Biteback scoops authorised biography of Diane Abbott

Biteback Publishing is to release an authorised biography of MP Diane Abbott by Robin Bunce and Samara Linton in September.

Editorial director Olivia Beattie pre-empted world rights from Sophie Scard at United Agents for Diane Abbott: The Authorised Biography. Beattie said: “In an age when hiding in a fridge to escape the media isn’t considered a bar to electability, it’s remarkable to see the way Diane Abbott is routinely subjected to unparalleled contempt—and even more remarkable that she has weathered death threats and relentless online abuse in order to maintain her place in public life. Robin and Samara’s insightful and wide-ranging biography shrugs off the popular caricature of Abbott to reveal the truth about one of the most interesting characters in politics today, exploring both her influence on the Labour Party and her role in the British civil rights movement.”

The biography is based on interviews with Abbott, and her friends and colleagues, in addition to politicians and "Westminister insiders". The synopsis outlines the biography's "extensive archival research", suggesting the book "explores how this daughter of a Windrush-generation welder and nurse won a place at Cambridge University, joining the civil service fast stream before embarking on a parliamentary career which ultimately saw her rise to become shadow home secretary. In her early days in the Commons, she juggled life as a single mother with winning awards for her work on civil liberties, going on to campaign against the Iraq War, austerity measures and the hostile environment."

Bunce is a historian based at Homerton College, University of Cambridge, whose research focuses on "Black Power and black radicalism" in Britain. Samara Linton is a junior doctor, writer and editor of The Colour of Madness (Stirling Publishing), an anthology exploring the mental health of black and ethnic minority demographics.

In a joint statement, the authors said: “Diane Abbott is an extremely important figure in recent politics. She has been steadfast in her commitment to black rights, to women’s rights, and to minority representation.

"One of the striking things about her career is the way in which her commitments, which were written off as ‘loony left’ in the 1980s, have now become mainstream, so politicians on all sides have to, at the very least, pay lip service to causes that she has championed for decades. This book is an attempt to put Abbott’s groundbreaking career in context, and to illuminate aspects of British history which are often ignored.”

Diane Abbott: The Authorised Biography will be released on 17th September.