Simon Kerslake
First edition (UK)
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| Author | Jeffrey Archer |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Political novel |
| Publisher |
Hodder & Stoughton (UK) Simon & Schuster (US) |
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Publication date
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1984 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 446 pp |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 10607270 |
| 823/.914 19 | |
| LC Class | PR6051.R285 F5 1984 |
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The Right Honourable Simon Kerslake MP PC |
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|---|---|
| Leader of the Opposition | |
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In office 1990–1990 |
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| Preceded by | Margaret Thatcher |
| Shadow Housing Spokesman | |
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In office 1969–1970 |
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| Prime Minister | Harold Wilson |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Home Office | |
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In office 1970–1974 |
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| Prime Minister | Edward Heath |
| Shadow Minister of State for Education | |
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In office 1975–1979 |
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| Prime Minister |
Harold Wilson James Callaghan |
| Minister of State for Northern Ireland | |
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In office 1979–1982 |
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| Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher |
| Minister of State for Defence | |
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In office 1982–1985 |
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| Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher |
| Secretary of State for Defence | |
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In office 1985–1988 |
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| Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher |
| Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs | |
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In office 1988–1989 |
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| Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs | |
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In office 1989–1990 |
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| Shadow Secretary of State for the Home Office | |
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Assumed office 1990 |
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| Member of Parliament for Coventry Central |
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In office 1964–1974 |
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| Member of Parliament for Pucklebridge |
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Assumed office 1975 |
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| Majority | 19,641 |
| Personal details | |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse(s) | Elizabeth Drummond Kerslake |
| Children | Peter Kerslake Michael Kerslake |
| Occupation | Politician |
First Among Equals is a 1984 novel by British author Jeffrey Archer, which follows the careers and personal lives of four fictional British politicians (Simon Kerslake, MP for Coventry Central and later Pucklebridge; Charles Seymour, MP for Sussex Downs; Raymond Gould, MP for Leeds North; and Andrew Fraser, MP for Edinburgh Carlton) from 1964 to 1991, with each vying to become Prime Minister. Several situations in the novel are drawn from the author's own early political career in the British House of Commons, and the fictional characters interact with actual political figures from the UK and elsewhere including Winston Churchill, Alec Douglas-Home, Harold Wilson, Edward Heath, Margaret Thatcher, Douglas Hurd, Colonel Gadaffi, Gary Hart and Queen Elizabeth II.
The title is a literal translation of the Latin term Primus inter pares, a term used to refer to either the most senior member of a group of equals (peers) or to refer to someone who claims to be just one member of a group of equals when in reality he or she completely dominates said group. This phrase is used to describe the official constitutional status of the British Prime Minister within his Cabinet.
When published in the United States, the novel was rewritten to eliminate the character of Andrew Fraser. The Fraser character eventually departs the Labour Party to join the breakaway Social Democratic Party. According to Archer, the change was made because the publisher did not believe the American audience would understand a multi-party political system. As a result, several plot elements revolving around Andrew Fraser were transferred to other characters, notably Simon Kerslake, who suffered through a change of heart in a prospective marriage partner and the later loss of a child in the US edition, while these events happened to Andrew Fraser in the UK edition.
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