This book was only made possible by the enthusiasm, advice and experiences of others.
Without the encouragement of Jordan Goldman and Dominic Sandbrook, I would never have put pen to paper in the first place. I could not be luckier to have an agent as committed as Andrew Gordon, who helped kick the original idea into shape, offered invaluable advice from the very beginning, and never wavered in his support. The book would not have happened without his efforts. My editor at Verso, Tom Penn, has been a brilliant, patient editor who improved the book immeasurably, not least by ruthlessly clamping down on some of my clunkier prose.
A number of specialists kindly sacrificed their time to offer their expertise, bounce ideas around, and clarify some of my own thoughts. They include: Alan Walter (an inspirational campaigner for council tenants who tragically passed away during the writing of this book), Martin Barnes, Phillip Blond, Prof. John Carey, Nick Cohen, Prof. Danny Dorling, Larry Elliott, Dr Gillian Evans, Prof. Gregor Gall, Prof. John Goldthorpe, Lynsey Hanley, Johann Hari, David Kynaston, Eilís Lawlor, Prof. Rob MacDonald, John McDonnell MP, John McInally, Dr Ross McKibbin, Fiona Millar, Richard Murphy, Sam Tarry, Matthew Taylor, Mark Thomas, Graham Turner, Fiona Weir, Peter Whittle and Prof. Richard Wilkinson.
I was very lucky to have the love and support of my friends throughout the writing process. A number of people read through early drafts and offered crucial suggestions and criticisms. I am eternally grateful to them. They are: Grant Archer, Ruth Aylett, Graham Bash, Alex Beecroft, James Bevan, Liam Cranley, David Easton, Andrew Fisher, Tim Flatman, Lola Frears, Rob Jones, Leah Kreitzman, Sue Lukes, Dorothy Macedo, Mike Phipps, Jamie Rann, David Roberts, Dr Adam Smith, Stefan Smith, Tom Stoate, Chris Tapp, George Taylor, Jemima Thomas and Chris Ward.
I am hugely thankful to everyone who gave up time to be interviewed. This is particularly the case with those people in working-class communities across the country who agreed to answer intrusive questions, often with little or no notice. No other interviews in this book are as authoritative, perceptive or revealing as theirs. It is more important to me than anything that I have done justice to their experiences and opinions. I hope that I have.