Priestley’s England

This is the first full-length academic study of J. B. Priestley — novelist, playwright, screen-writer, journalist and broadcaster, political activist, public intellectual and popular entertainer. From his scathing analysis of a slump-stricken nation in the best-selling English Journey, to his popular wartime broadcasts which paved the way to 1945 and the welfare state, his post-war critique of “Admass” and the Cold War (he was a co-founder of CND), and his continual engagement with the question of “Englishness”, Priestley addressed the key issues of the century from a radical standpoint in fiction, journalism and plays which appealed to a wide audience and made him one of the most successful writers of his day.

John Baxendale is Principal Lecturer in Social and Cultural History at Sheffield Hallam University.

“A very timely and readable study of an under-researched figure in 20th century British history. Written in an accessible and eloquent style, this book not only fills a gap in Priestley scholarship, it contributes to our understanding of 20th century Britain and ‘Englishness.'”–Judy Giles, York St John University College

Acknowledgements * Introduction * ‘A serious writer with a message’ * Bruddersford and beyond * Englands and Englishness * his new England * Priestley’s war * ‘Now we must live up to ourselves’: New Jerusalem and beyond * Bibliography * Index