In conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Simon Kuper – author of the new book Chums: How a Tiny Caste of Oxford Tories Took Over the UK – discusses why Oxford University was so crucial to the formation of the current Tory elite; how this highly influential generational cohort of Tories may be placed into the long continuum of British history and what might make it rather distinct; and which ideas and concerns shaped their attitude and relationship to the European Union on the path to Brexit. The conversation also reflects on how Simon Kuper’s insider-outsider status has helped him paint this insightful group portrait.
Simon Kuper is a columnist at the Financial Times and the author of a host of essential books on football, such as Football Against the Enemy; Ajax, the Dutch, the War; Soccernomics (co-authored with Stefan Szymanski); and, most recently, of Barça: The Rise and Fall of the Club that Built Modern Football.
Chums: How a Tiny Caste of Oxford Tories Took Over the UK is published by Profile.
In collaboration with Lucie Janotová
