Lord North Street

What? Harold Wilson didn't live in Downing Street for his last two years as Prime Minister.

He lived in Lord North Street.

And my family was living in Smith Square, which was just by Lord North Street.

Oh, my God.

I grew up in my family lived right near the prime minister, Harold Wilson, but we were, we were, we were just poor journalists.

Nobody's quite sure how he made so much wealth so quickly, but it was enough to set up home here in North Street, Westminster.

Now, the name North Street wasn't grand enough for Brendan Bracken, so he had it changed to Lord North Street, as befitted his gravitas and his huge ego.

He also employed James and Beatrice Costello as butler and housekeeper, and during dinner parties, James Costello was primed to announce, "Mr.

Bracken, the Prime Minister is on the telephone for you." He also purchased a large Hispano-Suiza motorcar and employed Alex Ailey, who was Churchill's old chauffeur.

They stood alone, Bracken and Churchill, like a party of two, quarreling incessantly like a happily married couple.

In November 1935, Hitler's fascist ally, Italian dictator Mussolini, invaded Abyssinia, now Ethiopia, and suddenly people took notice of Churchill's warnings.

Bracken worked hard gathering conservative support for Churchill, and Bracken's house at Lord North Street became the headquarters of the anti-appeasement lobby.

I think that among the, uh, the, the networkers and spin doctors that I've known, that he was probably the best.