Knitting on the Green (Free subscription) | 02/01/2009
All in the mind, by Alastair Campbell . London : Hutchinson, 2008. A stunning book, and not at all what I expected. While I can appreciate the views of the reviewers who thought the prose style was occasionally overly prosaic, or just clunky - it does occasionally come over as workmanlike and very little more - the degree of humanity and compassion, and total lack of arrogance in this book makes it...
Spiked Online (Free subscription) | 29/12/2008
Alastair Campbell’s first novel offers an intriguing peep into New Labour’s view of the human condition: a world in which fucked-up lunatics and victims are governed by other fucked-up lunatics and victims.
New Zealand Herald (Free subscription) | 19/12/2008
Alastair Campbell - Tony Blair's controversial ex-Press Secretary - is not keen to return to the world of rugby after the stormy baptism of fire that he underwent while serving as the Lions' media manager during the ill-fated 2005...
Jonny Mac's Place (Free subscription) | 19/12/2008
"13 May 2003 ... We [Piers Morgan and Alastair Campbell] discussed my Mandelson show. 'Yes it was interesting. I agree with you he was right to be sacked first time, but not the second, with hindsight.' 'Could you have him back again?' 'I don't think so, no. Everyone would just slate Tony for taking a risk again. But if Tony ever stood down, and Gordon took over leading the party, for argument's sake,...
The Telegraph (Free subscription) | 11/12/2008
In comments which appear to show how much Tony Blair was influenced by Alastair Campbell the communications chief who was always adamant that "we don't do God" the former Prime Minister has admitted that it was not always easy for him to refrain from talking about his faith.
New Statesman (Free subscription) | 11/12/2008
All the gossip from the Westminster Village Irritation in No 10 over Alastair Campbell selflessly taking credit for the Supreme Leader's shinier image. The Talibrown swear that Ali C's influence is exaggerated and accuse the old spinner of - perish the thought - spinning himself. The chap does have a novel to sell, and a public flirtation with Irn Broon will enable him to charge top dollar when briefing...
Skipper (Free subscription) | 05/12/2008
I initially thought this Damian Green arrest issue was trivial enough to sink out of the news within a few days. Shows how much I know. Bernard Ingham used to say that if nothing new had emerged after nine days, an issue could be said to have died. Alastair Campbell suggested the limit was 12 I believe. But by this standard the thing is still going strong as new items are injected almost daily. MPs...
The Telegraph (Free subscription) | 01/12/2008
Leading afterdinner speakers including John Prescott Alastair Campbell and William Hague face having their fees slashed to reflect the economic downturn.
Times Online (Free subscription) | 28/11/2008
It was a lesson in humility yesterday morning for Alastair Campbell. The girls of St Marylebone Church of England High School in London had just awarded Tony Blair’s chief spin-doctor seven out of ten for his attempt at teaching them English. Their own teacher scored ten.
Knitting on the Green (Free subscription) | 27/11/2008
Second consecutive post without a photo, sorry! I'm down staying with Wibbo and to do some Christmas shopping tomorrow... A post script from last night's Alastair Campbell thing - the lady who was doorkeeper for our section of the QEH and keeper of the microphone for the questions came up to me afterwards and said "I had to comment on your knitting; my other job is as a Rowan rep at Liberty's...."...
green LA girl (Free subscription) | 27/11/2008
Writing a good sex scene isn’t so easy. In fact, it’s so not easy that otherwise amazing fiction writers end up writing hilarious bizarro crap. Read the funny excerpts from the books shortlisted for the Literary Review’s Bad Sex in Fiction award for laughs like this one from Alastair Campbell’s All in the Mind [...]
Knitting on the Green (Free subscription) | 27/11/2008
Just got back from this evening's event, an audience with Alastair Campbell at the Queen Elizabeth Hall , mainly about his novel . Can't link to the event - it's vanished from the website (fame is evidently very brief on the South Bank). Anyway, it was fascinating. I didn't buy a copy of the book and get it signed, mainly because he'd have had to sign like a robot and not talk to anybody before the...
Open Secrets (Free subscription) | 26/11/2008
Alastair Campbell says he was 'punctilious in my approach to the vetting process' when publishing his diary extracts about life in Downing Street. But this punctiliousness about vetting doesn't seem to have involved complying with the wishes of the Cabinet Secretary Sir Gus O'Donnell. He asked Campbell not to proceed with the book at all - that's according to the evidence O'Donnell gave to the Information...
The Telegraph (Free subscription) | 26/11/2008
London Mayor Boris Johnson's novelist sister Rachel Johnson beat former Labour spin doctor Alastair Campbell to win this year's Bad Sex in Fiction Award.
Liberal England (Free subscription) | 26/11/2008
Another triumph for the Johnson family. Boris's sister Rachel has defeated Alastair Campbell, amongst others, to win this year's Literary Review Bad Sex in Fiction award. The magazine's deputy editor Tom Fleming said of her work: "It's a mixture of cliché and euphemism, but it's also very spirited – A plus for effort." If you go to the Guardian website you can judge for yourself .
