One Boy, Two Bills and a Fry Up: A Memoir of Growing Up and Getting On

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He was very cynical about politics and politicians,” Streeting added. “I mean, that's how bad politics has fallen by the way, even armed robbers look down their noses at us.” This honest, uplifting, affectionate memoir is a tribute to the love and support which set him on his way out of poverty, and informs everything about Wes Streeting’s mission now in politics. But on the other hand, it’s also transfixing, albeit in a way I struggle fully to explain. Streeting’s rise from poverty in the East End of London to the Palace of Westminster via Cambridge University is amazingly inspiriting – even now, he’s only 40 – and there’s something so unaffected about the way he describes it, details chosen for no more writerly reason than because he remembers them: the Wall’s coleslaw and He-Man jellies he enjoyed as a treat as a boy; the skate he favoured whenever his grandfather took him down the chippy. He has no discernible self-pity and seems never to judge anyone, not even those who (the reader may think) at times let him down very badly.

the vitality of the book lies in its directness and conversational candour... An engaging memoir' --- The Sunday Times An evening with Labour MP and the Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting. Brought up on a Stepney council estate, the young Streeting saw his teenage parents struggle to provide for him. In One Boy, Two Bills and A Fry Up he vividly portrays the power of family and education to help him transform his life. From 1st July 2021, VAT will be applicable to those EU countries where VAT is applied to books - this additional charge will be collected by Fed Ex (or the Royal Mail) at the time of delivery. Shipments to the USA & Canada: He has a lot on his plate. But he’s stubborn – or at any rate, not easily led. He doesn’t mind standing out from the crowd. Though he wears his Arsenal shirt to school on non-uniform days in the hope of warding off bullies, he also brandishes a copy of Tony Blair’s New Britain: My Vision of a Young Country on the coach to games lessons. Helped by wonderful teachers, and the Sutton Trust, which sends him on a summer school to Cambridge, he applies to the university, and wins a place there, at which point, life changes. He may, unlike many of his fellow students, have to work at Comet in the holidays, but he’s on his way (at Cambridge, he’s also able to come out). A career in student politics leads to a job at Stonewall, and thence to his election, first as a Labour councillor and finally as an MP. Will Streeting one day lead the party, perhaps even be prime minister? I don’t know. But I can’t see this book, and especially the way he has written it, as anything other than a statement of intent.Brought up on a Stepney council estate, the young Streeting saw his teenage parents struggle to provide for him. In One Boy, Two Bills and A Fry Up he brings to life the poverty, humiliation and incredible struggle for them choosing whether to feed the meter and heat the flat, put carpet on the floor, or food on the table. Streeting was diagnosed at the age of 38 in May 2021, and just two months later, he was declared cancer-free after the removal of one of his kidneys.

This honest, uplifting, affectionate memoir is a tribute to the love and support which set him on his way out of poverty, and informs everything about Wes Streeting's mission now in politics.me and notoriety as relevant now as they were almost a century ago" For a politician to have such an extraordinary story to tell is rare. For that politician to be able to tell it with such eloquence and benevolence is rarer still. This book is a triumph.' --- Alan Johnson A] compelling story of overcoming adversity... Unexpectedly fascinating... amazingly inspiriting...' --- The Observer'Extraordinary' --- Evening Standard 'Funny, honest and at times heart-breaking - a terrific read.' --- Lorraine Kelly'For a politician to have such an extraordinary story to tell is rare.Takes approximately 1-3 working days to arrive, (but can take longer during busy periods like bank holidays or Pride Month)

An inspiring, witty East End growing up memoir by leading Labour MP Wes Streeting, vividly portraying the power of family and education to help him escape poverty and transform his life. Wes Streeting joined The Graham Norton Radio Show with Waitrose to talk about the importance of state education and his new book. Kidney cancer is most common in people over 60 and its severity depends on where it is, how big it is, if it has spread, and your general health.For a politician to have such an extraordinary story to tell is rare. For that politician to be able to tell it with such eloquence and benevolence is rarer still. This book is a triumph.’ — Alan Johnson