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On the Record

The Foreigner Who Set You Free

Conservative peer Lord Daniel Hannan* reflects on his journey ahead of the 10th anniversary of the EU Referendum

I’ll never forget that morning of 24 June 2016.

I had returned to the office from one of my imaginary walks when my assistant, Lady Esmeralda ‘Bunty’ Butterfield-Smythe, in her typically dignified way, began yelling “fuck Brussels and the elites! Crack open the bolly and let’s drink to those lefty tears”.

Climbing onto a desk, I delivered the St Crispin’s Day speech from Henry V, less because the fortuitous victory of a French-speaking 15th Century king, in an inconclusive misadventure, seemed resonant of Brexit, and more to remind everyone how well-read I was.

previous article Edition 86 – June 2026 next article

'Ffair Cymru': Conversations Across Contradictions in Swansea

It is well documented that the beloved Welsh poet and playwright Dylan Thomas had conflicting feelings about the town of his birth, Swansea.
Alanna Byrne, Charlie Waterhouse

Mandrake – Tail Wags the Dog

Ed Davey’s decision not to officially involve the Liberal Democrats in the massive anti-far-right march in London at the end of March, organised by the Together Alliance, resulted in the resignation of a prominent member of his party’s old guard – and did nothing to dispel a growing unease about his leadership.
Tim Walker