Professor Michael Rush is Emeritus Professor of Politics at the University of Exeter. He is the author of The Role of the Member of Parliament Since 1868: from Gentlemen to Players, published by Oxford University Press in 2001, and is the driving force behind the Parliamentary Archive of MPs, 1832-present.

Please tell us a little bit about how you entered academia and your academic career

I started as an undergraduate at Sheffield studying for a degree in history and politics, graduating in 1964. I was then awarded a Sheffield University Postgraduate Scholarship and was awarded my PhD in politics in 1966. I regarded myself as very fortunate to be at university at a time when only 4.2 per cent of the 18+ age group were studying for a degree. I then became a beneficiary of the post-Robbins expansion of universities. The post at Exeter was the third for which I had been shortlisted in the space of a few months in 1964. I remained at Exeter until my retirement in 2003, having been appointed to a personal chair in 1994. However, I spent a year on a teaching exchange at the University of Western Ontario in 1967-68, did summer school teaching at Acadia University, Wolfeville, Nova Scotia, and had visiting research fellowships at Carleton University, Ottawa and the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Which five books/articles (written by someone else) have been most important to you in your academic career?

Harold Lasswell, Who Gets What, When How, 1936.

Lewis Namier, Politics at the Accession of George III1958.

Bernard Crick, In Defence of Politics, 1962.

Bernard Crick, The Reform of Parliament, 1964.

W.G. Runciman, Social Science and Political Theory, 1965.

Which person/people has/have been most influential/important to you in your academic career?

Bill Thornhill, Stuart Walkland and Jack Hayward, taught me as an undergraduate at Sheffield; Bill was also my PhD supervisor; Sammy Finer, my external examiner; Bernard Crick and many official and academic members of the Study of Parliament Group; Victor Wiseman, my first head of department; and Henry Mayo, chair of the Department of political Science at the University of Western Ontario, from whom I learned some very useful things about being a head of department.

Which of your own pieces of research are you most proud of?

The Role of the Member if Parliament: from Gentlemen to Players, OUP, 2001.

Parliamentary Socialisation: Learning the Ropes or Determining Behaviour? (co-authored with Philip Giddings), Palgrave Macmillan, 2011.

What has been your greatest achievement in academia?

Working closely other academics and parliamentary officials through the Study of Parliament Group to extend and enhance our knowledge and understanding of the UK Parliament.

What has been your greatest disappointment in academia?

Running out of time!  After I retired in 2003, I continued to research and publish, but conducting research and writing up the results eventually became too onerous, but that left unstarted projects I would have liked to have undertaken, such as a study of the Public Accounts Committee, which has not been the subject of major research since Basil Chubb’s book published in 1952.

What is the first or most important thing you tell your students about parliaments?

The need to understand enough about the history and political culture of the country concerned to understand its legislature (and, indeed, its politics).

Where were you born, where did you grow up, and where do you live now?

I was born and grew up in Richmond, Surrey. I moved to Exeter in 1964 and have lived there ever since.

What was your first job?

Gardener with Richmond Borough Council between leaving school and doing national service and subsequently as an undergraduate during university summer vacations.

What was the toughest job you ever had?

Being Head of Department.  This was not because my colleagues were in the least bit difficult; on the contrary, they were always most supportive.  However, as HoD my time was inevitably fragmented and in my 7 years in the job the responsibilities increased substantially.

What are your hobbies?

Gardening, exploring family history, reading historical and political biographies, reading novels, listening to classical music, walking.

What are your favourite novels?

Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice (beautifully written & a wonderful picture of early 19^th century social life); Anthony Trollope’s political novels (good tales well-told & a superb on mid-19^th century politics); Robert Graves, I, Claudius & Claudius the God, 1934 (bring ancient Rome alive).

What is your favourite music?

Beethoven, Symphony No. 9 (The Choral) (majestic); Vaughan Williams, Variations on a Theme by Thomas Tallis (wonderfully evocative).

What are your favourite pieces of artwork?

W.J.M. Turner & David Hockney (I just do!).

What is your favourite film?

Citizen Kane (still resonates).

What is your favourite building?

Salisbury Cathedral – sheer elegance; Palace of Westminster – professional interest!

What is your favourite tv show?

Brideshead Revisited (good story, beautifully acted), Yes Minister & Yes Prime Minister (need I say?).

What is your favourite holiday destination?

Italy (beautiful scenery, lovely people, good food).

What is your favourite sport?

Rugby union (watched Richmond, London Scottish, London Welsh, and Rosslyn Park as a boy & later played for a minor club). Tennis (good exercise).

Boothroyd or Bercow?

Boothroyd.

Restoration or Renewal?

Both, but, as Joad used to say, ‘It depends what you mean by…’!

Cat or Dog?

Cat.

Fish and chips or Curry?

Curry.

Planes, trains or automobiles?

Trains.

Scones: Devonshire or Cornish Method?

My paternal grandmother coming from Morchard Bishop, near Crediton, it’s no contest!

And, finally, a question asked by 8-year-old Seth: Would you rather eat mushy peas in orange juice, or mushrooms in golden syrup?

I like all four, but, forced to choose, it’s the first, but I have a question for you Seth: Do you like kippers and jam? I had a cousin who claims he did!