10,000 Not Out: The History of The Spectator 1828 - 2020

Description

There is no journal with a livelier and richer history than The Spectator. As well as being the world's oldest current affairs magazine, none has been closer to spheres of power and influence in Britain. Since its first appearance in 1828, during the dying days of the Georgian era, The Spectator has been ready to spar - with the Tories and their Prime Minister, the Duke of Wellington, with a corrupt political system, and with the lacklustre literary world of the day. Over the subsequent 54 Prime Ministers, The Spectator has not just watched the world go by but has waded into the fray: it has campaigned on consistently liberal lines, fighting for voters' rights, free trade, the free press and the decriminalisation of homosexuality, while offering open-minded criticism of every modern taboo and orthodoxy. 10,000 Not Out marks the magazine's 10,000th issue by recounting the turbulent and tortuous tale of its history, of 192 years chock-full of crises and campaigns, of literary flair and barbed wit. Eight chapters chart the evolution of the title - from radical weekly newspaper, to moralising Victorian guardian, to wartime watchdog, to satirical magazine, to High-Tory counsellor, to the irreverent but influential Spectator of the twenty-first century. The book weaves together copious quotations from the magazine's unparalleled archive, the contemporary press, private letters and staff anecdote.

David Butterfield is a Fellow of Queens' College, Cambridge, and Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Classics. His academic research covers Latin literature, ancient philosophy and the history of scholarship. Previous books have studied the philosopher-poet Lucretius, the polymath Varro and the scholar-poet A.E. Housman. Outside the classical world, he has written regularly on any subject other than politics for The Spectator, where he is a contributing editor.

"Butterfield's highly readable romp through its history reminds members of The Spectator club-it has always had a very clubby feeling-of editorial triumphs and disasters, commercial horrors and some remarkable luck." * Literary Review * "Few journals have cut such a dash through history and culture as The Spectator, and none have lasted as long. David Butterfield has immersed himself to excellent effect in the British magazine's billion-word digitized archives, paying tribute to a unique institution as influential now as at any time in its 10,000 issue history. . . . Butterfield's book demonstrates that [The Spectator] has simultaneously helped make and mirror the British psyche, and to read it is not just to read the mind of the British right, but also the heart of a complex country." * Chronicles * "The Spectator: the greatest magazine in the English language." -- Prime Minister Boris Johnson "A gem of a book-in the hands of a superb writer. Butterfield's attention to detail is fabulous, his storytelling magnificent and his playful affection for these often larger than life characters makes them leap off the page. A delight." -- Emily Maitlis, Newsnight (UK) "More than individually surprising discoveries about people and their strange ways, this history presents an intriguing moving picture of life inside Britain's oldest weekly." -- Christopher Howse, Daily Telegraph (UK) "A rich and beautifully crafted chronicle, often hilarious and always informative." -- A. N. Wilson, author of Prince Albert: The Man Who Saved the Monarchy "The Spectator has always had its own mind-and its own life. David Butterfield has written a first-class biography of that life: the highs and lows, the feuds and affairs, the best jokes, the worst decisions-it's a treasure trove. A brilliantly readable history of the magazine, its life and its times." -- Fraser Nelson, editor of The Spectator