Atlantic Books acquires Steve Richards’ The Prime Ministers

Atlantic Books is to publish The Prime Ministers: Reflections on Leadership by political commentator and journalist Steve Richards.

Editorial director Mike Harpley acquired UK and Commonwealth print and audio rights from Andrew Gordon at David Higham Associates.

Last year Richards gave six unscripted, televised BBC talks on modern prime ministers. The talks demonstrated Richards' knowledge concerning the highest office of state, having met and interviewed nearly all the recent holders of the post. In this "landmark" book, inspired by his BBC series, Richards assesses the qualities required for the titanic demands of prime ministership and asks who were the most gifted leaders of the modern age.

Richards is a political columnist, speaker, journalist, and television presenter. He presents "Week in Westminster" on BBC Radio 4. He writes for several national newspapers and was formerly chief political reporter at the Independent and political editor at the New Statesman. Recently he presented "The Cameron Years" on BBC Radio 4, which profiled the career of David Cameron.

Atlantic published Richards’ previous book, The Rise of the Outsiders, in June 2017.

Harpley said: "Few political journalists would have the breadth of experience or political nous needed to write this book. We are incredibly privileged to have Steve on our list – and I expect this to be a landmark work that people will come back to again and again. Profiling the previous nine prime ministers of the UK, the book will be brimming with both the astute analysis and witty anecdotes that Steve has become renowned for.”

The Prime Ministers: Reflections on Leadership by Steve Richards will be published in hardback and e-book in September 2019.