Tony Blair: Prime Minister

By John Rentoul

John Rentoul's first biography of Tony Blair appeared in 1995, not long after the politician's election as leader of the Labour Party. Two years later Blair presided over the party's landslide... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0751530824
• ISBN13: 9780751530827
• Release Date: October 2001
• Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
• Length: 640 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.5" x 1.7" x 4.8"

Customer Reviews

Rentoul's Blair

John Rentoul's biography of Tony Blair is a must read for those who want to understand him. The book is scholarly enough to use as a text in comparative politics. It also gives enough character development to understand who Blair is, how he was developed as a man and what Britain's youngest Prime Minister in the 20th century is like. The text certainly gives a clear view of "The Third Way" philosophy of Blair's tenure which eschews unfettered capitalism and old labor socialism. Rentoul also illuminates Blair's Christian moral beliefs without ignoring the character of a young rock musician. It is the best biography yet of Britain's most dynamic leader.

Tony Blair - A Reverent Prime Minister and Politician

On 4-th of july 1964,Tony was woken by his mother in the morning and as soon as he heard the first words coming out from his mother - he knew that something wasn't right and he was rightabout that.Tony's father had a stroke and it wasn't sure whether he's gonna make it or not.This day was the day when Tony's childhood ended,a day when his political ambition began, a life which taught him the value of the family and real friends who walked with his family in the worst moments of their lives.Tony,a child of strict parents about manners :Was always polite,kind,helpful towards other people and he enjoyed the attention so much so when he is only 16 years old he formed a group named The Pseuds - to act.Soon, as a 'gifted guitarist' he starts meeting people of the same interest and talked about getting into the music world.He loved The Rolling Stones and they were going to be the next Led Zeppelin or Free (Tony's most favorite bands).So...the band "Ugly Rumours" is formed and THE LEAD SINGER-with a fantastic voice is someone such as : the future prime minister of Great Britain - TONY BLAIR....John Rentoul's biography of Tony Blair-(was made to read easy as novel, even though it was Tony's life to make that possible). It is a well-researched book and tells just about everything you'd want to know about Tony Blair.

TONY BLAIR Prime Minister by John Rentoul

With the advent of what may become the second Gulf War, Tony Blair-Prime Minister is a comprehensive biography of the leader of America's closest ally. Prime Minister Tony Blair is an unlikely choice to be the foreign leader closest to President George W. Bush. British Journalist, John Rentoul has written about the rise and times of Tony Blair from his roots in a middle class British family to that of a rising socialist politician who became leader of the "New" Labor Party and Prime Minister of Great Britian. Rentoul traces Blair's family and their political leanings. Blair's father Leo Blair was born to a pair of actors and given to a James and Mary Blair in Glasgow. Leo Blair as a teenager was a member of the Scottish Young Communist League and had ambitions to become a Communist Member of Parliment. However, after service in World War II as a member of the Royal Signal Corps, Leo Blair underwent a political conversion. Upon leaving the military he became a member of the Conservative Party. Leo Blair married Blair's mother Hazel from a strongly Protestant family from County Donegal while working at the Ministry of National Insurance in Glasgow. Leo Blair studied law eventually becoming a lecturer in Administrative Law at the University of Adelaide in Australia and eventually the University of Durham in Durham. Leo Blair eventually became a practicing barrister and active in the local Conservative Party.Tony Blair was the second of three children. He is described as being the child most like his father Leo. In the opening chapter of the book it states "Tony Blair's political ambition began at age of eleven, when his father Leo's ended, on 4 July 1964. At the age of forty, at the height of his political powers and looking for a Conservative parlimentary seat, Leo Blair had a stroke." However, the book indicates that many of Blair's acquaintances during his school and law school years were suprised when he decided to become active in politics. Blair was not a member of any political clubs while in school or in-between. Blair had been a singer and manager of a rock n roll band "The Ugly Rumors", had long hair and a van. Unlike his American political counter parts, he never experimented with drugs, smoked marijuana or was seen drunk. In response to the question of whether he ever smoked marijuana, he said no, but if he had "he would have inhaled" in a jab at his friend President Bill Clinton. One of the suprising discoveries found in the book about Tony Blair is his Christian Socialism. Unlike many American politicians not much mention has been made of the fact he has been a confirmed Christian since his Oxford days. Moreover, he is the only British Prime Minister since Gladstone known to regularly read the Bible. Tony Blair and his wife Cherie Blair are as political a couple as the Clintons. Both have worked in local politics and both have run for seats in Parliment. When Blair ran his first successful race for