Labour stalwart Tony Benn was convinced his telephone was being tapped during the Wilson government years, newly-unearthed recordings reveal. The late former cabinet minister speculated that the KGB, MI5 or the CIA could have been behind the interception in an audio diary in 1975, when he was industry secretary. In the self-recorded entry, he recalled
Labour stalwart Tony Benn was convinced his telephone was being tapped during the Wilson government years, newly-unearthed recordings reveal.
The late former cabinet minister speculated that the KGB, MI5 or the CIA could have been behind the interception in an audio diary in 1975, when he was industry secretary.
In the self-recorded entry, he recalled how his son Joshua was able to hear through the radio him playing down the phone a recording of a speech he was due to give – leading him to believe there was a transmitter bug in his room.
“As I was sitting listening myself, Carol came down and beckoned me away and so I went upstairs and discovered that Joshua was picking up my telephone call to Frances on his radio,” Mr Benn said. ”So obviously there is a transmitter bug in my room – whether put here by the CIA, by MI5 or by the Post Office or KGB I do not know – but it was absolute confirmation because Joshua picked it up on his portable radio that wasn’t plugged in at all to the electrical system.
“It is a very interesting confirmation of what I have long suspected – that my phone is tapped.”
1/50 4 March 2019
Large waves crash over the sea walls at Cleveleys near Blackpool, as the remains of Storm Freya, which has battered Britain with gales, heavy rain and snow causes widespread travel disruption
PA
2/50 3 March 2019
Christopher Hepworth with partner Tanisha Prince (right) on their way to victory in the annual UK Wife Carrying Race at The Nower in Dorking, Surrey
PA
3/50 2 March 2019
Police officers search near the scene on St Neot’s Road in Harold Hill, east London following the fatal stabbing of a 17-year-old girl on Friday night. Police were called to reports of a knife attack in the Romford area by the ambulance service at 9.25pm. The girl was pronounced dead at the scene just over an hour later. Her next of kin have been informed and detectives from the Metropolitan Police have launched a murder investigation
PA
4/50 1 March 2019
Great Britain’s Katarina Johnson-Thompson and Niamh Emerson celebrate after winning gold and silver medals in the women’s pentathlon at the 2019 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow
Getty
5/50 28 February 2019
A painting, believed to be the second version of “Judith Beheading Holofernes” by Italian artist Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, is picutred during a photocall in London following its restoration. – The 400-year-old canvas — depicting the beheading of an Assyrian general, Holofernes, by Judith from the biblical Book of Judith — was found in 2014 when the owners of a house near the southwestern city of Toulouse in France, were investigating a leak in the ceiling. It is a burst of violence painted in haunting tones by a Renaissance master worth at least $100 million — or yet another fake distressing the art world.
AFP/Getty
6/50 27 February 2019
Dozens of firefighters worked through the night to battle a major moorland blaze in West Yorkshire. More than 1.5sq km of Saddleworth Moor was ablaze in the early hours of Wednesday morning after the UK’s hottest winter day on record
Reuters
7/50 26 February 2019
Alastair Cook after he received his knighthood at Buckingham Palace
PA
8/50 25 February 2019
Nobby the polar bear cools down at the Yorkshire Wildlife Park during unseasonably warm weather. The park was covered in a blanket of snow at the end of February 2018 as the UK was hit by sub-zero temperatures. Forecasters have said that after this weekend’s warm weather, temperatures later this week should return to normal
PA
9/50 24 February 2019
Olivia Colman won the best actress in a leading role award for ‘The Favourite’ at the 91st Academy Awards in Hollywood
PA
10/50 23 February 2019
Former English Defence League leader Tommy Robinson seen on the big screen as he addresses a protest over the BBC’s Panorama programme outside the BBC in MediaCityUK, Salford
PA
11/50 22 February 2019
A girl takes a photo of her dog with daffodils in St James’s Park in London
PA
12/50 21 February 2019
Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and the party’s Shadow Secretary of State for Departing the European Union Keir Starmer leave a meeting with European Union Chief Brexit Negotiator Michel Barnier at the EU Commission headquarters in Brussels
Reuters
13/50 20 February 2019
Chris Leslie, Gavin Shuker, Chuka Umunna and Mike Gapes, (middle row, left to right) Angela Smith, Luciana Berger and Ann Coffey, (front row, left to right) Sarah Woollaston, Heidi Allen, Anna Soubry and Joan Ryan, following a press conference for the Independent Group where the three Conservative MPs, Woollaston, Allen and Soubry, announced their resignation from the party
PA
14/50 19 February 2019
A full moon sets near Whitley Bay, North Tyneside as the sun begins to rise, ahead of the super snow moon on Tuesday evening
PA
15/50 18 February 2019
MP Chuka Umunna speaks during the announcement of his resignation, along with a group of six other Labour MPs, including, Luciana Berger, Mike Gapes, Angela Smith, Chris Leslie, Ann Coffey and Gavin Shuker and who will be known as the Independent Group
PA
16/50 17 February 2019
Climate change activists block the road as part of an Extinction Rebellion protest outside a London Fashion Week event at Tate Britain in London, calling on the fashion industry to use its influence to help to create a sustainable world.
PA
17/50 16 February 2019
Demonstrators hold a banner during a protest over BP and Iraq at the British Museum in London, Britain
Reuters
18/50 15 February 2019
Schoolchildren take part in a student climate march in Parliament Square in London. Thousands of UK pupils from schools, colleges and universities will walk out for a nationwide climate change strike. Students in 60 cities from the West Country to Scotland are protesting, urging the government to declare a climate emergency and take action over the problem. They are keen that the national curriculum is reformed and the environmental crisis is communicated to the public. Similar strikes have taken place in Australia and in European countries such as Belgium and Sweden
Getty
19/50 14 February 2019
A lady enjoys the beach in sunshine in Brighton, East Sussex. The Met Office forecast said Thursday and Friday would see early fog patches followed by plenty of sunshine
PA
20/50 13 February 2019
Jockeys compete in the space hopper derby during the Injured Jockeys Fund Charity Raceday at Plumpton Racecourse
PA
21/50 12 February 2019
Young members of Britain’s opposition Labour party write on a billboard why they want Jeremy Corbyn the party leader to back a “People’s Vote” second referendum on Britain’s European Union membership, during a publicity stunt in Islington North, Corbyn’s north London constituency. The event was organized Tuesday by “For our Future’s Sake” (FFS), a nationwide group of students and young people working to stop Brexit, with the billboard provided by “Led By Donkeys” a remain supporting group using online crowd funding to pay for billboard space to put up posters highlighting quotes on Brexit made by politicians and organizations.
AP
22/50 11 February 2019
Western lowland gorilla Kera, opens presents intended for her daughter Afia, in celebration of her third birthday at Bristol Zoo Gardens
PA
23/50 10 February 2019
Olivia Colman with her Bafta award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for ‘The Favourite’ at the 72nd British Academy Film Awards held at the Royal Albert Hall. The Favourite took home seven awards during the night
PA
24/50 9 February 2019
Dwain Chambers made his sprint comeback in the 60m event at the British Indoor Championships. The 40-year-old came in second during his heat with a time of 6.78 however after a false start and a disqualification in the semi-final he failed to progress any further. The qualifying time for next month’s European Indoor Championships in Glasgow is 6.60 seconds
PA
25/50 8 February 2019
A model during a photo call for fashion presentation Fashion in Motion: Inspired by Christian Dior at the Victoria and Albert Museum, in South Kensington, London
PA
26/50 7 February 2019
President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker receives Prime Minister Theresa May, in the VIP corner of The Berlaymont, the headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels. The EU and UK have agreed to restart Brexit talks to find “a way through” the deadlock in Westminster, following her visit
Getty
27/50 6 February 2019
The group of activists who stopped a deportation flight leaving Stansted Airport have walked free from court and are to appeal their convictions. The defendants, who have become known as the Stansted 15, said they were “guilty of nothing more than intervening to prevent harm” to migrants on board the plane
PA
28/50 5 February 2019
Emergency services attend to a house fire Stafford in which four children have died. Two adults and a fifth child are being treated in hospital
SWNS
29/50 4 February 2019
Hamish, the UK’s only polar bear cub, enjoying the snow at RZSS’s Highland Wildlife Park in the Cairngorms. Hamish was the first polar bear cub to be born in the UK for 25 years when he arrived on December 18, 2017
RZSS/PA
30/50 3 February 2019
British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves after attending a Sunday church service in Maidenhead
Getty
31/50 2 February 2019
Owen Farrell celebrates as he walks down the tunnel after England beat Ireland in their Six Nations match at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin
Reuters
32/50 1 February 2019
Dog walkers in Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve on the Chilterns escarpment, in Oxfordshire. Snowfall and icy conditions are expected to cause widespread travel disruption after temperatures plummeted as low as minus 15.4C (4.3F) overnight.
PA
33/50 31 January 2019
A person walks past the frozen Sefton Park Lake in Liverpool after the UK had its coldest night of the winter so far as the cold snap continues to cause icy conditions across the country
PA
34/50 30 January 2019
Police searching near the scene in Islington, north London where 17-year-old boy, Nedim Bilgin, was pronounced dead after being stabbed on Tuesday evening
PA
35/50 29 January 2019
A vehicle navigates in snowy conditions near Newby Head in North Yorkshire, as up to 10cm of snow could fall on higher ground as temperatures drop across the UK this week
PA
36/50 28 January 2019
A Union flag flies from a pole in front of the Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as Big Ben, near the Houses of Parliament in central London. Despite the humiliating rejection of Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal, Britain is no closer to knowing the end result of its vote to leave the European Union. A raft of amendments to be voted on by MPs on Tuesday threaten to further muddy the waters as the clock ticks down to Britain’s scheduled departure from the EU on March 29
AFP/Getty
37/50 27 January 2019
Irish foreign minister Simon Coveney being interviewed by host Andrew Marr on the BBC1 current affairs programme, Simon Coveney told the Show that the EU would not ratify a Brexit deal without a backstop.
PA
38/50 26 january 2019
Michael Russell, the Scottish government’s minister with responsibility for Brexit negotiations attends a Rally for Europe at Augustine United Church in Edinburgh, Scotland. With only two months to go until the UK is scheduled to leave the EU, people attended the rally to listen to speakers as they called for Brexit to be halted and for a second people’s vote to take place.
Getty
39/50 25 January 2019
Former engineers Derek Mack (left) and Mike Kelloway, both from the Isle of Wight, inside the remains of the Black Arrow projectile, the UK’s only rocket to successfully launch a satellite into orbit, are unveiled at a storage facility in Penicuik, near Edinburgh, after almost 50 years languishing in the Australian Outback
PA
40/50 24 January 2019
Former Scottish first minister Alex Salmond makes a statement outside Edinburgh Sheriff Court after he was arrested and charged by police. No further details of the charge against the 64-year-old have been released. A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: “We can confirm that a 64-year-old man has been arrested and charged, and a report will be sent to the procurator fiscal
PA
41/50 23 January 2019
A couple walk through a park, in High Wycombe, as some areas of the UK see the first snow of the year
Getty
42/50 22 January 2019
Ttributes left outside Cardiff City Stadium after a plane carrying their new signing Emiliano Sala disappeared over the English Channel on Monday night. The aircraft disappeared off radar after losing contact with air traffic control around 8:20pm, with rescue attempts abandoned through the night due to worsening conditions. Lifeboats and helicopters resumed the search 8am on Tuesday morning, but the latest update from Guernsey Police is that there is “no trace of the aircraft” and officials have now said that they are “not expecting anyone to be alive”
Reuters
43/50 21 January 2019
A super blood wolf moon over the peace statue on Brighton seafront during a lunar eclipse
PA
44/50 20 January 2019
Forensic officers inspect the remains of the van used as a car bomb on an attack outside Derry Court House in Londonderry, Northern Ireland. Dissident republicans are suspected to have carried out the attack which has been condemned by Northern Ireland politicians
Getty
45/50 19 January 2019
Women’s march for “bread and roses”, rally against austerity in London
Angela Christofilou/The Independent
46/50 18 January 2019
A team of specialists who are tasked with piecing together the iconic dinosaur Dippy unpack bespoke crates containing the bone structure at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow. As part of a road trip across the UK, Dippy has arrived in Scotland and will be on show
Getty
47/50 17 January 2019
A farmer rides a quad bike as snow and frost settles on the peaks of the hills in the Brecon Beacons
PA
48/50 16 January 2019
Theresa May speaking during Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons the day after her Brexit deal was defeated in Parliament
PA
49/50 15 January 2019
Police monitor Brexit protesters outside the houses of parliament in London. Parliamentarians are voting on the postponed Brexit EU Withdrawal Agreement, commonly known as The Meaningful Vote, deciding on Britain’s future relationship with the European Union
EPA
50/50 14 January 2019
Andy Murray produced one of the performances of his career, but after more than four hours and with an injured hip that will inevitably end his career at some point this year, he exited the Australian Open in the first round at the hands of 22nd seed Roberto Bautista Agut. It looked to be a straight-forward victory for the Spaniard as he surged into a two-set lead, but Murray is not a three-time Grand Slam champion for nothing and he supremely levelled the match despite hobbling around the court from the get-go. However, in the end his hip injury just took too much out of him, and Bautista Agut clinched a breath-taking 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-7 (4-7), 2-6 victory to reach the second round where he’ll face Australia’s John Millman
Reuters
1/50 4 March 2019
Large waves crash over the sea walls at Cleveleys near Blackpool, as the remains of Storm Freya, which has battered Britain with gales, heavy rain and snow causes widespread travel disruption
PA
2/50 3 March 2019
Christopher Hepworth with partner Tanisha Prince (right) on their way to victory in the annual UK Wife Carrying Race at The Nower in Dorking, Surrey
PA
3/50 2 March 2019
Police officers search near the scene on St Neot’s Road in Harold Hill, east London following the fatal stabbing of a 17-year-old girl on Friday night. Police were called to reports of a knife attack in the Romford area by the ambulance service at 9.25pm. The girl was pronounced dead at the scene just over an hour later. Her next of kin have been informed and detectives from the Metropolitan Police have launched a murder investigation
PA
4/50 1 March 2019
Great Britain’s Katarina Johnson-Thompson and Niamh Emerson celebrate after winning gold and silver medals in the women’s pentathlon at the 2019 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow
Getty
5/50 28 February 2019
A painting, believed to be the second version of “Judith Beheading Holofernes” by Italian artist Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, is picutred during a photocall in London following its restoration. – The 400-year-old canvas — depicting the beheading of an Assyrian general, Holofernes, by Judith from the biblical Book of Judith — was found in 2014 when the owners of a house near the southwestern city of Toulouse in France, were investigating a leak in the ceiling. It is a burst of violence painted in haunting tones by a Renaissance master worth at least $100 million — or yet another fake distressing the art world.
AFP/Getty
6/50 27 February 2019
Dozens of firefighters worked through the night to battle a major moorland blaze in West Yorkshire. More than 1.5sq km of Saddleworth Moor was ablaze in the early hours of Wednesday morning after the UK’s hottest winter day on record
Reuters
7/50 26 February 2019
Alastair Cook after he received his knighthood at Buckingham Palace
PA
8/50 25 February 2019
Nobby the polar bear cools down at the Yorkshire Wildlife Park during unseasonably warm weather. The park was covered in a blanket of snow at the end of February 2018 as the UK was hit by sub-zero temperatures. Forecasters have said that after this weekend’s warm weather, temperatures later this week should return to normal
PA
9/50 24 February 2019
Olivia Colman won the best actress in a leading role award for ‘The Favourite’ at the 91st Academy Awards in Hollywood
PA
10/50 23 February 2019
Former English Defence League leader Tommy Robinson seen on the big screen as he addresses a protest over the BBC’s Panorama programme outside the BBC in MediaCityUK, Salford
PA
11/50 22 February 2019
A girl takes a photo of her dog with daffodils in St James’s Park in London
PA
12/50 21 February 2019
Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and the party’s Shadow Secretary of State for Departing the European Union Keir Starmer leave a meeting with European Union Chief Brexit Negotiator Michel Barnier at the EU Commission headquarters in Brussels
Reuters
13/50 20 February 2019
Chris Leslie, Gavin Shuker, Chuka Umunna and Mike Gapes, (middle row, left to right) Angela Smith, Luciana Berger and Ann Coffey, (front row, left to right) Sarah Woollaston, Heidi Allen, Anna Soubry and Joan Ryan, following a press conference for the Independent Group where the three Conservative MPs, Woollaston, Allen and Soubry, announced their resignation from the party
PA
14/50 19 February 2019
A full moon sets near Whitley Bay, North Tyneside as the sun begins to rise, ahead of the super snow moon on Tuesday evening
PA
15/50 18 February 2019
MP Chuka Umunna speaks during the announcement of his resignation, along with a group of six other Labour MPs, including, Luciana Berger, Mike Gapes, Angela Smith, Chris Leslie, Ann Coffey and Gavin Shuker and who will be known as the Independent Group
PA
16/50 17 February 2019
Climate change activists block the road as part of an Extinction Rebellion protest outside a London Fashion Week event at Tate Britain in London, calling on the fashion industry to use its influence to help to create a sustainable world.
PA
17/50 16 February 2019
Demonstrators hold a banner during a protest over BP and Iraq at the British Museum in London, Britain
Reuters
18/50 15 February 2019
Schoolchildren take part in a student climate march in Parliament Square in London. Thousands of UK pupils from schools, colleges and universities will walk out for a nationwide climate change strike. Students in 60 cities from the West Country to Scotland are protesting, urging the government to declare a climate emergency and take action over the problem. They are keen that the national curriculum is reformed and the environmental crisis is communicated to the public. Similar strikes have taken place in Australia and in European countries such as Belgium and Sweden
Getty
19/50 14 February 2019
A lady enjoys the beach in sunshine in Brighton, East Sussex. The Met Office forecast said Thursday and Friday would see early fog patches followed by plenty of sunshine
PA
20/50 13 February 2019
Jockeys compete in the space hopper derby during the Injured Jockeys Fund Charity Raceday at Plumpton Racecourse
PA
21/50 12 February 2019
Young members of Britain’s opposition Labour party write on a billboard why they want Jeremy Corbyn the party leader to back a “People’s Vote” second referendum on Britain’s European Union membership, during a publicity stunt in Islington North, Corbyn’s north London constituency. The event was organized Tuesday by “For our Future’s Sake” (FFS), a nationwide group of students and young people working to stop Brexit, with the billboard provided by “Led By Donkeys” a remain supporting group using online crowd funding to pay for billboard space to put up posters highlighting quotes on Brexit made by politicians and organizations.
AP
22/50 11 February 2019
Western lowland gorilla Kera, opens presents intended for her daughter Afia, in celebration of her third birthday at Bristol Zoo Gardens
PA
23/50 10 February 2019
Olivia Colman with her Bafta award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for ‘The Favourite’ at the 72nd British Academy Film Awards held at the Royal Albert Hall. The Favourite took home seven awards during the night
PA
24/50 9 February 2019
Dwain Chambers made his sprint comeback in the 60m event at the British Indoor Championships. The 40-year-old came in second during his heat with a time of 6.78 however after a false start and a disqualification in the semi-final he failed to progress any further. The qualifying time for next month’s European Indoor Championships in Glasgow is 6.60 seconds
PA
25/50 8 February 2019
A model during a photo call for fashion presentation Fashion in Motion: Inspired by Christian Dior at the Victoria and Albert Museum, in South Kensington, London
PA
26/50 7 February 2019
President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker receives Prime Minister Theresa May, in the VIP corner of The Berlaymont, the headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels. The EU and UK have agreed to restart Brexit talks to find “a way through” the deadlock in Westminster, following her visit
Getty
27/50 6 February 2019
The group of activists who stopped a deportation flight leaving Stansted Airport have walked free from court and are to appeal their convictions. The defendants, who have become known as the Stansted 15, said they were “guilty of nothing more than intervening to prevent harm” to migrants on board the plane
PA
28/50 5 February 2019
Emergency services attend to a house fire Stafford in which four children have died. Two adults and a fifth child are being treated in hospital
SWNS
29/50 4 February 2019
Hamish, the UK’s only polar bear cub, enjoying the snow at RZSS’s Highland Wildlife Park in the Cairngorms. Hamish was the first polar bear cub to be born in the UK for 25 years when he arrived on December 18, 2017
RZSS/PA
30/50 3 February 2019
British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves after attending a Sunday church service in Maidenhead
Getty
31/50 2 February 2019
Owen Farrell celebrates as he walks down the tunnel after England beat Ireland in their Six Nations match at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin
Reuters
32/50 1 February 2019
Dog walkers in Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve on the Chilterns escarpment, in Oxfordshire. Snowfall and icy conditions are expected to cause widespread travel disruption after temperatures plummeted as low as minus 15.4C (4.3F) overnight.
PA
33/50 31 January 2019
A person walks past the frozen Sefton Park Lake in Liverpool after the UK had its coldest night of the winter so far as the cold snap continues to cause icy conditions across the country
PA
34/50 30 January 2019
Police searching near the scene in Islington, north London where 17-year-old boy, Nedim Bilgin, was pronounced dead after being stabbed on Tuesday evening
PA
35/50 29 January 2019
A vehicle navigates in snowy conditions near Newby Head in North Yorkshire, as up to 10cm of snow could fall on higher ground as temperatures drop across the UK this week
PA
36/50 28 January 2019
A Union flag flies from a pole in front of the Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as Big Ben, near the Houses of Parliament in central London. Despite the humiliating rejection of Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal, Britain is no closer to knowing the end result of its vote to leave the European Union. A raft of amendments to be voted on by MPs on Tuesday threaten to further muddy the waters as the clock ticks down to Britain’s scheduled departure from the EU on March 29
AFP/Getty
37/50 27 January 2019
Irish foreign minister Simon Coveney being interviewed by host Andrew Marr on the BBC1 current affairs programme, Simon Coveney told the Show that the EU would not ratify a Brexit deal without a backstop.
PA
38/50 26 january 2019
Michael Russell, the Scottish government’s minister with responsibility for Brexit negotiations attends a Rally for Europe at Augustine United Church in Edinburgh, Scotland. With only two months to go until the UK is scheduled to leave the EU, people attended the rally to listen to speakers as they called for Brexit to be halted and for a second people’s vote to take place.
Getty
39/50 25 January 2019
Former engineers Derek Mack (left) and Mike Kelloway, both from the Isle of Wight, inside the remains of the Black Arrow projectile, the UK’s only rocket to successfully launch a satellite into orbit, are unveiled at a storage facility in Penicuik, near Edinburgh, after almost 50 years languishing in the Australian Outback
PA
40/50 24 January 2019
Former Scottish first minister Alex Salmond makes a statement outside Edinburgh Sheriff Court after he was arrested and charged by police. No further details of the charge against the 64-year-old have been released. A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: “We can confirm that a 64-year-old man has been arrested and charged, and a report will be sent to the procurator fiscal
PA
41/50 23 January 2019
A couple walk through a park, in High Wycombe, as some areas of the UK see the first snow of the year
Getty
42/50 22 January 2019
Ttributes left outside Cardiff City Stadium after a plane carrying their new signing Emiliano Sala disappeared over the English Channel on Monday night. The aircraft disappeared off radar after losing contact with air traffic control around 8:20pm, with rescue attempts abandoned through the night due to worsening conditions. Lifeboats and helicopters resumed the search 8am on Tuesday morning, but the latest update from Guernsey Police is that there is “no trace of the aircraft” and officials have now said that they are “not expecting anyone to be alive”
Reuters
43/50 21 January 2019
A super blood wolf moon over the peace statue on Brighton seafront during a lunar eclipse
PA
44/50 20 January 2019
Forensic officers inspect the remains of the van used as a car bomb on an attack outside Derry Court House in Londonderry, Northern Ireland. Dissident republicans are suspected to have carried out the attack which has been condemned by Northern Ireland politicians
Getty
45/50 19 January 2019
Women’s march for “bread and roses”, rally against austerity in London
Angela Christofilou/The Independent
46/50 18 January 2019
A team of specialists who are tasked with piecing together the iconic dinosaur Dippy unpack bespoke crates containing the bone structure at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow. As part of a road trip across the UK, Dippy has arrived in Scotland and will be on show
Getty
47/50 17 January 2019
A farmer rides a quad bike as snow and frost settles on the peaks of the hills in the Brecon Beacons
PA
48/50 16 January 2019
Theresa May speaking during Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons the day after her Brexit deal was defeated in Parliament
PA
49/50 15 January 2019
Police monitor Brexit protesters outside the houses of parliament in London. Parliamentarians are voting on the postponed Brexit EU Withdrawal Agreement, commonly known as The Meaningful Vote, deciding on Britain’s future relationship with the European Union
EPA
50/50 14 January 2019
Andy Murray produced one of the performances of his career, but after more than four hours and with an injured hip that will inevitably end his career at some point this year, he exited the Australian Open in the first round at the hands of 22nd seed Roberto Bautista Agut. It looked to be a straight-forward victory for the Spaniard as he surged into a two-set lead, but Murray is not a three-time Grand Slam champion for nothing and he supremely levelled the match despite hobbling around the court from the get-go. However, in the end his hip injury just took too much out of him, and Bautista Agut clinched a breath-taking 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-7 (4-7), 2-6 victory to reach the second round where he’ll face Australia’s John Millman
Reuters
The recording is contained among hundreds of thousands of files in his archives which have been accepted in lieu of inheritance tax and permanently allocated to the British Library. The acceptance settled £210,000 of tax.
Covering five decades of his political life, the documents include his speeches to the House of Commons, public meetings and broadcast interviews, as well as his diaries and notes. It is estimated that around 90 per cent of his diaries have not yet been published.
The extensive archive was collected from his former home, Stansgate, in Essex, where he catalogued and stored it in four sheds.
Recordings of every public utterance he made from 1974 to 2004 – on around 4,000 cassettes – are also contained in the archive, alongside policy papers and correspondence from members of the public.
Personal papers, categorised as the “101 files”, include early correspondence between Mr Benn and his wife Caroline, as well as letters from former prime ministers Clement Attlee and Harold Wilson.
He also kept 33 boxes of letters classed as “funny, obscene, threatening and abusive” from his career.
Some of his famous pipes, as well as the scissors he used to cut the ribbon for Concorde, form part of the collection.
Mr Benn was born in 1925 as Anthony Wedgwood Benn into a political dynasty which included two grandfathers who sat in the Commons and a father who was first a Liberal and then a Labour MP. He died in 2014 aged 88.
His decision to give up the title Viscount Stansgate, which he inherited on his father’s death in 1960, led to the Peerage Act of 1963, allowing the renunciation of hereditary titles.
He was seen as a modernising technocrat when he entered government, but was an unusual example of a politician who became more left-wing as he grew older, crediting the change to his experience in government of seeing progressive reforms blocked by the establishment.
Rachel Foss, head of contemporary archives and manuscripts at the British Library, said the archive was an “extraordinarily wide-ranging and rich resource for historians and researchers and is a great gift to the nation”.
She added: “The Benn Archive will be hugely valuable for current and future generations of researchers into post-war British politics and society, into the Labour Party and the labour movement, as well as into the long and influential career of Tony Benn himself. It is a very substantial addition to the British Library’s growing collections of contemporary archives in the field of politics, campaigning and activism.
“We look forward to making it available through our Reading Rooms at St Pancras and to working with partners to facilitate engagement with the archive across a wide range of audiences.”
Michael Ellis, Minister for Arts, Heritage and Tourism, said: “Tony Benn’s diaries provide a fascinating political and personal insight into a significant period of British and parliamentary history. Irrespective of political views, these first-hand accounts, spanning more than 80 years, are a valuable resource for historians, students and the public. I am pleased that, thanks to the Acceptance in Lieu scheme, the Benn archive is being made available for all.”
Press Association
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