The Mayfair Set, Maxwell and One Nation under Silk:
1964-1972: Tony Greenwood (Labour)
1964 (Majority) def: Rab Butler (Conservative), Jo Grimond (Liberal)
1968 (Majority) def: Reginald Maudling (Conservative), Jeremy Thorpe (Liberal)
1972-1975: Ted Heath (Conservative)
1972 (Liberal Confidence & Supply) def: Anthony Greenwood (Labour), Jeremy Thorpe (Liberal)
1975-1976: Michael Foot (Labour)
1975 (Majority) def: Ted Heath (Conservative), Eric Lubbock (Liberal)
1976-1977: Colonel David Stirling (GB75-Unison Movement)
1977 (Majority) def: Various Independents, Desmond Donnelly (Reform)
1977-1983: James Goldsmith (Unison Movement)
1981 (Majority) def: Various Independents, Reg Prentice (Reform), Kate Losinska (Workers Party)
1983-1988: Peter Walker (Unison)
1985 (Majority) def: Various Independents, Reg Prentice (Reform), Bob Mellish (Workers Party)
1988-1991: Jim Slater (Unison)
1988 (Coalition with Reform) def: Various Independents, Reg Prentice (Reform), Robert Kilroy-Silk (Workers Party)
1991-1992: Robert Maxwell (Unison-Workers Alliance for Democracy)
1992-1993: Ken Coates (Independent leading Popular Front)
1992 (‘Popular Front’) def: Robert Maxwell (Unison), Reg Prentice (Reform), Robert Kilroy-Silk (Workers Party)
1993-1998: Ken Coates (Left Alliance)
1993 (Majority) def: Robert Maxwell (Unison), Vince Cable-Chris Patten (Centre), Nina Temple-Peter Hain (The Radicals), Robert Kilroy-Silk (Workers Party)
1998-2004: Ron Davies (Left Alliance)
1998 (Majority) def: Ian Maxwell (Unison-Workers Alliance), Anna Soubury (Centre), Mark Ashton-Nina Temple (The Radicals), David Icke (The Ecos)
2002 (Coalition with Radicals) def: Robert Kilroy-Silk (One Nation), John Thurso (Centre), Mark Ashton-Lynne Jones (The Radicals), John Balance (The Ecos)
2004-2006: Liz Davies (Left Alliance)
2006-: Robert Kilroy-Silk (One Nation)
2006 (Coalition with Centre) def: Liz Davies (Left Alliance), Lembit Öpik (Centre), Lynne Jones-Adam Curtis (The Radicals), John Balance (Eco-Merican Alliance)
Robert Kilroy-Silk’s journey is a long and odd one, the one time Radical Tribune supporter now the Leader of a rather Syncretic Party that combines Third Way Social Democracy, Technocratic ideals and Nationalistic Protectionism into a rather odd coalition of the Populist Centre as Silk’s prances around declaring himself the ‘21st Century Peter Shore’.
Of course we have to look back at his beginnings, back when he was a fresh faced Foot supporter in the Mid 70s. Kilroy-Silk would find himself on the wrong end of the stick though when his support for Foot and electoral deposing of Harold Soref would mean he would be arrested during the midsts of the GB-75 coup. Unlike many though Kilroy-Silk would rapidly renounce his support for the ‘Crypto-Communist’ Foot regime and be freed from the Dartmoor work camp after four years in captivity. His ability to dodgy trouble is what caused him to avoid being placed in a shallow grave (like much of the 1975 Labour cabinet) or being permanently disabled (like People’s Martyr Neil Kinnock).
Not long after Kilroy-Silk would find himself in the employee of Robert Maxwell, who despite being a Labour supporter held enough connections and had enough money to avoid being blacklisted from high society. By now the open brutality of Stirling had been replaced with the incompetent bumbling of Goldsmith who spent most of his time going to country clubs and enjoying the high life than actually administrating the country, which was left much in the hands of asset stripper extraordinaries Walker & Slater who proceeded to dismantle the Nationalised industries of the Greenwood years and let Monetarist take hold.
This environment was perfect for the hungry Maxwell who used Kilroy-Silk as his personal fence to buy up the dying industries and strip them for profit. The pair would proceed to become some of the richest men in Europe and the bond between them grew further. By now Goldsmith had been replaced, riots had occurred in Britain’s major cities as recession creeped in, terrorist groups would assassinate a variety of important Unison individuals and Goldsmith’s ruthless business exterior didn’t calm things down at all.
Peter Walker ideas were of One Nation Toryism, Social Market ideas and reducing the policing of the Stirling and Goldsmith years. But by now a series of oligarchs has appeared and there reactions to Walker’s limp reforms were to punish him. Maxwell, now the leader of a vast media empire would attack Walker constantly and whilst this wouldn’t impact the 1985 election much it would cause a toll on Walker’s health and ability to govern.
Maxwell by now had grand schemes beyond just being largest media owner in Britain, he wanted more power and to help in his aims he would buy out the moribund Workers Party and have Kilroy-Silk becomes it’s head. The party would become a force of Left Wing Populism, railing against the elites and the establishment which Maxwell and Kilroy-Silk had helped establish.
Peter Walker resign due to ill health and his former business partner and so called ‘entrepreneur spelt S.P.I.V.’ Jim Slater would take over. Slater was not a great Prime Minister, a man who enjoyed playing games and ruthlessly stripping businesses was not a man best suited to politics. In 1988 the Workers Party would bulldoze Unison and Slater would be forced into a coalition with the Arch-Monetarist Reform party.
By now the world had begun to see Britain has an awkward reminder of times gone by, the Republican Presidency’s of Nixon and Haig had been replaced by the Democrats Biden who saw Britain as an embarrassment, meanwhile the Soviet Union crumbled and suddenly the threat of Britain becoming an island of Socialism seemed antiquated.
Once again Maxwell would step in, discussing possible ways to save his own neck and also be seen as a hero. With support of the CIA and a big trunk of money, Maxwell would buyout the Unison party and enter into a coalition with Kilroy-Silk to bring about a return to a functioning democracy.
The ‘free’ elections would lead to the unlikely figure of Ken Coates (who had survived due to support from Brian Clough, who’s connections with Maxwell would ensure the survival of several Nottinghamshire Socialists) managing to win the election as an independent leading a Popular Front.
The eventual success of the Left Alliance In the years to come would see Maxwell and Kilroy-Silk step away from politics to manage there’s business interests as they enjoyed the protection garnered by there’s creation of a ‘free’ democracy. Robert Maxwell would leave Britain in the Mid 90s to spend his final days whiling away on his yacht near Spain. His son Ian, would takeover over the remains of the Unison party but never as bold as his dad he would quickly leave it to Kilroy-Silk.
By now the businesses Kilroy-Silk had owned had been sold back to the state for a tidy profit and rather than twiddling his thumbs in the background, came back as a force in British politics. One Nation was to be the vehicle in which he did it with, as the new electoral system allowed for a grand alliance of the Centre-Right to emerge.
Kilroy-Silk would attack the antics of the Davies’s Governments, as both proceed to crash on the shores of public opinion (as Ron Davies would have a mental breakdown and Liz Davies being unable to pick up the pieces) as the nearly fifteen year old Left Wing Government began to strain. As he did this Silk would secretly fund the Centre (as it proceeded to enter Radical Centrist phase under Öpik) and Eco parties (which went to from the deranged ramblings of Icke to becoming force of Green Neo-Merican Nationalism under Former Musician John Balance) to undermine the Left Alliance and Radicals.
This strategy would lead to success in 06’ as Kilroy-Silk’s Populist Centrist Nationalist rhetoric cut through with the voters who only saw Socialist bloat when the looked at the incumbent Government. Now Kilroy-Silk is Prime Minister many questions what he’ll do next, whilst a return to the bad old days of Unison and the Mayfair Set seem unlikely, his vision of Britain is one that seems to hue more to the past than the future...