With the spate of political memoirs following the recent general election, it is of little surprise that the infighting is getting as bitter on the page as it was in the House. Peter Mandelson made headlines over the weekend with the release of 'The Third Man', an account of New Labour's rise to power, liberally portraying his own part in the historic political movement. However, this seems to have somewhat trodden on the toes of another former Labour mastermind.
Tony Blair, who had signed a reported £4.6 million deal for his book, has been forced to change the title from 'The Journey' to 'A Journey'. It may only seem like a minor detail, yet he is apparently trying to make his book appear less self-important, 'less messianic'. Nevertheless, behind the scenes, such worries over self-aggrandisment seem to not exist, as Blair reportedly phoned Rupert Murdoch, the owner of Mandelson's publisher, to try and persuade them to hold of publication as it would detract from his own book. All might be fair in love and war, but in politics, nothing ever seems fair.
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