a man named George Blake was sentenced to an unprecedented forty-two years in jail. At the time few details of his crimes were made public. By his own confession, he was a Soviet spy and rumours laters circulated that he had endangered dozens of British agents, but the reasons for his severe punishment were never revealed.
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Don Revie and Brian Clough were born a brisk walk away from each other in Middlesbrough, in 1927 and 1935 respectively. They were both brought up in that North East town which was ravaged by the Depression, and went on to become highly successful professional footballers – both playing for England. Then, as young managers, they both took clubs languishing in the doldrums (Leeds United and Derby County) and moulded them into championship winners.
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I’m a writer of contemporary history books that are underpinned by rigorous scholarship, enhanced by a journalist’s eye and driven by exciting storytelling.
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