A powerful biography of one of the greatest public servants of all time – Jeremy Heywood – written by his wife Suzanne Heywood. Jeremy Heywood was at the centre of political power in this country for more than 25 years and directly served four Prime Ministers in various roles including as the Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, as the first and only Permanent Secretary of 10 Downing Street, the Cabinet Secretary and the Head of the Home Civil Service. In these roles he was at the centre of every crisis and at most of the key meetings. He served three different political parties and oversaw the transitions between them. He knew everyone in politics and was adored by those with whom he worked.Jeremy was diagnosed with lung cancer in June 2017, and retired on health grounds in October 2018. He died a week later, aged 56, although he continued to work, supporting the Prime Minister, until the final few days before he died. The loss of Jeremy is one that affects us all. In a divided time, he was a man who could unite and work with people of all parties.Suzanne began writing this book in the last year of Jeremy's life, with his full involvement, and has continued their work to tell the story of his extraordinary life in the beating heart of UK politics. Built from Jeremy's own memories, his papers, and almost 200 interviews with others closely involved in Jeremy's work through those years, this is a fascinating account of life in Whitehall where he was the most powerful non-famous name in Britain.
