Tom McTague – Between the Waves: The Hidden History of a Very British Revolution 1945-2016

‘A lucid, thoughtful and richly provocative book’ – The Sunday Times

A riveting story of the clashing ideals that have pulled at Britain’s public imagination for more than seven decades, Between the Waves chronicles the battle of ideas, events and personalities that first took the country into the Common Market in 1973… only to take it out of the EU in an explosive referendum a little over 40 years later.

In a story of ambition and underhand politics, of nation, identity and belief, Tom McTague unearths the roots of ideological conflict that raged between the leading politicians of the 20th century as they fought for the future of Europe – Charles de Gaulle, Harold Macmillan, Jean Monnet, Enoch Powell and Margaret Thatcher. Alongside these famous figures are the lesser-known actors in Britain’s great post-war drama: a coterie of Eurosceptic student radicals, eccentric billionaires and political strategists who turned the tide of history.

Tom McTague is the Editor-in-Chief of The New Statesman. He has previously held positions as Political Editor at UnHerd and The Independent on Sunday, staff writer at The Atlantic and Chief UK Correspondent at POLITICO. He has been highly commended at the British Press Awards and co-anchored the geopolitical history podcast These Times. He is co-author of Betting the House, named by The Times as a 2017 Political Book of the Year. He grew up in County Durham in the northeast of England and now lives in London with his wife and three children. Between the Waves is his first work of history.

Tom will be interviewed by Jo Durrant, now a regular Festival event chair. Jo is a broadcaster, event host, podcaster, and presents the award-winning arts & science podcast Jo Durrant’s Beautiful Universe.