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The Macmillan Diaries #2
The Macmillan Diaries II, 1959-66
Harold Macmillan's diaries from 1959-1966 offer the most complete and entertaining account of any modern Premiership. Written up at the end of each day in a lively, witty style, they provide a fascinating, personal record of his experiences governing the nation, including several key events such as the Cuban Missile Crisis, Britain's bid for entry into Europe, the build up to the Vietnam war, and the Profumo Affair, a scandal that went to the heart of his own government and came to typify the 'you've never had it so good' sixties. His was a premiership during a time of immense change in Britain and these journals are an essential insight into inner government at the time.
- GenresDiary
758 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
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About the author
Harold Macmillan
77 books1 followerGreat Britain appeased Adolf Hitler, but Maurice Harold Macmillan, first earl of Stockton and British politician, joined Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill in the 1930s, condemned him, and from 1957 as prime minister sought entry into the European Economic Community to 1963.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_...
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February 23, 2026
I have read several (political) diaries before— by giants like Gladstone nonetheless— but none were so compelling and so much fun as these. I enjoyed myself immensely throughout both volumes!
Macmillan’s diaries are shockingly entertaining to begin with. HM was a true born entertainer above anything else. His wit and dry humour are at their finest and absolutely add to the charm of his storytelling. There is also a tint of nostalgia, as one would expect from a Victorian by birth, nature and manners tragically stuck in a postwar Britain he can no longer recognise.
Next to an entertainer, HM was a fine observer of both human nature and world affairs. His clever, witty and sometimes ironic observations reveal the way Macmillan’s mind operated: in historical analogies. He had the rare and astonishing ability to draw a parallel between each present personage or event and a past correspondent. Apart from giving us an glimpse into his daily life in and outside No. 10, as well as an insight into his own thoughts, Macmillan also painted here charming pictures of several distinguished contemporaries, from Winston Churchill to John F. Kennedy. I found his psychological analysis of Anthony Eden in the first volume particularly delicious!
Macmillan also recorded his reading which I found equally fascinating. He was a fast and compulsive reader who admitted that he could not function without at least two hours of reading a day (a habit he kept religiously) and was enthusiastic enough to review the hundreds of books he read every year in his diaries.
Last but not least, it is through these diaries that the true Macmillan emerges from behind the “unflappable” mask, not as “Supermac,” the devious politician, but as a sensitive, intelligent, vulnerable and rather aloof man who had desperately tried to keep the country (and himself) together for so long.
Macmillan’s diaries are shockingly entertaining to begin with. HM was a true born entertainer above anything else. His wit and dry humour are at their finest and absolutely add to the charm of his storytelling. There is also a tint of nostalgia, as one would expect from a Victorian by birth, nature and manners tragically stuck in a postwar Britain he can no longer recognise.
Next to an entertainer, HM was a fine observer of both human nature and world affairs. His clever, witty and sometimes ironic observations reveal the way Macmillan’s mind operated: in historical analogies. He had the rare and astonishing ability to draw a parallel between each present personage or event and a past correspondent. Apart from giving us an glimpse into his daily life in and outside No. 10, as well as an insight into his own thoughts, Macmillan also painted here charming pictures of several distinguished contemporaries, from Winston Churchill to John F. Kennedy. I found his psychological analysis of Anthony Eden in the first volume particularly delicious!
Macmillan also recorded his reading which I found equally fascinating. He was a fast and compulsive reader who admitted that he could not function without at least two hours of reading a day (a habit he kept religiously) and was enthusiastic enough to review the hundreds of books he read every year in his diaries.
Last but not least, it is through these diaries that the true Macmillan emerges from behind the “unflappable” mask, not as “Supermac,” the devious politician, but as a sensitive, intelligent, vulnerable and rather aloof man who had desperately tried to keep the country (and himself) together for so long.
Displaying 1 of 1 review