Churchill: The Great Orator podcast, episode 1: Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat
Our new podcast Churchill: The Great Orator explores Winston Churchill's life and career through his greatest speeches, revealing the inspiration behind the words that shaped the 20th century in interviews with leading historians, politicians and actors.
With insights into Churchill's personal and political struggles, as well as a close study of his distinctive rhythm and rhetoric, The Telegraph's comment editor Harry de Quetteville shines a new light on one of Britain's greatest statesmen.
In this episode, Harry de Quetteville discusses the speech Churchill gave on May 13, 1940, in his first address to the House of Commons after replacing Neville Chamberlain as Prime Minister. At the climax of the speech, he told the House: "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat."
Sir Nicholas Soames, Churchill's grandson, admits that even to this day he cannot hear this speech without crying. We also learn how the combination of formal precision and powerful, authentic feeling in this speech can be traced back to The Scaffolding of Rhetoric, an extraordinary essay Churchill wrote at the age of 22 while serving as an army officer in India.
Darkest Hour, the Joe Wright-directed Churchill biopic starring Gary Oldman in the title role, is released on January 12.