“I had not before encountered this sort of ambition, unabashed frankly egotistical, communicating it’s excitement, and extorting sympathy.
It was not that he was without the faculty of self-criticism. He could laugh of his dreams of glory and he had an impish fun.”
Unnamed journalist from the Manchester Guardian. The Rest is History podcast episode 241, Young Churchill: Prisoner and Fugitive
That from The Rest is History podcast, with Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook. The backstory here is young Churchill is traveling on a ship with a journalist from the Manchester Guardian. After spending a few days observing young Winnie this was his brilliant description.
Ambition combined with the ability to laugh at one’s self. Potent mix, that.
Listen to more exquisite Rest of History pods below:
719. Revolution in the Soviet Empire: The Hungarian Uprising (Part 1) – The Rest Is History
What triggered the Hungarian Revolution in 1956? Was Stalinism still the major political force in Hungary, even after the paranoid dictator’s death? And, how did the revolution almost bring down the Soviet Empire during the peak of the Cold War?
Join Dominic and Tom as they delve into the tragic, dramatic story of the Hungarian Revolution, which brought the seemingly indomitable USSR to the brink of disaster…
Join The Rest Is History Club: Unlock the full experience of the show – with exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening, early access to every series and live show tickets, a members-only newsletter, discounted books from the show, and access to our private Discord chatroom. Sign up directly at therestishistory.com.
To read our new newsletter, sign up at: therestishistory.com/newsletters_______
Advertise with us: Partnerships@goalhanger.com_______
Sign up to Revolut at revolut.com/trih and get £20 when you spend. 18+, end date 30/06/2027 and promotion T&C's apply. Revpoints T&C's apply.
_______
This episode is sponsored by Anthropic, the team behind Claude. Try Claude for free today at http://Claude.ai/restishistory.
_______
Twitter:
@TheRestHistory
@holland_tom
@dcsandbrook
Video Editors: Jack Meek, Harry Swan + Adam Thornton
Social Producer: Harry Balden
Producers: Tabby Syrett & Aaliyah Akude
Senior Producer: Callum Hill
Executive Producer: Dom Johnson
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
