Chris Mullin ex-MP, Wilson Plot, Tony Benn, Private Armies A Very British Coup, Birmingham Pub Bombs

5 months ago
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Chris Mullin, journalist, politician and author of 'A Very British Coup', on British Secret Services influencing politics and the BBC - including the Wilson plot.
https://politicsthisweek.gn.apc.org/2025/03/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-230/

Wilson, MI5 and the Rise of Thatcher Covert Operations in British Politics 1974-1978 The 'private armies' of 1974 re- examined In late 1973 and early 1974, while the British military were discussing their future role in counter-insurgency/ industrial action fields within the UK, the perceived threat of a British left dominated by the trade unions, triggered the formation of a variety of so- called 'patriotic groups' - the misnamed 'private armies'.
https://docslib.org/doc/239954/wilson-mi5-and-the-rise-of-thatcher-covert-operations-in-british-politics-1974-1978-foreword

A Very British Coup
Chris Mullin (1982)
Against the odds, former steel worker Harry Perkins has led the Labour Party to a stunning victory. His manifesto includes the removal of American bases, public control of finance and the dismantling of the newspaper monopolies.
The Establishment is appalled. Something must be done. As MI5 conspires with the City and the press barons to bring Perkins down, he finds himself caught up in a no-holds-barred battle for survival.

Error of Judgement: The Birmingham Bombings and the Scandal That Shook Britain
Chris Mullin (2024)
'Very occasionally a journalist starts an avalanche with a single gunshot... Chris Mullin and his TV colleagues belong in the glorious company."
- The Observer
'One of the greatest feats ever achieved by an investigative reporter'
-Sebastian Faulks, the Independent on Sunday
'Whoever planted the bombs in Birmingham...also planted a bomb under the British legal establishment'
-Robert Harris, Sunday Times
Error of Judgment lit a fire under the establishment when it was first published, shattering the prosecution case against six Irishmen charged with the Birmingham Bombings and going on to change the course of British legal history.
On the evening of 21st November 1974, bombs planted by the IRA in two crowded Birmingham pubs exploded, killing 21 people and injuring at least 170. Within a day of the explosion, six men - Paddy Hill, Gerry Hunter, Richard McIlkenny, Billy Power, Johnny Walker and Hughie Callaghan - were arrested and charged. All were found guilty.
Methodically, with total clarity and a tone that is both gripping and impassioned, then investigative journalist Mullin unpicked every detail of the case, revealing gaping holes in the prosecution case and the horrifying consequences of an establishment determined to close ranks.
Now 50 years on from the Birmingham Bombings and with new writing from Mullin, this classic edition of Error of Judgement tells the complete story of one of the most significant miscarriages of justice ever. As relevant now as it was when it was first published, it's an essential text on corruption, violence and bias in British policing and justice.

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