Keith Laybourn Book order

The book explores the politics and culture surrounding gambling on football pools in Britain, marking the first comprehensive national study on the subject. It delves into how these betting practices have influenced societal attitudes and behaviors, providing insights into the intersection of sports and gambling culture.

Focusing on the Independent Labour Party (ILP), this book explores its significant yet often overlooked role in shaping the Labour movement in early twentieth-century Britain. The ILP contributed key figures, including Ramsay MacDonald, and played a crucial part in promoting parliamentary socialism. However, internal divisions during the First World War and the Labour Party's shift towards socialism in 1918 diminished the ILP's influence, marking its decline as the primary socialist entity in British politics.

The book explores the evolution of greyhound racing in Britain from the 1920s to the 1960s, highlighting its initial popularity and subsequent decline. It delves into the dynamics between the middle classes, who aimed to regulate or abolish the sport, and the working-class culture that embraced it as a unique form of entertainment and gambling. Through this lens, the narrative reveals broader themes of class struggle and societal change in Britain during this period.

First published in 1984. This book is a detailed study of the way in which the growing Labour movement gradually ousted the Liberals in West Yorkshire between 1890 and 1924. It demonstrates the basis of old Liberalism and the strength of local non-conformity, and its powerful links with the textile and engineering industries. It shows how the Liberalism of this district was dominated by small groups of well-to-do leaders involved in these main industries. This study also shows the gradual breakdown of the political consensus established between the Liberal party and the working classes and explains how the increasing opposition to Liberalism was channelled into the socialist movement. In all, the authors present a thorough and extensive study of the political changes in a particularly interesting part of the British Isles.

The emergence of the automobile in early twentieth-century Britain posed significant challenges for law enforcement, prompting a fundamental transformation in policing strategies. This book explores the police's response to the increasing dangers on the roads, focusing on their efforts to separate motorists from pedestrians in a bid to reduce the rising number of traffic-related fatalities, referred to as the 'road holocaust.' Through this examination, it highlights the evolution of public safety measures and the complexities of modern policing.

This volume is the first major account for nearly fifty years to critically re-assess Labour's first period in office in terms of domestic, foreign and imperial policy. It draws on a wide range of private papers and official sources and reconstructs the history of this forgotten government in the broader social and political context of the 1920s.

The decline of Marxism in Britain, particularly after World War II, is highlighted by the significant drop in membership of the Communist Party of Great Britain, from over 50,000 in the early 1940s to under 5,000 by 1991. This trend also affected dissenting and Trotskyist groups, although there has been a recent resurgence of Marxist thought in Scotland, indicating a complex and evolving political landscape.

Under The Red Flag : A History Of Communism In Britain

Examines the reasons for the General Strike and its significance for British society, focusing on events such as "Black Friday" and on the constitutional issues raised. The book argues that the strike was inevitable but asserts that it was not the disaster that it is often presented as being.