The diaries : 1918-38 / Henry 'Chips' Channon ; edited by Simon Heffer.
By: Channon, Henry [author.]
.Contributor(s): Heffer, Simon [editor.].Publisher: London : Hutchinson, 2021Description: xx, 1002 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, photographs (black and white).Content type: text | still image Media type: unmediated Carrier type: volumeISBN: 9781786331816.Subject(s): Channon, Henry, 1897-1958 -- Diaries | Politicians -- Great Britain -- Diaries | Great Britain -- Politics and government -- 1936-1945 | Great Britain -- Politics and government -- 1910-1936DDC classification: 920 Summary: "Born in Chicago in 1897, 'Chips' Channon settled in England after the Great War, married into the immensely wealthy Guinness family, and served as Conservative MP for Southend-on-Sea from 1935 until his death in 1958. His career was unremarkable. His diaries are quite the opposite. Elegant, gossipy and bitchy by turns, they are the unfettered observations of a man who went everywhere and who knew everybody. Whether describing the antics of London society in the interwar years, or the growing scandal surrounding his close friends Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson during the abdication crisis, or the mood in the House of Commons in the lead up to the Munich crisis, his sense of drama and his eye for the telling detail are unmatched. These are diaries that bring a whole epoch vividly to life. A heavily abridged and censored edition of the diaries was published in 1967. Only now, sixty years after Chips's death, can the text be presented in all its unexpurgated and sometimes shocking glory. For the first time, readers can look over Channon's shoulder as he records Marcel Proust pouring out 'ceaseless spite and venom against the great' or Cecil Beaton's unfortunate encounter with a pond at Wilton House. We can trace a complex relationship with Edward VIII that began in equivocation and ended in both loyalty and deep sadness. We can get an insider's view of the major political figures of the era; the 'doormouse' Stanley Baldwin, the 'old time-server' Winston Churchill and 'shrewdest Prime Minister of modern times' Neville Chamberlain among them. And, on a personal level, we can chart Channon's journey from a youthful playboy to contented family man to betrayed husband. Above all, we get a vivid sense of what it was like to be a member of the highest English society in the 1920s and 30s, how its members behaved, and what shaped their opinions and prejudices. Chips Channon may have never been centre stage, but from his seat in the front row of the audience he has left us with a peerless record of an extraordinary period."-- Taken from book-cover.
| Item type | Current library | Collection | Class number | Status | Date due | Barcode | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Book | House of Lords Library - Palace Westminster Archives | Reserve Dewey | RESERVE 920 CHA (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | Available | 019148 | ||
| Book | House of Lords Library - Palace Dewey | 920 CHA (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | Available | 019143 |
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| RESERVE 920 CHA The navy and defence : | RESERVE 920 CHA The navy and defence : | RESERVE 920 CHA The diaries : 1938-43 / | RESERVE 920 CHA The diaries : 1918-38 / | RESERVE 920 CHA The diaries : 1943-57 / | RESERVE 920 CHU Europe unite : | RESERVE 920 CHU In the balance : speeches 1949 and 1950 / |
"This is the first of three volumes of the diaries of 'Chips' Channon. Volumes 2 and 3, covering the war and post-war years, will appear later in 2021 and 2022."-- Taken from book-cover.
"Born in Chicago in 1897, 'Chips' Channon settled in England after the Great War, married into the immensely wealthy Guinness family, and served as Conservative MP for Southend-on-Sea from 1935 until his death in 1958. His career was unremarkable. His diaries are quite the opposite. Elegant, gossipy and bitchy by turns, they are the unfettered observations of a man who went everywhere and who knew everybody. Whether describing the antics of London society in the interwar years, or the growing scandal surrounding his close friends Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson during the abdication crisis, or the mood in the House of Commons in the lead up to the Munich crisis, his sense of drama and his eye for the telling detail are unmatched. These are diaries that bring a whole epoch vividly to life. A heavily abridged and censored edition of the diaries was published in 1967. Only now, sixty years after Chips's death, can the text be presented in all its unexpurgated and sometimes shocking glory. For the first time, readers can look over Channon's shoulder as he records Marcel Proust pouring out 'ceaseless spite and venom against the great' or Cecil Beaton's unfortunate encounter with a pond at Wilton House. We can trace a complex relationship with Edward VIII that began in equivocation and ended in both loyalty and deep sadness. We can get an insider's view of the major political figures of the era; the 'doormouse' Stanley Baldwin, the 'old time-server' Winston Churchill and 'shrewdest Prime Minister of modern times' Neville Chamberlain among them. And, on a personal level, we can chart Channon's journey from a youthful playboy to contented family man to betrayed husband. Above all, we get a vivid sense of what it was like to be a member of the highest English society in the 1920s and 30s, how its members behaved, and what shaped their opinions and prejudices. Chips Channon may have never been centre stage, but from his seat in the front row of the audience he has left us with a peerless record of an extraordinary period."-- Taken from book-cover.