R.W. Johnson

R.W. Johnson’s latest book is South Africa’s Brave New World: The Beloved Country since the End of Apartheid.

In the LRB Archive:

• Diary: Magdalen College · 19 November 2009

• A Formidable Proposition: D-Day · 10 September 2009

  • D-Day: The Battle for Normandy by Antony Beevor

• Diary: ‘Author Loses Leg in Lagoon’ · 6 August 2009

• End of the Road: The Undoing of the ANC · 20 November 2008

  • Cyril Ramaphosa by Anthony Butler
  • After the Party: A Personal and Political Journey inside the ANC by Andrew Feinstein
  • Thabo Mbeki: The Dream Deferred by Mark Gevisser

• Short Cuts: Robbie Gets His Gun · 25 September 2008

• Where do we go from here?: in Zimbabwe · 8 May 2008

• Blame It on Mussolini: The Turning Points of the Second World War · 29 November 2007

  • Fateful Choices: Ten Decisions that Changed the World 1940-41 by Ian Kershaw

• Rivonia Days: remembering the trial · 16 August 2007

  • The State v. Nelson Mandela: The Trial That Changed South Africa by Joel Joffe

• Ducking and Dodging: Agent Zigzag · 19 July 2007

  • Agent Zigzag by Ben Macintyre

• Up the Garden Path: Michael Foot · 26 April 2007

  • Michael Foot: A Life by Kenneth O. Morgan

• In Time of Famine reports from Zimbabwe · 22 February 2007

• Her Boy: Mark Thatcher · 16 November 2006

  • Thatcher’s Fortunes: The Life and Times of Mark Thatcher by Mark Hollingsworth and Paul Halloran
  • The Wonga Coup: The British Mercenary Plot to Seize Oil Billions in Africa by Adam Roberts

• Far from the Least Worst Alternative: the shortcomings of Neville Chamberlain · 17 August 2006

  • Neville Chamberlain: A Biography by Robert Self

• Young Brutes: the Amerys · 23 February 2006

  • Speaking for England: Leo, Julian and John Amery: The Tragedy of a Political Family by David Faber

• In Pyjamas: Bill Deedes’s Decency · 17 November 2005

  • Dear Bill: A Memoir by W.F. Deedes

• Find the birch sticks: a spy’s diary · 1 September 2005

  • The Guy Liddell Diaries: Vol. I 1939-42 edited by Nigel West

• Burning Blankets: Robert Mugabe’s latest tidy-up · 7 July 2005

• Help Yourself: The other crooked Reggie · 21 April 2005

  • Reggie: The Life of Reginald Maudling by Lewis Baston

• Lords loses out: Basil D’Oliveira and racism in sport · 16 December 2004

  • Basil D’Oliveira: Cricket and Conspiracy: The Untold Story by Peter Oborne
  • Reflections on a Life in Sport by Sam Ramsamy and Edward Griffiths

• Really Very Exhilarating: Macmillan and the Guardsmen · 7 October 2004

  • The Guardsmen: Harold Macmillan, Three Friends and the World They Made by Simon Ball

• Associated Prigs: Eleanor Rathbone · 8 July 2004

  • Eleanor Rathbone and the Politics of Conscience by Susan Pedersen

• Jingoes: Britain and South Africa since the Boer War · 6 May 2004

  • The Lion and the Springbok: Britain and South Africa since the Boer War by Ronald Hyam and Peter Henshaw

• Carry on up the Corner Flag: The sociology of football · 24 July 2003

  • Ajax, the Dutch, the War: Football in Europe during the Second World War by Simon Kuper
  • Broken Dreams: Vanity, Greed and the Souring of British Football by Tom Bower

• Bad Timing: All about Eden · 22 May 2003

  • Eden: The Life and Times of Anthony Eden, First Earl of Avon 1897-1977 by D.R. Thorpe
  • The Macmillan Diaries: The Cabinet Years 1950-57 edited by Peter Catterall

• Just Had To: LBJ · 20 March 2003

  • The Years of Lyndon Johnson: Vol. III: Master of the Senate by Robert A. Caro

• Every Club in the Bag : Whitehall and Moscow · 8 August 2002

  • The Secret State: Whitehall and the Cold War by Peter Hennessy
  • Know Your Enemy: How the Joint Intelligence Committee Saw the World by Percy Cradock

• Don’t you carry?: going to ground in Zimbabwe · 25 April 2002

• Cads: Roosevelt’s Secret War: FDR and World War Two Espionage by Joseph Persico. · 4 April 2002

  • Roosevelt’s Secret War: FDR and World War Two Espionage by Joseph Persico

• How would Richelieu and Mazarin have coped? on Henry Kissinger · 20 September 2001

  • The Trial of Henry Kissinger by Christopher Hitchens

• Apocalypse Two on Rwanda’s genocide · 21 June 2001

  • A People Betrayed: The Role of the West in Rwanda’s Genocide by Linda Melvern

• Diary · 10 May 2001

• Into the Second Term on New Labour · 5 April 2001

  • Servants of the People: The Inside Story of New Labour by Andrew Rawnsley
  • Mandelson and the Making of New Labour by Donald Macintyre
  • Mo Mowlam: The Biography by Julia Langdon
  • Ann Widdecombe: Right from the Beginning by Nicholas Kochan
  • The Paymaster: Geoffrey Robinson, Maxwell and New Labour by Tom Bower
  • The Future of Politics by Charles Kennedy

• How Mugabe came to power talks to Wilfred Mhanda · 22 February 2001

• ‘Do they eat people here much still?’ ‘Rarement. Très Rarement.’ on Thomas Hodgkin · 14 December 2000

  • Thomas Hodgkin: Letters from Africa, 1947-56 edited by Elizabeth Hodgkin and Michael Wolfers

• Bugger everyone on the prime ministers 1945-2000 · 19 October 2000

  • The Prime Minister: The Office and Its Holders since 1945 by Peter Hennessy

• After the Election in Zimbabwe · 20 July 2000

• A Dangerous Occupation: The Land Wars of Southern Africa · 1 June 2000

• I’m all for it · 30 March 2000

  • Hitler’s Pope: The Secret History of Pius XII by John Cornwall

• South African Stories in South Africa · 2 March 2000

• Nerds, Rabbits and a General Lack of Testosterone: Major and Lamont · 9 December 1999

  • The Autobiography by John Major
  • In Office by Norman Lamont

• Why there is no easy way to dispose of painful history: Truth, Lies and Reconciliation · 14 October 1999

  • The Truth about the Truth Commission by Anthea Jeffery

• An Unreliable Friend on Nelson Mandela · 19 August 1999

  • Mandela: The Authorised Biography by Anthony Sampson

• Diary: Goodbye Zimbabwe · 4 March 1999

• The Greatest Error of Modern History: Did the Kaiser get it right? · 18 February 1999

  • The Pity of War by Niall Ferguson

• Rogue’s Paradise on The Russians and the Anglo-Boer War by Apollon Davidson and Irina Filatova · 16 July 1998

  • The Russians and the Anglo-Boer War by Apollon Davidson and Irina Filatova

• Mister Sheppard to you on Classes and Cultures: England 1918-51 by Ross McKibbin · 21 May 1998

  • Classes and Cultures: England 1918-51 by Ross McKibbin

• Redheads in Normandy on the 1997 election · 22 January 1998

  • The British General Election of 1997 by David Butler and Dennis Kavanagh
  • Labour's Landslide by Andrew Geddes and Jonathan Tonge
  • Britain Votes 1997 edited by Pippa Norris and Neil Gavin
  • Collapse of Stout Party: The Decline and Fall of the Tories by Julian Crtitchley and Morrison Halcrow
  • Les Election Legislatives, 25 Mai-1er Juin 1997: Le president desavoue

• High Priest of Mumbo-Jumbo · 13 November 1997

  • Lord Hailsham: A Life by Geoffrey Lewis

• Mediterranean Man · 16 October 1997

  • Albert Camus: A Life by Olivier Todd, translated by Benjamin Ivry

• Diary · 17 July 1997

• Stick to the Latin · 23 January 1997

  • Enoch Powell by Robert Shepherd

• The Ingenuity of Rural Life · 12 December 1996

  • The Seed Is Mine: The Life of Kas Maine, a South African Sharecropper, 1849-1985 by Charles van Onselen

• Digging up the Ancestors · 14 November 1996

  • Hugh Gaitskell by Brian Brivati

• On the Way to First Base · 17 October 1996

• End of an Elite · 21 March 1996

  • Slovo: The Unfinished Autobiography by Joe Slovo

• Famous Four · 30 November 1995

  • SDP: The Birth, Life and Death of the Social Democratic Party by Ivor Crewe and Anthony King

• Fear in the Miracle Nation · 2 November 1995

  • The Liberal Slideaway by Jill Wentzel

• Diary · 3 August 1995

• Rubbing along in the neo-liberal way · 22 June 1995

• The Presidents’ Man · 25 May 1995

  • Foccart Parle: Entretiens avec Philippe Gaillard

• Megalo · 9 March 1995

  • The State We’re In by Will Hutton

• At the Skunk Works · 23 February 1995

  • Fool’s Gold: The Story of North Sea Oil by Christopher Harvie

• This Sporting Life · 8 December 1994

  • Iain Macleod by Robert Shepherd

• Enrichissez-Vous! · 20 October 1994

• The Greatest · 4 August 1994

  • Charles de Gaulle, Futurist of the Nation by Régis Debray, translated by John Howe
  • De Gaulle and 20th-Century France edited by Hugh Gough and John Horne
  • François Mitterrand: A Study in Political Leadership by Alistair Cole

• Here for the crunch · 28 April 1994

• Bevan’s Boy · 24 March 1994

  • Michael Foot by Mervyn Jones

• The Last Days of Bhambayi · 6 January 1994

• Schadenfreude · 2 December 1993

  • The Downing Street Years by Margaret Thatcher

• Stitched up · 21 October 1993

  • Return to Paradise by Breyten Breytenbach

• Magical Socialism · 5 August 1993

• When that great day comes · 22 July 1993

• Beloved Country · 8 July 1993

• Nixon’s Greatest Moments · 13 May 1993

  • Nixon: A Life by Jonathan Aitken

• The Kennedy Boys · 28 January 1993

  • JFK: Life and Death of an American President. Vol. I: Reckless Youth by Nigel Hamilton

• So much was expected · 3 December 1992

  • Harold Wilson by Ben Pimlott
  • Harold Wilson by Austen Morgan

• Cheered in the street, much as Charles or Di · 9 July 1992

• Ahead lies – what? · 12 March 1992

  • Paradigms Lost: The Post Cold War Era edited by Chester Hartman and Pedro Vilanova
  • The Crisis of Socialism in Europe edited by Christiane Lemke and Gary Marks

• Who’ll man the fax? · 13 February 1992

• What Buthelezi wants · 19 December 1991

• The Past and Future of the South African Communist party · 24 October 1991

• Aids in South Africa · 12 September 1991

• Lions, Princes, Bosses · 15 August 1991

• Rowley Arenstein, friend of Mandela, supporter of Buthelezi, talks to R. W. Johnson · 21 February 1991

• Further Left · 16 August 1990

  • Prepared for the worst: Selected Essays and Minority Reports by Christopher Hitchens
  • Blood, Class and Nostalgia: Anglo-American Ironies by Christopher Hitchens

• R.W. Johnson pays his respects to Mrs Luthuli · 19 April 1990

• Moooovement · 8 February 1990

  • Resources of Hope: Culture, Democracy, Socialism by Raymond Williams, edited by Robin Gable
  • The Alien Mind of Raymond Williams by Jan Gorak
  • Raymond Williams: Writing, Culture, Politics by Alan O’Connor
  • Raymond Williams on Television: Selected Writings edited by Alan O’Connor
  • News from Nowhere: No 6. Raymond Williams: Third Generation edited by Tony Pinkney
  • Raymond Williams: Critical Perspectives edited by Terry Eagleton

• R.W. Johnson writes about a national disgrace · 6 July 1989

  • Who Framed Colin Wallace? by Paul Foot

• Is this successful management? · 20 April 1989

  • One of Us: A Biography of Margaret Thatcher by Hugo Young

• The Revolution is over · 16 February 1989

  • The Permanent Revolution: The French Revolution and its Legacy 1789-1989 edited by Geoffrey Best

• Via Mandela · 5 January 1989

  • Higher than Hope: ‘Rolihlahla we love you’ by Fatima Meer

• Black on Black · 24 November 1988

• Scenes from South African Life · 13 October 1988

• Pallas · 7 July 1988

  • The Enchanted Glass: Britain and its Monarchy by Tom Nairn

• Lordspeak · 2 June 1988

  • Passion and Cunning, and Other Essays by Conor Cruise O’Brien
  • God Land: Reflections on Religion and Nationalism by Conor Cruise O’Brien

• Doctor Feelgood · 3 March 1988

  • Reagan’s America: Innocents at Home by Garry Wills

• Diary · 10 December 1987

• Public Enemy · 26 November 1987

  • Secrecy and Power: The Life of J. Edgar Hoover by Richard Gid Powers

• Peter Wright, Judges and Journalists · 3 September 1987

• Going for Gould · 23 July 1987

  • Apocalypse 2000: Economic Breakdown and the Suicide of Democracy 1989-2000 by Peter Jay and Michael Stewart

• There’s always shopping to be done · 9 July 1987

  • The Age of Terrorism by Walter Laqueur
  • The Baader-Meinhof Group: The Inside Story of a Phenomenon by Stefan Aust, translated by Anthea Bell

• Subversions · 4 June 1987

  • Traitors: The Labyrinths of Treason by Chapman Pincher
  • The Secrets of the Service: British Intelligence and Communist Subversion 1939-51 by Anthony Glees
  • Freedom of Information – Freedom of the Individual? by Clive Ponting, John Ranelagh, Michael Zander and Simon Lee, edited by Julia Neuberger

• Their Affair and Our Affair · 23 April 1987

  • The Affair: The Case of Alfred Dreyfus by Jean-Denis Bredin, translated by Jeffrey Mehlman
  • Neither Right nor Left: Fascist Ideology in France by Zeev Sternhell, translated by David Maisel

• Why Barbie may never be tried · 5 March 1987

  • The People’s Anger: Justice and Revenge in Post-Liberation France by Herbert Lottman

• Rising Moon · 18 December 1986

  • L’Empire Moon by Jean-Francois Boyer
  • The Rise and Fall of the Bulgarian Connection by Edward Herman and Frank Brodhead

• Secondary Targeting · 23 October 1986

  • ‘The target is destroyed’: What really happened to Flight 007 by Seymour Hersh

• Le Grand Jacques · 9 October 1986

  • Jacques Doriot: Du Communisme au Fascisme by Jean-Paul Brunet

• Apartheid’s Apocalypse · 3 July 1986

  • South Africa without Apartheid by Heribert Adam and Kogila Moodley
  • Move your shadow: South Africa Black and White by Joseph Lelyveld
  • Capitalism and Apartheid: South Africa 1910-1984 by Merle Lipton
  • The Militarisation of South African Politics by Kenneth Grundy

• Reasons of State · 5 June 1986

  • The ‘Rainbow Warrior’ Affair by Richard Shears and Isobelle Gidley
  • Sink the ‘Rainbow’: An Inquiry into the Greenpeace Affair by John Dyson
  • La Piscine: Les Services Secrets Français 1944-1984 by R. Faligot and P. Krop

• Diary · 8 May 1986

• Proportional Representation casts a shadow over France · 23 January 1986

• Seven Days · 4 July 1985

  • The Pick of Paul Johnson: An Anthology

• Mendès · 20 June 1985

  • Pierre Mendès France by Jean Lacouture, translated by George Holoch

• Making things happen · 6 September 1984

  • The Missing Dimension: Governments and Intelligence Communities in the 20th Century edited by Christopher Andrew and David Dilks

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