Life in the whips' office

Host Ailbhe Rea takes a closer look at the shadowy world of the whips — the sinister party enforcers whose job it is to keep MPs in line. Michael Dobbs, the creator of "House of Cards" and one-time chief of staff to Margaret Thatcher, lifts the lid on the murky world of whipping that inspired his novels and the hit TV dramas, while Jacqui Smith, a chief whip to Tony Blair, describes how she did it in the era of Blair/Brown plotting. Playwright James Graham — whose hit play "This House" brought the dark arts of the whips' office to London's West End — discusses the hung parliament of the 1970s, the most legendary period in whipping history, and Wendy Morton discusses her unique experience as chief whip to Liz Truss. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices