Mandy: Unauthorised Biography of Peter Mandelson Book

They say that a day is a long time in politics and journalist Paul Routledge, the author of Mandy, the unauthorised biography of Peter Mandelson, can testify to that. His book ought to have been the headline-maker, but little did he know that it would be "scooped" by revelations of arguably the most dramatic incident in Mandelson's career--the Geoffrey Robinson loan affair which led to the Labour Minister's resignation. Nevertheless, Routledge does an admirable job recording Mandelson's early years: his childhood in Hampstead Garden Suburb and Hendon County Grammar school, where his political interests were expressed through membership of the Young Socialists and then the Young Communist League. He spent a "gap year" in Tanzania before Oxford and his first job was with the TUC. Up to this point, Routledge's information--garnered second-hand--appears to be factual. However, when he starts recording Mandelson's parliamentary career, he seems to lose any vestiges of objectivity. He paints what appears to be a lopsided portrait of Mandelson as scheming and evil, with hints of sociopathy. The book's title alludes to the speculation about Mandelson's homosexuality, but Routledge doesn't manage to produce many new insight here, relying heavily on organisations like Outrage! for his information. It's a pity that Routledge didn't show any human side to Mandelson--the result tends to discredit rather than enhance the book's credibility.Read More