PETE DOREY
Pete Dorey is Professor of British Politics at Cardiff University. He is the co-author of House of Lords reform since 1911: Must the Lords go? (Palgrave Macmillan) and the textbook Exploring British Politics (Routledge).
Please tell us a little bit about how you entered academia and your academic career
I’d always been vaguely interested in politics as long as I can remember, not from my parents, but somehow instinctively. I vaguely recall seeing some racist graffiti when I was about 9 or 10 years old, and instinctively being disgusted by it, and that, I think, prompted my curiosity about how people think (or don’t!), and what consequences that had on society in general, and people in particular. Once I started my degree at Sussex University, I knew I wanted to be an academic – I was interested in British politics, wanted to enthuse others in the way that I’d been inspired by my teachers, and loved writing, so becoming a Politics lecturer, teaching and publishing, seemed a natural career path to pursue. Besides, I could never envisage myself doing a corporate 9-5 job and wearing a suit!
Which five books/articles (written by someone else) have been most important to you in your academic career?
Ralph Miliband: The State in Capitalist Society – lent to me as summer holiday reading by my A-Level Sociology tutor. I have always been very grateful to her. It remains one of my favourite books about power and inequality in Britain; it is still relevant.
Ian Gilmour: Dancing With Dogma: Britain Under Thatcherism – the best critique of Thatcherism and its consequences, written by an eloquently despairing One Nation Tory.
Philip Norton: The Commons in Perspective – read this while doing my PhD at Hull University, and it prompted my life-long academic interest in Parliament.
John Kingdon: Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies – fascinating study about the interplay between problem-definition (including the role of ideas and ideology in ‘constructing’ problems), policy-formulation and adoption, and the need for the correct political circumstances to exist for policy change to be enacted, or else the problem/policy falls off the agenda.
George Orwell: The Lion and the Unicorn – Brilliant collection of essays on British politics, culture and national identity, and although published in 1941, many of his observations and criticisms are still relevant today.
Which person has been most influential and important to you in your academic career?
My A-Level English Lit, Politics, and Sociology, tutors at 6th Form, and also my Form Tutor who taught History; they all seemed to discern some academic potential in me, nurtured an intellectual curiosity (and lent me books), and encouraged me to apply for university – not something which anyone in my family had ever considered: “education is not for the likes of us.”
I also felt privileged to have been taught, at Leeds University, by the late David Coates, whose inspiring teaching reinforced by desire to pursue an academic career. We kept in touch thereafter, even after he’d emigrated to the United States.
Which of your own pieces of research are you most proud of?
I usually compare my publications unfavourably to those of the many more prestigious and prominent academics – Imposter Syndrome, I guess – but I was proud that my 2010 British Conservatism: The Politics and Philosophy of Inequality was awarded a PSA prize.
What has been your greatest achievement in academia?
Writing, co-authoring or editing 18 books – so far!
What has been your greatest disappointment in academia?
Seeing universities transformed into soulless corporate businesses, replete with concomitant business jargon and management-speak, academics ‘proletarianized’ and micro-managed, and the slavish obsession with the REF and ‘grant capture’. Those of us who still believe in the educative, pedagogic and scholarly function of universities are made to feel that we are dinosaurs. I utterly despair at what has been done to British Higher Education by successive governments since the 1990s, and the unconcealed contempt with which they have treated academics; pandering to a philistine English anti-intellectualism.
What is the first or most important thing you tell your students about parliaments?
That if Parliament did not exist, it would have to be invented, and the importance of the ‘hidden face of power’ (Bachrach and Baratz) or ‘anticipated reactions’ which act as subtle constraints on Ministers and the Executive much of the time.
Where were you born, where did you grow up, and where do you live now?
Born and raised in Lancing (nowheresville), about 10 miles west of Brighton, but have always considered myself to be a proud Brightonian. There was absolutely nothing to do in Lancing, and I couldn’t wait to move away to a city. Since leaving, I have lived in Brighton, Leeds, Bristol and now Bath, where I live with my wife (having been married for 24 years).
What was your first job?
A paper-round while at school (at Christmas-time, I learned that the poorest people were the most generous tippers, and vice versa – I’m sure this helped shape my formative political values!), then a supermarket shelf-stacker on Saturdays and in school-holidays while at sixth-form. First academic job was a one-year Lectureship at Bath University, covering for the late, great, Elizabeth Meehan while she was on research leave.
What was the toughest job you ever had?
Temporary post-person in Leeds in the run-up to Christmas while I was a PhD student. The permanent posties thought it amusing to give the student ‘casuals’ the heaviest postbags, and delivery rounds in the least salubrious parts of Leeds. I was allocated two of the (then) most ‘renowned’ council estates, Gipton, and Halton Moor, where many gardens had an Alsatian or Rottweiler roaming free.
What would your ideal job be, if not an academic?
As I love books, either a Librarian or working in a bookshop.
What are your hobbies?
Reading, independent cinema, gigs, attending plays at Bath Theatre Royal, curries, watching TV crime dramas and natural history documentaries, wine-tasting – have passed Level 1 of the Wine & Spirit Education Trust, coastal and riverside walks, European city-breaks.
What are your favourite novels?
Anything by my favourite author, Haruki Murakami – brilliantly imaginative writer whose stories have a slightly surreal quality to them.
The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood’s harrowing dystopian novel which now tragically reads like current affairs.
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet – David Mitchell’s wonderfully imaginative tale set in the era of late 18th century Dutch-Japanese trading; great characters and sparkling dialogue.
Birdsong – Sebastian Faulks’ beautifully written intergenerational First World War saga.
The Wasp Factory – Iain Banks’ part-mischievous, part-macabre story.
The Ragged-Trousered Philanthropists – Robert Tressell’s classis socialist novel – not much seems to have changed since it was published in 1914, in terms of the conservative and deferential attitudes of much of the working class.
What is your favourite music?
Music (rock/Indie/Glam) is very important to me, so I could not name just one album. My favourites include: Led Zeppelin – Volume IV and Physical Graffiti; Mott The Hoople – Mott; David Bowie – Aladdin Sane; The Stranglers – Rattus Norvegicus; Hawkwind – The Space Ritual; Portishead – Dummy; P. J. Harvey – Let England Shake; Manic Street Preachers – The Holy Bible; Pulp – Different Class; The Clash – Give ‘Em Enough Rope; Joy Division – Closer; Mitski – Be The Cowboy; Asian Dub Foundation – Tank; J. S. Bach – The Brandenburg Concertos.
Plus any albums by Half Man Half Biscuit, Klaus Nomi, Killing Joke, Wire, The Cure, Suede, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Psychedelic Furs, Mazzy Star, and Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry.
Basically, I’m an ageing Indie-kid who also likes dub-reggae!
Two film soundtracks I adore: Jocelyn Pook; ‘The Masked Ball’ (from Eyes Wide Shut and also Killing Joke’s ‘intro
music’ at gigs); Michael Nyman: ‘Memorial (from The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover).
What is your favourite film?
The Wicker Man – everything about it; the plot, the crackling dialogue, the quirky local characters, Christopher Lee’s fantastic role as Lord Summerisle, the slightly sinister soundtrack of supposedly Scottish folk-songs, and the totally mesmerising ending when Edward Woodward (Sergeant Howie) meets his tragic fate.
Pulp Fiction – Stellar performances from Uma Thurman, John Travolta, and Samuel L. Jackson, skilful juxtaposing of scenes from different time-frames, some superb dialogue and dark, desert-dry, humour.
Eyes Wide Shut – Weirdly wonderful, while sometimes exuding a somewhat sinister or menacing undercurrent, particularly ‘The Masked Ball’ scene. Great soundtrack.
What is your favourite building?
The Brotherton Library, Leeds University – I have such fond memories of studying in it while a postgraduate. Also, because it is on a slight hill, when you leave the building, Leeds city-centre is laid-out in front of you at the bottom of Woodhouse Lane. The library is also an iconic landmark which can be seen from many parts of Leeds.
What is your favourite tv show?
Crime dramas like Spiral, Mare of Easttown, Crimson Rivers, and ITV’s 1980s’ series of Sherlock Holmes starring Jeremy Brett. For laughter, Fawlty Towers, Have I Got News For You and Would I Lie to You.
What is your favourite holiday destination?
For adventure and/or experiencing different cultures – India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Costa Rica, Brazil.
For city-breaks – Aix-en-Provence, Bordeaux, Brighton, Bruges (my sister-in-law lives there!), Buenos Aires, Cascais, Istanbul, New Orleans, Paris, Porto, Prague, Sitges, and Venice.
What is your favourite sport?
Football – not to play, but because I am a life-long supporter of Brighton & Hove Albion.
Cricket – I love listening to Test Match Special in the summer while I am writing; the whimsical conversations and anecdotes are often more entertaining than the actual cricket!
What is your favourite food?
I love curries – fortunately, there is a marvellous family-run Bangladeshi restaurant just a 10-minute walk from our house. The curries are consistently delicious. We go once or twice each month, and are on first-name terms with all the lovely staff.
Hybrid proceedings in Parliament: yes please or no thanks?
Preferably not, unless an MP has carer or primary childcare responsibilities.
Appointed or elected upper chamber?
Appointed, but entirely by an independent commission on the basis of expertise or experience from all walks of life, and reflecting Britain’s demographics, in terms of ethnicity, gender, and sexuality.
Restoration or Renewal?
Gradual renewal under the guise of restoration!
Cat or Dog?
Dog (Labrador).
Trains, planes or automobiles?
Trains – I like long train journeys where I can either write on my laptop, or immerse myself in a book.
Fish and chips or Curry?
Curry, obviously; see answer above!
Scones: Devonshire or Cornish Method?
I don’t eat scones, so have no opinion.
And, finally, a question asked by Seth, who has just turned 10: Who is your best friend and why?
My wife, Jane – she really is my soulmate. We share the same social values and political views; like the same indie-bands and dub-reggae, and regularly going to gigs (7-8 per year); have the same dark or dry sense of humour; love going for curries; like new world chardonnay and wine-tasting courses; share a love of literature and are always recommending or sharing books; have read The Guardian since our teens (to the dismay of our parents); and shared many adventure holidays together – backpacking around India/Vietnam/Cambodia, safari in Kenya, piranha-fishing in Brazil, and most recently, and best of all, trekking through the rain-forests of Costa Rica, successfully searching for tarantulas, scorpions, venomous snakes, poison dart frogs, and exotic birds.