A new documentary is set to uncover the life of an Irishman who became Winston Churchhill’s most trusted aide and likely prevented him agreeing to someone else becoming Britian’s war time Prime Minister.
Brendan Bracken was widely known to be a secretive Irishman who was Churchill’s spin doctor and confidant.
The author of Bracken’s biography, Charles Lysaght told the story during a memorial lecture at Churchill college, Cambridge.
"Bracken's great moment came in May 1940 when, following the fall of Norway, a large number of Conservatives failed to support the Government on a confidence vote. A national government was imperative, but the Labour party would not serve under Chamberlain.
If Lord Halifax was called upon to form a government, Churchill felt he would have to agree to serve. Chamberlain and David Margesson, the chief whip, called Halifax and Churchill to a meeting.
Before this took place Bracken exacted from Churchill a promise that he would remain silent if it was proposed Halifax should succeed.
This he did when Chamberlain and Margesson put forward the name of Halifax. After two minutes Halifax broke the silence and said he did not think that he, a member of the Lords, was in the best position to form a government.
It was, said Beaverbrook, who was closely involved, 'the great silence that saved England'."
During his tenure as the Minister for Information between 1941 and 1945, Bracken constantly attempted to conceal his Irish heritage.
A civil servant at the time called Eric Blair, disliked his authoritarian manner. Later in life, Blair adopted the pseudonym of George Orwell and penned the famous classic “1984” and the Minister for Information was renamed the Ministry for Truth in his novel.
A new documentary, “Brendan Bracken: Churchill's Irishman” has uncovered new secrets about the man.
Born in 1901 in Templemore, Co. Tipperary, Bracken was the son of a builder who was a member of the Fenian Brotherhood. In his early years he ran away and was regularly in trouble with the law and as a result his mother sent him to Australia.
Immersed in self-education he spent four years there. When he ended up in Britain in 1920, aged 19, he claimed he claimed to be four years his junior and began a life of subterfuge. He told people he was Australian and had been orphaned in a bush fire.
In his dying days in 1958, he requested that all his personal papers be burned to limit public knowledge of his life.
The film also uncovers that his rise to power was made possible by his prowess in subterfuge and some critics argue that Churchill may never have become Britain’s leader if it not for Bracken.
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.kurtjohnson | Dec 23, 2010, 01:53 AM EST
Churchill wrote that "the Aryan stock is bound to triumph" and "I am strongly in favour of using poisoned gas against uncivilised tribes...[It] would spread a lively terror." He also wrote that Ghandi "ought to be lain bound hand and foot at the gates of Delhi, and then trampled on by an enormous elephant with the new Viceroy seated on its back."
kurtjohnson | Dec 21, 2010, 09:20 PM EST
No doubt, pilib04 - it's amazing how the terror state and its cheerleaders manufacture history.
pilib04 | Dec 20, 2010, 11:04 PM EST
churchill and his family were the scum of the earth. grandaddy Lord Randolph referred to the famine as the "final solution to the Irish Problem," shades of hitler. daddy randolph churchill "played the orange card" and was personally responsible for a number of anti-catholic pogroms in belfast. and then the devil himself, winston (black and tan) churhill. this family caused much cruelty and suffering in ireland.
kurtjohnson | Dec 20, 2010, 09:18 PM EST
Churchill to the secretary of state for Indian (Leo Amery): “I hate Indians. They are a beastly people with a beastly religion,” Another time he accused Indians of effectively causing the famine by “breeding like rabbits.”
kurtjohnson | Dec 20, 2010, 08:13 PM EST
Churchhill was an obese alcoholic racist who did not hesitate to use violence against unarmed non-combatants (i.e. his advocacy of the ues of poison gas against "uncivilized" tribes).
Dublinjas | Dec 19, 2010, 11:37 AM EST
There are a lot of things people don't know about Churchill, for example a favorite place he visited was the village of Carnlough in Northern Ireland.
dan Breen | Dec 18, 2010, 10:59 PM EST
Another person that churchill admired was Irish born and American congressman from New York and a great orator BOURKE COCKRAN. Churchill took what ever he could from this man. Churchill was a pompous AS*hole.
MalcomAC | Dec 18, 2010, 08:49 PM EST
Clementine HATED Bracken. Oh well, she hated most of the folks around Winnie.
Towngate | Dec 18, 2010, 07:42 AM EST
Molly. You didn't say when this Documentary on Bracken will be broadcast? Info please. ..... Btw Churchill also had a very secretive and dedicated personal Bodyguard! ... They may have advised him to taunt DeValera with that famous telegrgram offering "A Nation once Again" for more support in the anti-Nazi war ... or ...else!!!
JOHNTOBIN | Dec 18, 2010, 12:26 AM EST
Whatever bad points Winston Churchill had it cannot be denied that he warned about the threats of nazism well before World War Two even commenced.He was considered by many to be a war monger because of this stand.If Britain had have fallen it would have been very interesting to know what position this would have left Ireland in.
plasticpaddy | Dec 17, 2010, 05:44 PM EST
Winston Churchill was scum who threatened, unholy and unmerciful war on Ireland if we did not enter the war. It was only the fear of damaging the industrial aid coming form the US that stopped him from invading Ireland. Complete scum.
kateomprint | Dec 17, 2010, 05:25 PM EST
From what i gather he did come back to Templemore once for the burial of his mother in a local village not sure when that was
kateomprint | Dec 17, 2010, 05:24 PM EST
I have often heard stories about Brendan Bracken because I live near the town where he was born. I suppose at the time if he had said he was Irish he wasn't going to get anywhere so hence he became Australian
killowen | Dec 17, 2010, 05:19 PM EST
Probably a boy friend of Wennie's.
Porickseantuny | Dec 17, 2010, 11:10 AM EST
If he was really hiding his Irish identity, why keep the name Brendan?