The 1945 general election is undeniably one of the key turning points in modern British history. It's also the first of three general elections that the namesakes of this podcast – Winston Churchill and Clement Attlee – fought against each other as leaders of their parties. 

In this first of three special episodes charting the Attlee vs Churchill elections, Lee and Richard look back at the contest that took place 80 years ago this month – featuring scuffles about when the election should be; rogue radio broadcasts that undermined the Tory campaign; and the curious history of 'Wakes Weeks' which saw polling day delayed in parts of the north and Scotland. The podcasts concludes by reflecting on the enormous consequences of this election for Britain.

In this episode, the following books are mentioned: 

'Election '45: Reflections on the Revolution in Britain' by Austin Mitchell.

'Conservatism (Short Histories)' by Mark Garnett

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Since Attlee & Churchill is the podcast all about post-war British political history, hosted by:

Lee David Evans is an historian of the Conservative Party and the John Ramsden Fellow at the Mile End Institute, Queen Mary, University of London. He is on social media @LeeDavidEvansUK.

Richard Johnson is a Senior Lecturer at Queen Mary, University of London, and among his other areas of expertise is an historian of the Labour Party. He tweets at @richardmarcj.