Chips Channon Knihy

"The greatest British diarist of the 20th century. An astonishing achievement. By turns frivolous and profound." Ben Macintyre, The Times"Wickedly entertaining." Andrew Marr, New Statesman"An irresistible, saucy read . . . One of the most impressive editions of our time." The Telegraph"They're among the most glittering and enjoyable diaries ever written." Observer____________________________________Born in Chicago in 1897, 'Chips' Channon settled in England after the Great War, married into the immensely wealthy Guinness family, and served as Conservative MP for Southend-on-Sea from 1935 until his death in 1958. His career was unremarkable. His diaries are quite the opposite.Elegant, gossipy and bitchy by turns, they are the unfettered observations of a man who went everywhere and who knew everybody. Whether describing the antics of London society in the interwar years, or the growing scandal surrounding his close friends Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson during the abdication crisis, or the mood in the House of Commons in the lead up to the Munich crisis, his sense of drama and his eye for the telling detail are unmatched. These are diaries that bring a whole epoch vividly to life.

This second volume of Henry 'Chips' Channon's bestselling diaries spans the aftermath of the Munich Agreement, through the decline of appeasement, and into the early years of the Second World War. It concludes with a hopeful reflection on the fall of Mussolini in July 1943, as Channon muses that "the war must be more than half over." Throughout this period, he serves as a keen observer of significant events, offering reassurance to Neville Chamberlain during a political crisis in May 1940 and engaging in conversation with Winston Churchill while surveying the bombed House of Commons. From his position at the Foreign Office, he documents the war's progression. However, following the departure of his superior, 'Rab' Butler, Channon finds himself distanced from power, leading to a shift in the tone and focus of his diaries. While the war remains a central theme, personal matters increasingly take precedence. He immerses himself in social life, detailing interactions with figures like Noël Coward, Prince Philip, General de Gaulle, and Lord Alfred Douglas. He shares experiences at dinners with European royals and indulges in the gossip surrounding notable personalities. Amidst this, he also chronicles the decline of his marriage and his intense friendship with a young officer on Wavell's staff.

This third and final volume of the unexpurgated diaries of Sir Henry 'Chips' Channon begins as the Second World War is turning in the Allies' favour. It ends with Chips descending into poor health but still able to turn a pointed phrase about the political events that swirl around him and the great and the good with whom he mingles. Throughout these final fourteen years Chips assiduously describes events in and around Westminster, gossiping about individual MPs' ambitions and indiscretions, but also rising powerfully to the occasion to capture the mood of the House on VE Day or the ceremony of George VI's funeral. His energies, though, are increasingly absorbed by a private life that at times reaches Byzantine levels of complexity. We encounter the London of the theatre and the cinema, peopled by such figures as John Gielgud, Laurence Olivier, Vivien Leigh and Douglas Fairbanks Jr, as well as a seemingly endless grand parties at which Chips might well rub shoulders with Cecil Beaton, the Mountbattens, or any number of dethroned European monarchs. He has been described as 'The greatest British diarist of the 20th century'. This final volume fully justifies that accolade.