ABSTRACT
On 18 April 1992, The Economist devoted its leading article to ‘A prophet of the Left’. This was neither Marx nor Gandhi, but Gladstone. He dominated the magazine’s cover illustration, where he was represented surrounded by the microphones of journalists eager to pick his brains on current political affairs. For the occasion, the ‘Grand Old Man’ was pictured wearing a colourful green coat, embroidered with red, yellow and purple roses. As the roses and their colours suggest, The Economist was recommending this ‘postmodern’ version of the great Victorian reformer as a model for both Labour and the Liberal Democrats, with the editor insisting that Gladstone symbolised a radical philosophy which continued to be relevant to British society. After over a decade of Thatcherism, during which time ‘Victorian values’ had become almost a Tory rallying cry, it was remarkable to see the arch-Victorian Gladstone being identified as a suitable model for the Left. However, what was even more interesting was that the leaders of both the Liberal Democrats and the Labour party soon started to behave as if they were actually taking the Economist’s advice to heart. Certainly they were perceived to be doing so by both the press and political analysts.
