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Gordon Brown
- Author
- James Macintyre
- Narrator
- Angus King
- Publisher
- Bloomsbury Publishing
- Publish Date
- 12 February 2026
- Run Time
- 12 hours 43 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
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What to expect
'A serious and consequential analysis of a serious and consequential politician' ALASTAIR CAMPBELL
'Fascinating and well written' MATTHEW PARRIS
'Tells us more than we have ever known about this highly significant figure' SHELAGH FOGARTY
A compelling new biography of former prime minister Gordon Brown, a dominant figure in the Labour Party for five decades.
More than fifteen years since he left Downing Street, Brown continues to wield significant influence among the current generation. Polls regularly suggest he is the most popular living former prime minister. Yet his short time in Number 10 ended in bitterness and election defeat.
In James Macintyre’s fascinating new biography, he provides a definitive portrait of a true political giant. Based on unique access to Brown’s personal archive and interviews with his family, friends, colleagues and political rivals - including Tony Blair, David Cameron and Alastair Campbell, among many others - Macintyre reveals the private man behind the public figure. We gain unprecedented insight into his family life, his faith and what it is that still motivates him.
From his political birth as a teenaged student at Edinburgh University to his ongoing efforts to improve children’s education around the world, Brown’s passionate engagement in politics remains undimmed. Macintyre takes the reader to the heart of the action, providing fresh perspectives on key events in Brown’s career, whether it’s the battle for the Labour leadership in 1994, the invasion of Iraq, the challenges of coping with the global financial crash in 2008 or the Scottish independence and Brexit referendums.
Gordon Brown: Power with Purpose not only outlines Brown’s formidable legacy but shows how, even as he reaches the age of seventy-five, there is still a powerful purpose in all he does that can inspire anyone who wants to create meaningful change.
Critics Review
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A serious and consequential analysis of a serious and consequential politician
Alastair Campbell, political strategist, journalist and broadcaster
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Fascinating and well written
Matthew Parris, political writer, broadcaster and former MP
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This book tells us more than we have ever known about this highly significant figure
Shelagh Fogarty, journalist and LBC presenter
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Macintyre is clearly sympathetic to his subject. But through nuanced writing, thorough research and a balanced range of interviews, he manages to reveal the Gordon Brown character in all its rich complexity
Iain Dale, broadcaster and award-winning author of THE PRIME MINISTERS
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A compelling and vividly painted portrait of one of the political giants of our time, this is the perfect political biography. Macintyre shares the experiences and private passions that informed Brown’s public persona and re-examines his political legacy by recounting key events through the eyes of those who witnessed them. It’s a page turner and a timely reminder that conviction politicians still exist
Gloria De Piero, broadcaster and former MP
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Reading this excellent biography, comprehensive, animated, sympathetic but not unquestioning, it is impossible not to lament the plummeting standards of British political culture; equally impossible not to be grateful for the distinctive way in which Gordon Brown's career fused together moral toughness, stellar intelligence and deep compassion. It can be done
Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury
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A readable, revealing account of an “unusually deep and complicated man” – a politician of conviction and consequence
Scotsman
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An illuminating new biography ... It was Brown’s demons that were, during his years in government, most often presented to the British public. Only intermittently was a glimpse offered of the stronger, better angels of his nature. This diligent book seeks to redress that balance, to tell the story of a life packed with drama, tragedy and, above all, service.
Guardian
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Fair and compassionate ... This biography is readable because it doesn't shy away from complexities - whether in Brown's capacity for ruthless politics, but equally, immense compassion ... This book is as timely as it's ever possible for the biography of a living politician to be
i Paper
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[A] serious reassessment of Brown…a portrait that is sober, admiring and ultimately persuasive… Power with Purpose is a reminder of what politics looks like when practised as duty rather than performance
London Standard
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More than does [Brown] justice ... We come to understand this man and his many contradictions on something close to his own terms
The Times
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A sympathetic study of Labour’s last prime minister — one aided by surprising quotes from former opponents
Financial Times
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This lively reappraisal has a message for Gordon Brown, with which I concur: you are as significant a historical figure as Tony Blair. Will that ever be enough?
New Statesman
User Reviews
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Details
- Author
- James Macintyre
- Narrator
- Angus King
- Duration
- 12 hours 43 minutes
- Release Date
- 12 February 2026
- ISBN
- 9781526673381
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Bloomsbury Publishing
- Genre
- Autobiography: historical, political and military
Synopsis
Bloomsbury presents Gordon Brown: Power with Purpose by James Macintyre, read by Angus King.'A serious and consequential analysis of a serious and consequential politician' ALASTAIR CAMPBELL'Fascinating and well written' MATTHEW PARRIS'Tells us more than we have ever known about this highly significant figure' SHELAGH FOGARTYA compelling new biography of former prime minister Gordon Brown, a dominant figure in the Labour Party for five decades.More than fifteen years since he left Downing Street, Brown continues to wield significant influence among the current generation. Polls regularly suggest he is the most popular living former prime minister. Yet his short time in Number 10 ended in bitterness and election defeat.In James Macintyre’s fascinating new biography, he provides a definitive portrait of a true political giant. Based on unique access to Brown’s personal archive and interviews with his family, friends, colleagues and political rivals - including Tony Blair, David Cameron and Alastair Campbell, among many others - Macintyre reveals the private man behind the public figure. We gain unprecedented insight into his family life, his faith and what it is that still motivates him.From his political birth as a teenaged student at Edinburgh University to his ongoing efforts to improve children’s education around the world, Brown’s passionate engagement in politics remains undimmed. Macintyre takes the reader to the heart of the action, providing fresh perspectives on key events in Brown’s career, whether it’s the battle for the Labour leadership in 1994, the invasion of Iraq, the challenges of coping with the global financial crash in 2008 or the Scottish independence and Brexit referendums.Gordon Brown: Power with Purpose not only outlines Brown’s formidable legacy but shows how, even as he reaches the age of seventy-five, there is still a powerful purpose in all he does that can inspire anyone who wants to create meaningful change.
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