Hello.
Gordon. It's me.
I've called... because I think we should meet.
I want to know your decision.
Oh, I bet you do.
Also, I think it's important that you and I resolve this somehow,
make things better.
Sometimes you can't have everything.
Besides, I have plans tonight.
Please?
I sense this is a crucial moment, not just for us.
For us all.
What did you have in mind?
Granita?
Oh, that's... Islington.
Or we can go somewhere else.
No, no, no. That's fine.
But let's make it early. I need to get away.
8:00?
Um... whatever.
I'll see you there.
We should really get going.
Would you like a glass of wine while you're waiting?
- Why not? - Newspaper?
Thanks.
Thanks, Philippe.
Let me say this, there's nothing trivial
about the fundamental issues of this campaign.
Either we carry on under a Conservative government,
or else we go to the alternative,
and the alternative which would be a Labour government
consists of the most extreme program
I have ever seen laid before a British electorate.
George Hunter, SMP:
2,573.
Gordon Brown, Labour:
18,515.
And I hereby declare the new member for Dunfermline East
is Gordon Brown.
By 2:30, ITN's Alastair Burnett
was able to confirm the Conservative victory.
The Labour leader, Mr Foot, called it a tragedy.
He's under pressure to resign after his party's disastrous showing.
The election has changed the political map of Britain.
Labour, decimated in Southern England,
is restricted to its industrial stronghold.
The other parties are scattered thinly...
Mr Smith said to look after you, sir,
find you a handy office.
Have you got a moment?
It seems we have an accommodation problem.
Dave Nellist...
Trotskyite Solidarity, Coventry South East...
has been put in an office with the new fella from Sedgefield.
Not a marriage made in heaven.
No.
The Chief Whip was wondering if you'd take him in here.
Who? Nellist?
Oh, no. The other one.
Where?
You can make room on that side of the desk.
Besides, you knew you'd have to share eventually.
You'll like him.
He's a lawyer. Very bright.
Tell him to give me a call.
Actually, I have him here with me now.
Hi. Tony Blair.
Thanks for agreeing to this.
Right. I'll leave you to it.
Thanks, John.
Well... I like the view.
So what did you do to upset Dave Nellist?
Do? Nothing.
Let's just say our political philosophies didn't match.
From London, aren't you?
Yes. Although, originally, I was brought up in Durham.
I was actually born in Scotland,
which, technically, I suppose, makes me Scottish.
What about you?
Technically, I'm Scottish, too.
- From? - Fife.
And your seat?
Dunfermline East. Yours is Sedgefield, isn't it?
Yes.
Do you have history in Sedgefield?
No. Not really.
And you ran in the by-election at Beaconsfield, if I remember.
And got hammered.
Any Labour candidate would get hammered at Beaconsfield.
How did you get Sedgefield?
Connections, I suppose.
Maybe that's what Nellis picked up on, and that's why you fell out.
No, Nellis and I fell out because, with respect,
he and his Militant Tendency friends
are entirely responsible for this election defeat.
I mean, look, this party has about 18 months left to live.
The sooner it modernizes, the sooner it expels him
and the rest of those dinousaurs, the better.
The desk over there.
# The people's flag is deepest red #
First off all, I'd like to thank the Chartists and the Suffragettes
who gave every working man and woman a vote in this country.
If we remain united, not only will we never be defeated,
but in the process,
we'll roll back the years of Thatcherism.
# Though cowards flinch and traitors sneer #
# We'll keep the red flag flying here #
# Get them out #
# Make them work #
# Give them a factory, take them away #
# Get them out #
# Make them work #
Did you get one of these?
Invitation to a Militant fundraiser.
Yeah, but I can't go.
Why not?
I don't possess a Crimplene suit.
Or a flat cap, I expect.
Besides, when I say comrade, it comes out wrong.
Try it.
Comrades!
It needs to be more "Comrades!"
Comrades!
Oh, I believe congratulations are in order.
Your wife, she's expecting a baby.
Yes, she is.
Thanks.
What about you? Do you mind my asking?
What about me?
What are your circumstances?
Because I heard this fabulous rumor
that you were seeing a princess from Romania or something.
Is it true?
That was a long time ago. If you don't mind,
I'd like to get on with my maiden speech.
Don't bust a gut. It's all pro forma.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for allowing me to make my maiden speech.
As a new member for blah,
I hope I can equip myself as well
as the Honorable Members who preceeded me.
Respectful, anonymous, short.
Whatever you say.
Mr. Gordon Brown.
Hear! Hear!
Mr. Speaker,
having listened intently to the front bench speeches,
I am grateful for the opportunity
to make my first speech in this chamber.
The chance of a laborer getting a job in my constituency
are 150-1 against.
For nearly 500 teenagers who just left school,
there was only one job in the local careers office.
Where will the new jobs come from?
I'd like to ask the minister...
Excuse me.
...if he still believes, as he did in 1978,
that there are plenty of jobs around for the unemployed
as window cleaners.
You will recall that he wrote
that to become a window cleaner, little equipment was needed:
A bucket, a leather or two, and a ladder.
That's the Government's answer to mass unemployment
is for Britain to become a nation of window cleaners.
When the Prime Minister talked during the election
about ladders of opportunity,
I had not realized that the next Conservative Government
had something so specific in mind.
Well, the papers all agree. A star is born.
Let us consider what Gordon's speech really achieved.
The Tories will be out for his blood.
His Labour colleagues know he is the one to nobble.
He wilfully ignores
what any student of recent politcal history could have told him:
The bigger the splash with your maiden speech,
the greater the political obscurity in the long term.
Yes. Oh, yes.
Get a round in.
So, how does it feel a few months on?
Strange. You know, when you first seat,
you want to change the world,
but what can you do against a majority that size?
And the Tory?
How's he?
Which one? You need to be more specific.
There are 263 of the sods.
The one in your office.
Him? Blair? No, no. He's very bright.
He's got some good ideas. Yeah. He's great.
So she turns on this poor bugger like a lion on some antelope.
"And tell me, Michael,
"How many people do you think voted for you in the election?"
To which he replies,
"I can tell you exactly, Margaret. 30,463."
"Well, let me remind you, just so you don't forget.
"The 30,000 were for me.
The 463 were for you. "
Neil Kinnock elected as leader of the Labour Party.
Remember how you felt
on that dreadful morning of June 10th.
Just remember how you felt and think to yourselves,
June 9th, 1983,
never, ever again will we experience that.
Is it ready?
You only gave it to me half an hour ago.
Come on.
We're going to be late.
Utterly indigestible, isn't it?
Not for a lawyer. I actually found the stuff about ballots
and the legal implications quite interesting.
So what does John actually want us to do?
No. It's this way. Bloody maze, this place.
What does John want us to do?
We'll never be able to affect the outcome of the bill,
not with their majority.
We can make a nuisance of ourselves,
give the hacks something to write about.
I have listened to the points raised by Opposition members,
have noted their desire to winkle out
the Government's intentions.
There is no need to winkle.
The government's intentions were made perfectly clear
the day the bill was published.
Mr. Chairman, I think the one thing
we cannot accuse the government of in this bill
is being perfectly clear.
When it suggested
that changes in the legislation should be effected
across a reasonable time period.
Perhaps the minister could be more specific.
We would like to suggest a more specific time frame.
Namely?
Namely...
Five years.
Five years! I mean, That is absurd!
I accept in extraordinary circumstances
a union may be granted six to nine months.
Could the minister be specific about which union?
The TGWU and the NUT,
as obliquely referred to in paragraph 4, subsection...
This is outrageous. I cannot speak without interruptions...
Correction. What is outrageous here
is the Government straitjacketing the trade unions.
I would remind the minister
that in almost all Western European democracies,
there is no state interference
in the constitution of trade union movement.
In his book Two Cheers For Democracy,
E. M. Forster said the first cheer
was because democracy permitted variety.
The second because it admitted criticism.
These factors are obviously unknown in today's government.
Well done, boys. That's about as much fun
as you can have in this job without losing your seat.
Gordon, well done. That was terrific. Congratulations.
Well done.
Mr. Smith.
It's Peter Mandelson. He's all right.
Did you see his socks?
No.
They were bright bloody orange.
So?
Would you trust a man who wears brightly colored socks?
- Mine are blue. - Blue?
Which I hope indicates nothing other than I support Raith Rovers
and that my black ones are in the bloody wash.
Outdated, misplaced,
irrelevant to the real needs.
And you end in the grotesque chaos of a Labour council...
a Labour council,
hiring taxis to scuttle around the city
handing out redundancy notices to its own workers.
There should be a certain sensitivity
to the welfare of the party and the morale of the party.
Self-discipline is the only effective discipline.
And If people won't obey that code, then, as adults,
it's very difficult to inflict a different code upon them.
Hi. Tony Blair.
Neil wants to see me?
Why?
Is there some kind of problem?
And?
Scottish Office. You?
Treasury.
You look surprised.
I am. To be honest, I thought I was being called in for a bollocking.
Instead he's made us the youngest front bench spokesmen ever.
Not quite. David Owen was even younger.
Still, it's pretty good.
Yes, it is. So good I'm almost sorry I said no.
It would be madness, a cul-de-sac.
Besides, you forget,
I've been up to my eyes in Scottish politics since I was 15.
I'd be better off waiting for something better to come along.
If it doesn't?
It's a risk I'm prepared to take.
Besides, nobody got the big job without taking risks.
Big job?
Come on.
Don't look at me like that.
Isn't that what we came into politics for? Huh?
We're happy to work as a team.
It's all about a cause and public service.
But deep down you won't change the world
until you have the big job.
I drummed up my first speech
as leader of the Labour Party when I was 15.
I'll have been revising it ever since...
in here.
We should really get going.
Well, if we have an election early,
we can go on holiday in August.
Yeah.
If we have an election late...
We won't go at all.
No holiday. That's right.
It is wonderful to be entrusted
with the government of this country,
this great country, once again.
Yes, it was the third successive defeat,
but significant gains were made in a number of areas.
Look, I can't force you to write anything.
You just have to take my word for it.
The party is absolutely not downhearted.
Why? Because we're all on powerful anti-depressants.
Neil's made John Smith his Shadow Chancellor.
That's fantastic.
And Gordon is John's number 2!
Oh, congratulations. I'm thrilled for you.
You're very generous.
You know you were only this far away from promotion yourself.
Next time.
That is great. With you in the Shadow Cabinet,
it will show that Labour
is finally at last taking the economy seriously.
Nope, no drinking for me, I'm afraid.
I must leave to confuse the British press
into believing there aren't too many Scots
in the Shadow Cabinet.
I wrote some notes...
slogans to try and get under Lawson's skin.
Where did I put that?
Hang on. Maybe this is what you're after.
That was Marian, wasn't it?
Why do we see so little of her?
I know she lives in Glasgow,
but wouldn't she ever consider moving down?
For the sake of the relationship.
Because it has gone on for a while now.
I understand for a married man,
a married family man,
the to-ing and fro-ing of a bachelor must seem intriguing.
There's no need to be defensive.
I wasn't being defensive.
- Yes, you were. - I wasn't. I just...
don't find discussing this kind of stuff easy.
You mean sharing.
Sorry?
That's what the Americans call it.
So do you think reticence like yours
is a specifically Scottish trait?
Because I've always thought there are broadly two kinds of Scot:
The angry ginger kind
and the brooding, intensely private, satellite kind.
You ask this as a Scot yourself, of course.
You may mock, but I am a Scot.
As well as being black and working class.
I was born in Scotland.
Being born in a stable doesn't make you a horse.
I was educated in Scotland.
In Fettes, a posh Edinburgh public school filled with English.
I support Scotland when they play football.
- That's tragic. - Why?
Because you're English!
Not just in your accent,
but the way you stand, the way you talk.
Everything about you. I don't know why you bother denying it.
It's possibly your biggest strength.
Not in the Labour Party.
No. But somewhere far more important:
With the electorate.
We should have done this more often while we had the chance.
Why? Just because I'm getting a bigger office than you?
Yes. Now you might just drift off with the top brass
and forget your English friends.
You're going every bit as far on this journey as me.
I'll make sure of that.
Only one of us can go all the way.
Which one is that?
The one that has "Labour Leader" written all over him.
I sometimes worry.
I watch my friends getting on in their careers,
making good money.
I wonder, are we pissing it all away in Opposition?
Promise me you'll do it.
Promise me you'll turn this party around.
I'll do whatever it takes.
Hello.
The Shadow Chancellor, Mr. John Smith, today
has suffered a heart attack.
He is now recovering
in the coronary care unit of the Edinburgh Infirmary.
No. I don't want to use that.
There's no guarantee on that, you see.
That's 13 billion...
What's the latest?
He's stable.
Elizabeth? The girls?
They're shell-shocked, of course, as we all are, but there at his side.
How did it happen?
Bending over doing his shoelaces.
God.
So, uh, what's the plan?
I just got off the phone to Neil.
How's he?
Apart from being devastated...
Of course.
He's panicking.
Why?
John was going to deal with Lawson's autumn statement.
So? Gordon can do it.
Of course he can.
I've been dying to lay into him for ages.
I was planning something juicy the tabloids can pick up on.
Like free eye tests for pensioners, as a bad example.
No, no. That's a good example.
Absolutely.
Very good.
The improved performance of the economy
has eased pressures on a number of programs,
giving the government more scope than ever before
to shift resources where its own priorities,
rather than circumstances, dictate.
This important outcome has been made possible
despite the many claims for increased public spending
by a rigorous reassessment of priorities,
coupled with the continuation of two of the factors
that have contributed to this year's shortfall.
"The prospect that lies before us is yet further testimony... "
Mr. Gordon Brown.
"... to the success of the policies
"we have been pursuing these past nine and a half years
"and will continue to pursue,
"and to the economic transformation
that those policies have brought. "
Hear, hear!
Mr. Gordon Brown.
Mr. Speaker,
by the Chancellor's admission just before he sat down
that inflation will rise beyond 6% by Christmas,
and that the balance of payment deficit
will be an unparalleled 13 billion by the end of the year,
will he concede that the economic prospects he promised us in the spring
are not the economic realities we face in the autumn?
Does the Chancellor recall his objective in 1987 of zero inflation?
Yet the Chancellor still refuses to find even the tiny amount...
Eye test.
...free eyesight tests even for pensioners.
When health costs are rising faster than even ordinary inflation,
the sum that the Chancellor
has provided today
will barely cover the inflationary prices
that the health authorities face,
far less deal with their huge backlog of structural repairs.
Hear, hearl
One begins to wonder
whether this country can still afford the price it is paying for this government.
By the evidence of this statement,
I suggest the answer is a resounding no.
Ladies and gentlemen,
we're leaving Downing Street for the last time
after eleven and a half wonderful years.
We're very happy that we leave the United Kingdom
in a very, very much better state
than when we came here eleven and a half years ago.
There you are. Thatcherism is now Thatcher war zone.
What can we say finally undid her?
Not us, I'm afraid.
She stayed too long.
Six years, term and a half.
After that, they start to hate you.
But then
The Iron Lady's composure almost broke.
Watch her face as she reaches her car.
I think they'll miss her... her leadership.
Her common sense.
Her clarity of purpose.
Listen to you.
Remember when you were worried
that we were pissing it away in Opposition?
Friends say, though,
that she is deeply shocked by...
She's gone.
Three election victories
and a clear though insufficient majority in the first ballot,
rewarded, as she sees it, with the sack.
Now it's our turn.
And now it is time,
time for the next Prime Minister,
Neil Kinnock!
Well, all right!
That's it. The polling stations have closed,
and the counting has started
in what really promises to be the closest General Election in years.
Of the three major polls this morning,
one had the Conservatives in a 1-point lead,
another had the two parties neck and neck,
and a third had Labour with a 3-point lead.
And it really is that close.
How're you feeling, Gordon?
Very well, thank you.
Very good, very good.
Hopeful of a Labour victory?
Well, hopeful, certainly.
So, how're we doing?
Fine. We've murdered them.
I meant nationally.
A plane's on standby in Endinburgh to take you to London,
so someone must be confident.
Evening, baby brother.
John. Any results?
God, Gordon, look at your tie.
What's that? Here, take it off.
There's no news in yet.
If any story breaks during the night, can I count on you for a live feed?
If it's good news, yes.
Hmm. Good luck.
Thanks.
1, 2. Testing. Testing. 1, 2.
Hello, Margaret. I never saw you at any doorsteps.
Because I was inside.
That's what Scottish people do with politicians they like:
They ask them in.
Gordon, telephone. Tony Blair.
Hello?
Oh, fuck.
Gordon, I need you to go live for me in 60 seconds.
A quite extraordinary night.
Tory elation. Frankly, Labour despair.
Dramatic scenes as the Tories hold their key marginal...
Can we clear the floor, please?
Come on, clear!
We're going live to air
in 3, 2, 1.
We're joined now by Kenneth Clarke
and from Scotland by Gordon Brown.
Mr. Brown, I'd like to start with you first.
This is surely little short of a disaster?
It's barely 11:00. The evening's just started,
so I think it's a little early to talk of disasters.
23,692.
I hereby declare the new member for Dunfermline East
is Gordon Brown.
Gordon! Gordon! Gordon!
Gordon! Gordon!
We... think there are faces there
that did not expect to witness these scenes tonight
at some points during the campaign.
But that is the nature of politics.
That is the nature of...
God, how much must they hate us?
They like this lot more.
I don't know if I have four more years of opposition in me.
What are you doing tomorrow?
I've arranged to see Peter.
Why don't you both come down here?
I think we need to work out what we're going to do.
I naturally feel a strong sense of disappointment,
dismay, sorrow,
for so many people in our country.
They deserve better than they got
on the ninth of April, 1992.
It's far too early to be discussing the leadership.
Neil Kinnock still has the whole-hearted respect,
gratitude, and support of the entire Labour party.
And I for one would be delighted to continue to serve under him.
He has united the party as a political force,
modernized it as a campaigning organization
and quite apart from this legacy,
his own natural charm and warmth of character
will mark him down as one of the all-time great leaders of this party.
It should have been easy if Labour were going...
As long as Neil knows everyone wants him out by Monday.
I think you should stand for the leadership, Gordon.
With me as your deputy.
Why would I stand only to lose?
I don't think you would lose.
According to the papers,
it's a one-horse race for John.
The papers, Peter, said we'd win the election.
Anyway,
I wouldn't feel comfortable running against him.
I gave him my word I wouldn't.
I don't think this is the time for sentimentality.
I prefer to call it friendship.
The party's confidence has been shattered.
They need to be led by someone strong.
Which is exactly what the papers are saying about John.
But not as strong as you.
He's the best man to unite the party.
He's had experience of government at cabinet level.
He's clearly the best candidate. The only candidate.
I know. But just look at him.
I mean, the whole Edinburgh bank-manager thing.
He's part of the old order.
Look, I really can't understand this hesitancy.
You said yourself, our modernization needs to be radical.
Caution and half measures will get us nowhere,
and that's exactly what John will give us!
What do you think, Peter?
Seeing as he had about two hours' sleep,
I thought he did pretty well.
Very well.
It was a different Tony today.
One I've not seen before.
Well, I've some sympathy with him.
Can't be easy living in his Islington circle
with all his friends banging on about how much they're earning,
with him sitting out the best years of his life in Opposition.
Deputy leadership.
No. A dustbin of political ambition.
Besides, John will have seen those results
and realize the South will never go for two Scots.
I didn't mean you. I meant for Tony.
He's the obvious candidate, isn't he?
I mean, he's young, he's bright,
he's good in the House, appeals to the South.
And he's ambitious.
Even with John's endorsement,
Tony's hardly likely to get more than 30% of the vote.
The unions hate his guts.
And Margaret Beckett's a woman.
I'll be suggesting as much to John myself.
John Smith is Labour leader by a landslide.
Margaret Beckett was elected deputy leader.
Sorry.
Sorry to keep you waiting.
That's okay.
Right. I'll try and make this as painless as I can.
Don't worry. I always wanted to be an actor.
Take as long as you like.
You must be disappointed.
Why would I be disappointed?
The Sunday Times magazine devoted five pages to you
as "The man that Labour missed".
Well, I haven't seen that article.
In any case, I'm delighted with the result we have.
John and Margaret offer tremendous intellectual leadership.
They've got immense political experience.
Both were ministers in the previous Labour government,
and most important,
will carry on the process of changing and reforming the Labour Party
to make sure our ideas and organization fit the age we live in.
Thank you, Mr. Blair.
Thank you very much, Mr. Blair.
What a load of bollocks.
Good evening.
A day when shock waves swept through Westminster and the city.
Mr. Mellor, the heritage secretary,
said it would be business as usual,
despite the wave of publicity
about his alleged affair with an actress.
A backbench MP, David Ashby,
has shared a hotel bed with a male friend.
Good evening. Tim Yeo resigned as Environment Minister today
after it became known he had an illegitimate daughter.
Lamont, sacked by Major, refuses another Government job.
Je ne regrette rien.
The cabinet is entirely united on the issue of Maastricht.
Do you want to be citizens of a European Union?
No!
The Danes don't, either.
Hundreds of officers combed Liverpool,
but James...
The murder of Jamie Bulger
comes at a time of growing disquiet...
I think it's important to be tough on crime
and tough on the causes of crime, too.
Old people are afraid to live within their own homes,
never mind go out on the streets.
Young people often intimidated by other young people.
These things are totally unacceptable.
And people who commit these types of offenses
should be detected, caught...
News bulletins of the past week...
If necessary...
...have been like hammer blows,
struck against the sleeping conscience of the country,
urging us to wake up
and look unflinchingly at what we see.
This bill...
is a foolish exercise in mistaken ideology.
No one in the present government
has had the courage to dump it.
It will do nothing to fight crime or make our communities safe.
It is without support outside government
and without reason inside it,
and it should not be given a second reading.
Hear, hearl
No, you don't understand.
See, I can't do it, and I won't do it.
I'm not asking you to stop making reckless
public-spending commitments without my authorization.
I am telling you!
Did you see that? Bloody unhinged.
You need to sort him out.
This is how you're going to modernize the Labour Party.
I'm not in the mood, John.
He's an old man, for God's sake.
I don't care. Because of people like him,
we're still condemned as a tax-and-spend party.
You'd want to watch it. You're losing a lot of friends.
I'm winning my party a lot of votes.
I'm doing this European thing at the Park Lane Hotel.
Do you fancy it?
I can't. I'm so behind with my constituents.
Come on. You need a break.
The food's bound to be all right.
Besides, you and I obviously need to catch up.
Tonight, we are engaged in a gala European dinner.
And I welcome the many representatives
from France, Germany, and Scandinavia,
from the worlds of industry, finance and banking.
Probably more than we've ever had at a Labour Party dinner.
And it's right that this should be so.
Because thanks to my good colleagues,
the Labour Party is now the party that best understands
modern industry, modern society,
modern finance, and modern economics.
Mr. Smith!
John Maynard Keynes insisted
he only knew two things about economics.
One of them was not about economics at all.
It was about a hippopotamus.
What did he know about economics?
Never concern yourself with the long term.
Because in the long term, we're all dead.
That was a joke.
Well, good night.
- Good night, Mr. Brown. - Good night.
Good night.
Jokes are not your forte, are they?
Not to bloody Belgians.
What did you make of the food?
Inedible. I hardly touched it.
Me, neither. I'm famished.
I tell you what.
Terry, there's somewhere I'd like you to stop.
Right. I have two super dogs with or without onions,
or the chili burger.
So how're we doing?
We the party or you the leader?
All right, me the leader.
How candid do you want me to be?
Both barrels, if they're loaded.
Lousy. You're letting them off the hook.
They are loaded.
You're too defensive.
You're relying on their internal divisions
when you should be going in for the kill.
All in good time.
People are nervous.
We're gonna win anyway.
We said that in 1992.
This time it's different.
Not different enough.
For a charming, intelligent man,
you've developed an uncanny knack of upsetting people.
I can't stand seeing it slip away. We need to modernize.
I was asked who my natural successor was the other day.
Until recently, I would have said you.
Who else is there?
Tony.
Tony?
Come on. You can't seriously endorse that man
as leader of this party.
Why not?
The party would never accept him.
Don't be too sure.
He's a blow-in,
someone who comes to an area he doesn't belong in
and makes it his home.
Tony's a blow-in to this movement.
Always has been.
When Labour was last in power and you were a junior minister,
I was chair of the Devolution Committee of Scotland.
Ask yourself, was he even a member of the party?
That might be to his advantage.
Not being liked by your own party?
No.
Besides, there's always been an understanding between us that I'm the one.
Well, you'd better make sure it's still valid.
His popularity is growing.
He's smart.
People like him.
He finished ahead of you in the shadow cabinet election.
Once. And only because I was doing the hard work keeping everybody alive.
And losing friends in the process.
In the party, but making them in the city.
"It's the economy, stupid. "
You'll thank me when you're in Number 10.
Come on, it's late.
No, John, that's it? He'd get your vote now?
He certainly impressed during this whole Bulger thing.
Tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime.
You've got to admit, it's bloody neat.
I consider it one of my finest.
It's yours?
Came up with it on the plane coming back from Washington.
Don't tell me privately, John, you're not concerned about what he's saying?
It's caught a mood with the people.
The right-wing people.
It's a while since one of our lot caught a mood with anyone.
I wonder which one of us is Terry gonna drop off first?
Sheena, listen, could you get that for me?
Yeah, hang on.
Hello, Gordon's phone.
Yeah. Yeah, sure. I'll put him on.
Murray Elder.
Murray, it's a bit early for you, eh?
What?
Oh, no.
No, of course.
Well, I'll... We'll talk later.
What's up?
Gordon, what's happened?
Hi.
Where are you?
I'm in Aberdeen.
I've got some bad news, I'm afraid.
Very bad. About John.
Oh, no.
Can't announce his death yet.
Not until they've located all his daughters.
Poor Elizabeth.
Hello, Gordon's phone.
My phones are going mad. What are you going to do?
I'll, er, do my business here and get back as soon as I can.
Let's keep in touch throughout the day.
Sure.
Hello? Speaking.
I think he's just been told.
I'll let him know.
Yes.
Thank you.
Bye.
BBC Scotland.
They want to know if you'll make a statement.
Do me a favor. Give the office a call.
Tell Angie I need to be on the first plane back.
Good morning.
And a very warm welcome to you.
It's just after half past 10
on Thursday 12th of May.
I don't know about you,
but we're all very sad to hear
that Labour leader John Smith is unwell.
He has been rushed to hospital,
as you probably heard on our 10:00 news,
with chest pains and a suspected heart attack.
An official statement will be made when it's made.
Yeah.
I will. I've got it.
I'm... I'm so sorry.
They're still saying it's a heart attack.
There's no official statement.
Right.
Hello. I know, it's terrible.
Look, I think this is going to move very quickly.
What's our line to be?
With regard to the leadership?
- Yes. - Nothing.
Our line, Peter, is strictly grief, obits, and tributes till after the funeral.
All right.
Think I can help with that.
The irony is that this is the exactly the type of situation
that John would have relished.
Yeah.
He used to joke about any up and coming by-elections:
Where there's death, there's hope.
Gordon? It's the Independent.
They want to know if you can you do a piece for tomorrow's paper?
Yes, yes.
And the Mirror?
Peter Mandelson.
It's me... Tony.
Yes.
I'm in Aberdeen now, but I wonder, can we meet at the House later?
Yes, of course.
My office will call you later to set up a meeting place.
About 6:00?
6:00 is fine.
Peter.
Gordon.
I really need to get on with this, so let's talk later.
Right. Well, let's keep in constant touch.
Bloody hell!
A thousand hacks are calling me.
They all want to know when you'll announce
a standing for the leadership.
After we've buried him, Charlie.
Right.
That man smells of vanilla.
Despite full medical attention to Mr. Smith,
he was pronounced dead at 9:15.
It's just... heart-rending news.
He had this... extraordinary combination
of strength, authority,
humor, humanity.
For all of us who knew him personally, closely,
we will mourn him... greatly.
I think the whole country will feel the shock.
Our thoughts and prayers are with Elizabeth and the family.
There are few people
the announcement of whose death
would bring tears to the eyes of everyone who knew them.
John Smith was such a man.
Have I got time to go home?
I feel should change into something darker.
It'll be tight. You're meeting Peter at 6.
I'll go with Cherie. I'll see you there.
- Okay? - Okay.
I know how awful it is to be thinking about this so soon.
The answer's yes.
Really?
I've never been more sure of anything in my life.
What about Gordon?
He had his chance, and he bottled.
Your time may never come again.
You know what it'll mean for you, for the kids?
The worst thing that could happen to our family
would be sharing a house with a man
who couldn't forgive himself for not running.
Okay.
Above all, John was uniquely equipped,
by his nature, his experience and commitment,
to bind this nation together.
Do you have that?
Our thoughts and prayers at this time are with his family,
and he will be terribly missed.
Okay.
Thank you.
Gordon's phone.
Unbelievable.
Man's not even cold in the ground,
and you want to know who's taking his place.
Everything I'm hearing suggests that it's Tony.
Hello, Charlie.
Been talking to Mo Mowlam?
Why don't you canvas some real Labour support?
Get a bit closer to the truth.
Gordon Brown will announce his intentions after the funeral.
If you want to know what to do until then...
You could buy some flowers
and send them to John Smith's widow.
Hello. Charlie Whelan.
Thanks for coming.
Of course.
You've probably worked out why I've asked to see you.
Think I have an idea.
I just...
I just don't want to be ruled out.
Right.
Several key members of the Shadow Cabinet
have already called to offer me their support.
Have you seen today's Evening Standard?
Not yet, no.
I'm told they're running a piece for me.
Right.
You know Gordon still assumes it will be him?
Well, maybe those... assumptions
have been going on too long.
You have to ask yourself
is he still our strongest candidate?
I mean, you know, Black Wednesday did him no favors.
He let the Tories off the hook.
Plus, he can be moody,
difficult.
He's just...
Gordon.
It's a fucking disgrace.
The leader of the Opposition,
one of the most distinguised
and best-loved figures in British postwar politics, dies,
and who's everybody's talking about?
Some posh totty in a dress with safety pins.
Hello. Oh, yes, Michael.
No, somebody gave me that list.
I'm sorry I've not got back to you.
For God's sake, man, are you still at it?
Give yourself a break. Take those off the hook.
Go on, tell him, Sheena.
No, there's no comment on that.
Do you remember when John came back
after the first heart attack?
When was it?
'88.
I remember him sitting in the bar,
2 stones lighter, sipping mineral water.
"I've taken the advice of my doctor,
"And from now on, the following things are out...
"rich food, alcohol,
"overwork, over-excitement, and sex.
"I've therefore made an application
to join the Liberals with immediate effect!"
To John.
I'll draft something up and fax it over today.
Five minutes, Mr. Mandelson.
Yes.
Peter, everyone knows
that you're very close to both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.
Will they run against each other?
No, I don't believe they will run against each other.
I think, moreover,
that they haven't come to any conclusions
because they, like every other member of the Labour Party,
has no appetite to talk of successions
or challenges or whatever.
Why shouldn't they both run and let the best man win?
They may or may not. That's up to them, isn't it?
Sure, but you think one of them will step aside,
as you said earlier.
I read the reports
and have the same understanding as everyone else
that they agree on so much
that they would want to consider who is best fitted
to lead the Labour Party.
I mean, who would maximize support for the party in the country...
who'll play best at the box office...
who is not...
who will not simply appeal
to the traditional supporters
and customers of the Labour Party,
but who will bring in
those additional voters that we need
in order to to win convincingly at the next election.
That is what each contender has to ask themselves
before they put themselves forward.
You fucker.
Well, is it true?
We'll finish this later. What?
Is it true what every paper now appears to be saying,
that you are going to stand?
What is true is that in the last 24 hours,
a number of people have come up and told me
they'd like me to stand.
Including Mandelson?
Uh, no.
Well, what is your position?
I'm still thinking.
While you were thinking,
did it occur to you that we have an understanding?
What understanding?
That if it ever came to this, it would be me!
What?
Don't deny it. We had an actual conversation!
But not an actual agreement.
Nothing written down, no.
But you were quite clear there was only one of us
with "Labour Leader" written all over him.
Gordon, that was six years ago!
So?
Maybe events have overtaken us.
Really? Which events did you have in mind?
There is a growing number
that think I would be a better candidate,
that I appeal to new areas.
You'd get the South, I grant you that,
but you'd never win Scotland.
Scotland is an irrelevance.
The point is attracting new voters.
You'll never get Wales or the North.
Attracting new Labour voters in the South,
the Home Counties, and the Southwest,
and I think I'm in a better position to do that than you.
And so it's true.
You are going to stand against me.
If I'm persuaded it is better for the party,
I might.
Do you think you really know that, Tony?
What's best for the Labour Party?
Being in power might be a start!
Dear Gordon, I have thought a lot about your fears
that you are being written out by the press.
I don't believe your fears are justified.
Nobody is saying that you're not capable or...
appropriate as leader,
merely that the timing is bad for you.
Definite yeses are Donald Dewar,
Ron Davies, Tom Clarke...
The card the media are playing for Tony
is his Southern appeal.
Everyone agrees
there is no one to rival your political...
capacity,
but because you would be appearing
to come in as the second runner,
you would be blamed for creating the split.
So definite maybes
are Jack Cunningham, Michael Meacher.
What about Chris Mullin?
With Tony.
You would need to mount
a massive and sustained campaign,
which could damage both you and Tony
and be a gift to our enemies,
and even then, I could not guarantee success.
What about Kinnock?
With Tony.
Hattersley?
With Tony.
Harriet Harman?
With Tony.
Tony's got a third of the entire Parliamentary party in the bag.
Well, you need more than a third to win.
The Labour Party, if it's got any sense, will elect the person
that they feel is most likely to carry on the work
of Neil Kinnock and John Smith.
And who is that, do you think?
My own view is that it will probably be Tony Blair.
Gordon? Gordon?
Yes?
It's Peter Mandelson to see you.
Show him in.
I won't do it. I won't stand aside.
Fine.
And I'll win, too.
Um...
That will be difficult.
You have a problem...
in no longer appearing to be the front runner.
Certainly you are seen as the biggest intellectual force
and strategic thinker the party has.
And no one is saying
that you would not be capable as leader.
Merely that the... timing is bad for you.
And that lately, there have been...
presentational difficulties.
Oh, really? What's that, hmm?
PR for "Scottish"?
It means you alienate people, Gordon.
You can be moody.
Others call that passion.
And intense.
I have high standards.
And intolerant.
I don't countenance fools.
All of which is admirable,
but politics is not always about higher matters.
Sometimes it is about the ugly business of making friends.
Keeping friends...
Being liked.
Let's see.
This one seems to think Gordon's going to stand.
They've quoted a senior Labour MP as saying to stop Gordon,
you need to put him in a straitjacket with 20 MPs on top.
Senior Labour MP. It's Charlie Whelan.
Also, I managed to get a copy of the speech he made at Swansea.
The flame still burns. The work continues.
The passion for justice endures,
and the vision will never fade.
- The vision... - What does that mean?
To me it sounds like he's going to run.
Rubbish.
Look, it means nothing.
...humming with opportunities,
alive with new possibilities...
He doesn't know what he thinks.
...vibrant with a new dynamism and energy.
So... hands on hearts, both of you.
Do you think I should stand aside?
No, never.
If you stand, I can guarantee
the T&G will back you over Margaret Beckett.
Which means G&B would follow suit.
That's a big power base.
You've got Scotland, you've got Wales.
In a fight you can outdebate him,
you can outthink him,
you can outperform him, and he knows it.
But it would be bloody.
Ugly.
And have we come this far
that we want to go crawling to the T&G?
Well, have we come this far
to see the Labour Party led by a Tory?
Okay.
Shh.
Hello.
Gordon? It's me.
I've called because I think we should meet.
I want to know your decision.
Where did you have in mind?
Granita?
Well, that's Islington.
Or we could go somewhere else.
Let's make it early. I need to get away.
8:00?
Um... whatever.
I'll see you there.
You're going to have to offer him something.
Even if it's just hope.
Come on.
We should really get going.
So what's this Granita anyway?
It's a restaurant. Tony's favorite.
The clue's in the address.
It's on Upper Street.
Taxi!
Thanks.
Thanks for coming, Gordon.
Ed.
Are you sure you won't eat?
Positive.
Okay, then... let's get down to it.
I'll go for a walk around the block.
Ready to order?
I'll have the rabbit.
Tuscan rabbit and a bit of Polenta.
And another glass of white.
I'll just have a glass of water, thank you.
I'm sorry it's come to this.
I've hated the last few days.
Why? In years to come,
you might come to see them as your finest hour.
How can you say that?
It's a stunning coup.
You've come from nowhere,
and you'll probably end up as Prime Minister.
Come from nowhere.
I may not have been out barefoot on cobble streets
handing out party leaflets aged 12,
but I've hardly come from nowhere, either.
You and I have been MPs exactly the same amount of time.
I taught you everything.
Without me, you'd have been consigned
to the dustbin of also-rans in this party.
With respect, Gordon, that's delusional crap
and an insult to my supporters.
I don't want to get into a slanging match.
Look, all I want, all I have ever wanted,
is to get out of Opposition
and become part of a Labour government.
If I thought that having you as leader
would give us the best chance, I'd step aside.
Bollocks.
That is the truth.
A man who does what you've done does not stand aside.
We all come into politics for the big job.
You admit it?
Your words, not mine.
I could never have beaten John.
You could have tried.
That was your chance, and you didn't take it.
Now it's my turn.
Despite our understanding?
What understanding?
Thank you.
I accept you are the stronger candidate in many ways.
It may be a quirk of fate
that I emerge as the better candidate to lead,
but that fact remains.
I also acknowledge that without your support,
without your influence in the party,
my leadership might fail.
No, it would.
So I propose that as Chancellor,
you will have complete control over economic policy.
You can choose your own team, I won't interfere.
I mean, that will make you the most powerful chancellor in history.
What about social policy? Education?
Unemployment? Health?
I won't have the party compromised on those, Tony
Of course.
And when we win a second term?
Gordon, we haven't been in power for 15 years.
You mention a second term?
If the Tories continue to disintegrate,
it's not inconceivable
that we could be in power for a generation.
Well...
under those circumstances, I...
wouldn't make the same mistake Thatcher made
and go on too long.
So in a second term, you'd stand aside?
Come on, this conversation is crazy!
No, not to me it isn't.
Well, whatever the circumstances,
obviously I couldn't go on forever.
In which case, you'd support my candidacy?
- I suppose so. - Good.
- One Tuscan rabbit. - Thanks.
I'll leave you to it.
Before you go, we have to deal with the press.
People will need reassuring that this was done amicably.
You want me to stand aside and look happy about it?
I'll put something on paper, a briefing statement.
No, let Peter do it.
You know how good he is at that kind of thing.
And College Green, for the photo call.
The Backs are too close.
You never know, I might say the wrong thing.
On your way out, say hello to that girl.
Who is she?
The new girl in EastEnders.
Forget about politicians, that's real power.
She gets 15 million viewers three times per week.
Bloody Islington.
The paramount consideration for Gordon and Tony throughout
has been the best way for the party's interests to be served
and for party unity to be maximized in order to win the election.
A desire to unite the party is at the forefront of their thinking.
I suppose we should add something here
about Gordon's personal sacrifice.
How about...
Gordon has taken, as he said he would,
a decision which puts unity and teamwork above personal ambition.
Good.
In his Wales and Luton speeches,
Gordon has spelled out the fairness agenda,
social justice, employment opportunities,
and skills which he believes
should be the centerpiece of Labour's program,
and Tony is in full agreement with this.
No.
"And Tony has guaranteed this will be pursued. "
Good evening.
The Shadow Chancellor Gordon Brown,
once tipped as the future Labour leader,
has sacrificed his personal ambitions in favor of party unity.
Friends of the Shadow Chancellor said
the decision had been a long and difficult one,
but in a statement today, Mr. Brown said
it been taken in the interests of party unity.
Mr. Blair!
Please!
Mr. Blair!