RANDOLPH: A Study of Churchill's Son

by Brian Roberts ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1986

A biography of the bumptious, boisterous, boorish son of Winston S. Churchill, who spent his 57 years being a wild young man of destiny, but whose destiny was to see his dreams crash in a blend of brandy, gluttony, prejudice, and intolerance. Ever aware of his lineage, Randolph from an early age felt that it was inevitable that he should one day be Prime Minister. Yet the only time that he was ever able to sit in Parliament was by an arrangement to fill a vacancy while his father was in his WW II glory days. Time and again, he was defeated in marriages, in friendships, and, finally, by his own undisciplined life. Roberts has given us a compelling biography, but a biography of a footnote, whose fortune was often so bad that even when he died, his demise was pushed off the front pages by Robert Kennedy's assassination. What intrigues here, after all, is the glimpse that the biography gives us of some of the things with which Randolph's father had to cope--family problems and riotous arguments that often are shunned in the usual explorations of Winston's saving England from destruction. What also intrigues is seeing this amazing son, totally undeterred by others' hatred of him, managing always to be in the know and mixing in high and fashionable circles. Noel Coward, perhaps, had the last word when he said, ""Dear Randolph, utterly unspoiled by failure."" A must for Churchill buffs. Otherwise, like its subject, a bore.

Pub Date: April 1, 1986

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Hamish Hamilton--dist. by David & Charles

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1986

Categories: NONFICTION