Enoch Powell | Full Interview on World War II and his Military Career with Conrad Wood | 10/12/1987

In a fascinatingly expansive and comprehensive four hour interview, the politician, scholar and soldier, the Rt. Hon. Brigadier John Enoch Powell, M. B. E. recounts, in vivid detail, his frenetic life of upheaval and military success during the Second World War.
Mr. Powell also discusses the causes of the war and the shifting face of world politics before, during and after its culmination in 1945.
Originally recorded on the 10th December, 1987 as part of the Imperial War Museum's Oral History collection.
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[@conradwood6700]

In late 1987 , I visited Mr Powell at his home three times. The first occasion constituted a preliminary discussion about how we should go about the two recording sessions. At the time I was 45 years old. Mr Powell was 75. Listening now to the full 4 hours of recordings , I can see the great demands made on him . I am astonished that he was able to rise to the occasion in such a superb way. Astonished and deeply grateful. It was a privilege to have met him.

[@EugenusRex]

I am profoundly grateful to have your first-hand account of this brilliant conversation attached to this upload, Mr. Wood. It makes a 35-year-old recording seem far more 'present', in a sense. I have pinned this comment so that other viewers may come across this insight with ease. I have also left you a fuller reply underneath your first comment. Thank you for your time and for your work in conducting this interview.

[@myamdane6895]

Thanks for commenting Mr Wood. I'm very grateful to be able to listen to this great man speak

[@mbloy613]

I once had dinner with him (around the same time as this interview was recorded), it was the first time I’d met Enoch Powell and the only knowledge I had of him up until then was what was being portrayed in the media. I was profoundly struck by two things, firstly by his immense intellect, and secondly how his vilified public persona appeared to be so at odds with my own perception of the nature of the man who was sitting next to me.

[@nledaig]

Although I admire certain things about EP, I'm afraid the kind of content in that comment is too weird to be even amusing.@@theculturedthug6609

[@mbloy613]

@@theculturedthug6609 Please don’t assume ‘we’ includes me! Everyone, including the media, have their own agendas and preconceptions, and lazy and misguided people on both sides of the argument simply bucket hole individuals and their beliefs without any real attempt to reach an understanding of what’s actually being said.

[@user-vv9zo4sc4k]

It’s so sad we don’t have men of Enoch’s calibre and vision in parliament today , a great great man

[@nickvinehill7491]

we’ll take his place then if he was so admirable?

[@Pete-tq6in]

It's such a tragedy that John Enoch Powell is remembered for just one speech and still pilloried to this day for it. The biggest tragedy about that speech is that he was absolutely correct, his estimates of numbers, causes and effects have been borne out with unnerving accuracy. For him to be glibly derided as a racist is the absolute epitome of laziness and slander, he was no such thing. He had an incredible analytical mind and was a superb orator with a gift for recall that was almost superhuman. One of the last true conservatives and the very finest Prime Minister Great Britain never had. It is to our great detriment that lesser minds conspired against him and that his political career was forever afterwards limited. Nobody in the modern House of Commons can hold a torch to him and their very presence in that place is an insult to his memory.

[@philiprufus4427]

Particularily as the quote that has gone down in History is taken out of context !

[@steveyogilmore5314]

...by the usual demographic and the willfully ignorant.

[@handbags4948]

@@bfc3057 We dragged them out of the stone-age, don't forget. In every colony the infant mortality rate dropped. He's remembered as a white supremacist only by left-wingers - you know, those people whose ideology killed hundreds of millions of people.

[@chocksaway100]

I agree totally with your comment.

[@barrybarnes96]

lol

[@MrNaKillshots]

This man lived a rich life of actual significance, unlike most of us.

[@johnbanwell6391]

At 75 he spoke in complete perfect sentences, with total recall of events that occurred decades ago. The great advantage of a classical education.

[@dimitriosvlissides5781]

​@@bfc3057don't be sure about it Classical studies enhance the brain cognitive functions This man even later in his life was translating the Greek Bible in English Good health of course plays a role This man also was inflicted with parkinsonism for many years and his cognitive function was in a very good condition Classics are a big Key for cognitive function

[@dimitriosvlissides5781]

@@bfc3057 my experience comes from working with elderly people

[@nickyg2134]

Just like Biden

[@PDaddy0120]

@@nickyg2134😂😂

[@PDaddy0120]

75 isn't that old.. Most people live to be 80 something now. Depends on genes

[@johnpugh3348]

I met Enoch POWELL and listened to a lot of his speeches live. He was a wonderful man who has proved correct on all the big issues of the day, I miss his common sense and his ability to talk for the working man, compare him to todays political pygmies and he is head and shoulders above them.

[@rogerdodger1790]

Today's politicians aren't fit to lick his boots

[@ajarnwordsmith628]

@@rogerdodger1790 You've dusted off an old idiom. However, I avoid idiomatic English like the plague. I wish to remind you that Enoch's use of language (he was fluent in more than ten) precluded such verbal flights of fancy. Got that have we?

[@neilwilliams2409]

Remarkable man in so many ways. Not least the number of languages he could speak and read. Welsh but to name one.

[@steveyogilmore5314]

​@@ajarnwordsmith628very clever except you had to edit your statement and you also made yourself seem 'twattish'.

[@ajarnwordsmith628]

Piffle. How many edits = 1 twat; I'm not referring to one's pudendum here...(unedited) @@steveyogilmore5314

[@Baskerville22]

The greatest intellect ever in the English Parliament.

[@alalder1533]

He was politically incorrect telling the truth as he saw it. He's still vilified and people now afraid to say that he saw the future as such a statement is politically incorrect.

[@petergilkes7082]

Lol!

[@michaelmckelvey5122]

Believe it or not, Harold Wilson was also a brilliant mind and student. He studied economics and was 'top notch' but the country almost collapsed under his leadership. We will never know how the country would have fiared under Ench Powel's leadership as he never had the chance.

[@thadtuiol1717]

He was reading the Bible in Greek and Latin for fun by the age of 11. His classical education and military service and colonial experiences gave him a very accurate view of the enduring truths of human nature. There isn't an MP today who comes anywhere near this man.

[@KimPhilby203]

Studying so early was also his downfall...

[@007EnglishAcademy]

He was the youngest Brigadier and youngest professor in the whole of what was the British Empire.

[@mark8544]

......and one of only two men that went from Private to Brigader during the course of the war.

[@parkgate-ub1ey]

If true, that's impressive.

[@dellawrence4323]

One of the very few humans who actually deserves the often misused description "A towering intellect"

[@Wolf-hh4rv]

Events are proving him to be truly prescient.

[@richardh3547]

Enoch Powell was a true giant of men. We will never see his likes again. Today we have nobody to come close to him. To the people who ridicule him and castigate him, I say, who are you are what have you done? I say the answer is, absolutely nothing apart from carping from behind the lines.

[@philipbrooks402]

There is a great anecdote in Simon Heffer's biography of Powell. Late in life when Heffer was researching the biography they were at lunch in a London club. Heffer noted that there were a number of cabinet ministers and a "surfeit of Privy Councillors" at adjoining tables to which Powell replied, being a PC himself on account of his time spent in cabinet, "Yes, but I think I am the only professor and the only brigadier present."

[@robertmogey5183]

Fantastic man

[@arthuroldale-ki2ev]

If he he had been allowed to be Prime minister, we would not of LOST this fine Country. FOOLS!!!

[@tiamatxvxianash9202]

This was a gem of a listen. As I am someone who was heavily influenced by grand elders whom were late Victorian's and Edwardian's, their is a moral integrity within Enoch Powell that I can fully identify with.

[@rogerdodger1790]

What a man. True English hero.

[@stokiestewpotter7956]

Eloquent, intelligent, interesting,a giant of politics.A very enjoyable interview,just how did he remember all these details.We need a person in parliament like this.

[@charlesfrancis6894]

This man was not a racist he was a pragmatist and his words have proven to be true which makes those who called him a racist then and now lacking any degree of wisdom. I have known intelligent people to make very basic errors where as Mr Powell having both intelligence and wisdom was hounded out of his political party by other politicians more interested in their tribal compliance to a culture of appearance rather than logic. Mr Powell used his skills with honesty which is a word despised and feared by today's politicians. He is greatly missed by a dying generation and when we are gone the young will be ignorant of his existence because the elite fear such honesty and want his like crushed forever ,which is one reason that generation is doomed as they are led like sheep into the abyss .

[@DarylSaunders737]

My father always said Powell was a realist not a racist. His words still ring true today as any time in history.

[@patriot6251]

Unsung Hero amongst the best politician of all time and a true gent

[@eileenshanahan1521]

Essential listening for citizens of today. Remarkable clarity of thought and recollection and a good interviewer who let Enoch speak without intrusion. What a brilliant man. Thank you for posting this interview. Enoch was a prophet.

[@bobstar7299]

100% true

[@lenwilkinson672]

@@bfc3057I suggest that you research what Powell ACTUALLY said in his speech all those years ago.Bur maybe you are incapable of reading it correctly.

[@conradwood6700]

" Rivers of blood" were not the words he used.

[@philipswain4122]

Such a measured, eloquent speaker. A real pleasure listening.

[@stanjenkinson4520]

I know it's been said many times, but i will add to that list and say it again," best Prime Minister we never had"

[@jacqlewis2418]

This is a rare recording to listen to

[@BridiesMammaG]

He answers honestly . Imagine any one of the so called ministers today NOT taking credit for saving the Jewish Professor. A man of honour and principal. An early and perhaps the first example of cancel culture. May God rest his soul.

[@ajarnwordsmith628]

Er...I think you mean "principle." Enoch would have been banjaxed by your improper choice of word, for he was, without doubt, the principal guardian of the English language.

[@BridiesMammaG]

@@ajarnwordsmith628 You feel better now? 😂

[@ajarnwordsmith628]

@@BridiesMammaG I do not feel "worse" so why would I feel "better?" Enoch would have been banjaxed by your lack of logic and sloppy use of language. Ahhhhhh...now I feel better!

[@SunofYork]

@@ajarnwordsmith628 As an Englishman I have lived in the US for 17 years and I fight daily for the English language... "Should of went " ?... Now they pronounce 'planned' as 'planed' ! That isn't accent, that is not knowing the simple grammatical rule

[@ajarnwordsmith628]

Sunny boy! That's an AWESOME response...LIKE...AWESOME. Let me...LIKE...say this: Please continue to caper nimbly along Main Street, strum that lute, and avoid those barking dogs. You are doing an AWESOME job... @@SunofYork

[@Danny-hp9fx]

An intellectual and political giant……who also had the gift of seeing into the future……how we need politicians of his caliber now

[@kevinh5349]

What a life! And a towering intellect.

[@Surreptitious_1]

Thank you so much for this. Made my day. Reminds me so much of listening to my late grandfather

[@taeveesurkian2047]

I am so grateful for the chance to listen to such an extremely interesting interview and condensed source of historical information by such a learned and erudite person as Sir Enoch Powell. It is such a great joy to follow the precise descriptions and analyses, especially for me as a German with a strong connection to Britain. Thank you so much.

[@garethmorris299]

An amazing man Enoch Powell.Spoke 14 languages,Youngest Professor in the Commonwealth.Leading Classicist of his generation.Invented Monetarism even though Milton Friedman got the Nobel prize,Enoch was the first to understand it.Achieved double starred first from Cambridge !warned and resigned over the EU gravy train in the seventies!Warned about the dangers of uncontrolled immigration.Voted the most impressive MP.Brilliant Constituency MP.Historian,Poet,Linguist,Church Architecture student.An interpreter in Urdu.A man of integrity -he voted againts a pay rise for MPS,An Amazing,Brilliant --man.Ps-- Great Orator- His Hola camp speech was said by people who heard it to be the greatest speech they ever heard.Greatest Prime Minister we never had!RIP Professor Powell And Thank you.

[@ajarnwordsmith628]

"Sir" [sic] Enoch didn't approve of any title bestowed without historical and/or constitutional precedent. For that reason, he refused Mrs Thatcher's offer of a life peerage. However, for that reason, he would have accepted a heriditary peerage had one been in the offing.

[@davekiernan1]

That's old school. The best, hounarable proper English gentleman.

[@samjohnson927]

Eugenus Rex thank you for this recording. I love listening to Powell.

[@steenr8372]

A wonderful experience, thank you so much, Steen Copenhagen, Denmark

[@roshantweerasinghe9866]

This man saw the future. Rivers of Blood was a statement of facts. Today foreign elements have the whip hand. If only some one had paid attention. I was told he was a racist no he is not he only spoke the truth about the future . My highest respect to you Sir. Roshant Weerasinghe son of Herbert Weerasinghe Former Inspector General of Sri Lanka police and Delini Weerasinghe Former commissioner of Examinations Department of Examinations Sri Lanka.

[@conradwood6700]

December 10th 1987 would have been the accession date of the interview; the date on which the interview became officially part of the Sound Archive 's collection. I actually recorded the interview on two separate days a little before that date. After the completion of our work, it would have been a bit before I had the chance to take the tapes in to the Sound Studio for accessioning. Conrad Wood

[@thebeautifulones5436]

you were a first class interviewer.

[@Albert-Arthur-Wison225]

An invaluable interview. Many thanks for its provision.

[@296Echo]

Incredible Intellect ....... a true polymath.

[@angloaust1575]

Amazing entered army as private came out as brigadier!

[@huwzebediahthomas9193]

T.E. Lawrence went both ways, eventually became just an airman in the RAF in the 1920's, specialising in fast sea rescue motor boats.

[@BridiesMammaG]

Thank you for this heartwarming interview. Makes one feel quite nostalgic for times gone by

[@fredjones234]

Ashamed to say this is the first time i have heard of him. But what a great man. If only we had more people like this today in parliament

[@wellsgb1957]

That’s what you call a colossal brain. What an enthralling post , thank you.

[@philipmahoney8332]

Yes. he was born in stechford Birmingham, I was born many years later,,1947 he went to king Edward grammar school , he had a brilliant brain , and a great orator , I think he spoke common sense , and I am proud he hails from Birmingham , albeit , I am nowhere near educated as he was , philipmahoney

[@wellsgb1957]

@@philipmahoney8332 I totally agree with you! It’s a insult to our country that our political elites are so woeful. I truly wish we had a man of his intellect and stature in today’s political arena.

[@philipmahoney8332]

@@wellsgb1957 thank you , I have been watching a clip about the modern day Coventry road small heath Birmingham , this raid is about one mile from stechford,Mr Powell's birthplace , he would have travelled by train from there to Birmingham New Street , and is school, I walked home along the Coventry road from school and although not a prosperous are , it was neat and clean , and safe there was a picture on the corner of Grange road, inside there was a brilliant hand painted tapestry , of Tudor scenes about 50foot in length. , the picture house was demolished late 60s, to get to the point , the road looks like an in something from downtown Karachi ,or Bombay, , s the shops , have lvery large signs outside , and it looks a really horrible place i could only see one person who was possibly originally from the area , it looks areal horrible place now , and I do not cannot see how all of these peopl are known by the system ie ,HMRC , etcetera , know live in a village in Gloucestershire 40years,,very peaceful. perhaps I am old know ,,and miss the halcyon days of Birmingham which had some very nice places I know there were slums , but as a people we were content a relativly happy , although poor, ,I am a retired butler , and lead a very busy life , and have good helpful friends , ps the peaky blinders , lived just off the Coventry road , in garrison lane etc. close to Birmingham football ground , best wishes philip

[@wellsgb1957]

@@philipmahoney8332 Thanks for your heart felt comment, regarding the degradation of your birthplace. Sadly Phillip, this is now common place, it’s happening in all major conurbations and cities across Britain. I have first hand experience, of this third world invasion of our country, I’ve witnessed it for myself on many occasions, throughout my lifetime. This unforgivable betrayal has been forced on us by our traitorous, corrupt political elites, that will willingly say one thing to gain power, then do the exact opposite. My personal hope Phillip, Is that the indigenous people of Britain will wake up soon.

[@philipmahoney8332]

@@wellsgb1957 Thank you ,Andy very well worded letter best wishes for the future philp

[@metromoppet]

Je suis en estime pour votre génie, monsieur!

[@niceuneasy]

Bless him and thoughts that come so true!! 😎

[@akunin1876]

Thank you for posting such a rare interview!

[@007EnglishAcademy]

Speaking in fully formed and finely crafted sentences as if reading from a well-written autobiography without a single ''like'', ''kind of'', ''sort of'' ''ah'', ''um'' or ''er''. What a pleasure to listen to.

[@Desertfox170]

My hero

[@johncourtneidge]

An entirely marvellous and rewarding three hours. Thank-you.

[@sacredsoma]

what a gem

[@mikemcavoy181]

A brilliant interview.

[@JensPetter95]

Thanks very much for the guys who made these recordings happen, golden 🙌 Been listening to a ton of ww2 stuff over the years, finding something that is new to me like this is like a fresh breeze, love that man, Enoch.

[@Disinterested-jg6pw]

This is fantastically interesting - thank you

[@user-wn9lr8jx7i]

In the 70s I was a Venture Scout Leader and we took our unit to meet our MP and sit in the Strangers Gallery. We had hoped to hear a debate on hanging. However a debate on religion had over-run and as we entered the Gallery Enoch stood up to speak. Erudite, knowledgeable and engaging. He spoke for 37 minutes, 37 minutes that felt like 10. Such was his ability. If we were disappointed by the subject, we could hardly have been more impressed by our experience.

[@southerncomfort7490]

Three things strike one from hearing this excellent recording. Firstly, although discussing himself, there is a striking lack of egotism. Secondly, there is both exactitude as to facts and language in his discussion of events long past. Thirdly, and this is related to the last point, like Bertrand Russell, you knew that in his head he had reached the end of the sentence before the words had left his mouth. This third factor would have been taken for granted by an educated man of several generation past. Now, alas, it is a forgotten art and skill. Fortunately I had the good fortune to interview Professor Powell when I was but twenty-one years of age and but a student. I have met many striking people since that time, having worked for Lord Hailsham, Lady Thatcher and the great Lord Denning. However, I have to say, as brilliant as those people were in their own way, none of them were in the same class as the subject of this interview.

[@acid3041]

I live near his grave. I visit frequently to sit quietly and think about what he'd make of the current shit-show, clown-world we live in.

[@frankdsouza2425]

Am not sure, Acid, if he would have approved of your choice of words.

[@zhilvahle1645]

@@frankdsouza2425 His choice of words would be of the least of his concerns

[@isobelmiddleton6353]

Shit- show, clown- world is spot on. I'm sure he would agree with you

[@benedictmoss3058]

Why don't you and the other silly old buggers who agree with you do the human race a favour and jump into his grave and snuff it?

[@chrisekstrom4614]

It is the precise DOWNFALL he predicted…

[@grahamo7129]

Thank you so much for posting this priceless piece of history. If only we had political leaders of his magnitude and integrity today. Alas we are beset with Lilliputians in comparison.

[@johngovus2734]

When did you last hear a politician say My Country

[@fredjones234]

Politicans today have no sense of loyalty to this nation or her people

[@mikemyers8064]

A great British man.

[@Dibley8899]

Who could imagine then how right he was today.

[@Jaffa767]

We who are around the same age. Did and do imagine and now know how right he was and is

[@pmajudge]

GOSH!!! MOST INTERESTING DOCUMENTARY ABOUT THE LATE ENOCH POWELL. ALWAYS WONDERED HOW IS WIFE /DAUGHTERS/ & GRANDCHILDREN EVER THOUGHT ABOUT A PERSON IN THEIR MIDIST AS A FAMILY ???? HOWEVER, STRONG BELIEFS INFLITRATES IN THE HOME . FROM U.K. (2022)

[@philiprufus4427]

I bave been reading about the Second World War since the early 1960s,and that was absolutly bl - - - - fascinating. I knew I was allways correct as a youngster in rating this man.

[@mikerandall7571]

I wait in hope more than expectation for another Enoch Powell to emerge and save this country.

[@HypocrisyLaidBare]

there will never be an MP with the balls and nerve to stand and speak up or have the integrity of the Rt Hon Brigadier Enoch Powell MBE, he was and is an incredibly unique character. This is why he is slighted and derided so much by the left, because of his brilliance.

[@chocksaway100]

Totally absorbing documentary on Brigadier Powells life thank you for uploading .

[@stevenkarras3490]

Thank you for posting this

[@paddyfrancis1328]

The cleverest man ever in Westminster also with integrity. The snowflakes were scared of his genius.

[@alalder1533]

He was politically incorrect telling the truth as he saw it. He's still vilified and people now afraid to say that he saw the future as such a statement is politically incorrect.

[@SunofYork]

"Snowflakes" is a Fascist term of abuse.... Enoch was not a Fascist.

[@paddyfrancis1328]

@@SunofYork i dont follow your logic. Snowflakes are weak caused from their own ignorance.

[@mark8544]

​@@SunofYorkoh do behave.

[@DarylSaunders737]

@@SunofYork Snowflakes are facists.

[@Travel_Geek_Channel]

Thank you for the upload!

[@philipinchina]

Shall we ever see his like again?

[@jackharrison6771]

It's sometimes difficult to understand why or how a person can be so mis-understood and even maligned for a relatively small aspect of a person's earlier life. (in this case, that one speech in the Commons). Having barely reached the halfway point of this fascinating story, I for one, can claim to be changed in my views of this man. I agree with his views on the role of the Royal Navy, in the event of a German invasion; and in the role of the Soviet Union in a European or World war. As with the Great war, German military thinking was mostly based upon land forces, but that thinking fails when faced with the Channel, and the dominating force upon it - our Navy. But I DO believe the RAF had a critical role to play from 1940; through Fighter then Bomber Command. His experiences in Nth Africa and especially with the LRDG reminds me of the movie 'Sea Of Sand'. And his 'Intelligence' work were responsible for the correction of a potentially disastrous mistake at Command level. Taken as a whole, I think Enoch Powel does deserve a better write-up. And we MUST consider all of his life, whether Public or Private.

[@EugenusRex]

A small correction: the 'Rivers of Blood' speech did not take place in the House of Commons. Sincere thanks for your measured and well thought out comment, regardless. E. R.

[@MyChristine6]

Sea of Sand, I enjoyed that movie. Another outstanding Brit starred in the movie, Richard Attenborough.

[@castelodeossos3947]

Fascinating. He just about never uses any fillers to mask any kind of hesitation. Must come from his tremendous reading. 'Could I ask you if you had read "Mein Kampf"?' (18:25) 'No... [you could not ask me].' Interesting that Mr Powell's experience of generosity of spirit as a private was the same as TE Lawrence's when he was the private Ross.

[@ajarnwordsmith628]

Yes, you have drawn our attention to his masterful ability to communicate in the English language and, no doubt, in the many other languages he had mastered, including Hindi and Urdu. He famously refused the gift of a King James Bible during his guest spot on BBC radio's Desert Island Discs. He told Sue Lawley, the programme's presenter, that he would only accept the Old Testament in Hebrew, and the New Testament in ancient Greek.

[@HypocrisyLaidBare]

@castelodeossos3947 Is that your attempt to make Enoch Powell look bad? To those of your ilk who do not follow up on claims but accept things on face value?. Enoch Powell said _"No... but I'd read enough to know what Nazism was about"._ That to me sounds like an answer not a deflection.

[@conradwood6700]

Actually I think he makes it clear that he never did read it.

[@gilesgreenaway5655]

Should have listened to sir enoch,common sense and the people of this country.

[@antonyholditch8849]

Its a pity we dont have a leader of his calibre now when we really need one.

[@fredjones234]

The uk is all but lost

[@emilekabba2748]

Hello sir: is it possible for you to send me your audio recording of the great man, Enoch Powell? I am a huge fan of Mr.Powell. I read the biography of Mr. Powell, Like the Romans, The Life of Enoch Powell by Simon Heffer. I would appreciate it if can hear from you.

[@Quimbert6969]

A prophetic hero.

[@albanui6354]

​@@gw2780Although I disagree with you, that's really very good! 😂

[@thomasshepard6030]

@@gw2780you are

[@jackojan51]

God i wish he was still alive a man with balls and talked the truth what is happening today he said it all a great millitary man and would of shown these woke , snow flake , twats a few things .

[@felicitymullins4643]

I have really enjoyed listening to Enoch Powell. I was born in Bombay in July 1944, and to think he was at his powers in India then. My father was in the Suffolk Regiment attached to the Indian Army and my mother was also born in Bombay of British expats who absolutely loved living in India.

[@tomv4408]

Was he reading, or speaking extempore? What a story! I admire his clear idea of what he wanted to accomplish in the service of his country.

[@EugenusRex]

He was speaking spontaneously. Mr. Powell was renowned for his faculties of verbal articulation. That said, those being interviewed in other recordings from this series are also profoundly impressive storytellers and communicators. Perhaps there is a case to be made that the standard of spoken communication in the U.K. has slipped significantly in the last half a century?

[@mark8544]

​@@EugenusRex My father is 96 and also had a classic education ( Oxford). There's no argument to it, you are 100% correct as I'm reminded on a weekly basis when I speak to him.

[@ragnarironspear1791]

He was a prophet before his time

[@wuffothewonderdog]

Prophets always are. Otherwise they would be historians.

[@MalcolmMcRobert-sn2ik]

Oh, you 'sarcy' git ! But a wonderful observation.

[@Gorboduc]

42:35 - very interesting point about human nature, illustrating Colin Wilson's "dominant five percent".

[@firstcastac7308]

Thank you so much for posting the interview for future generations to listen to the great man. What a remarkable country we once were, that produced men of this caliber. Though sitting in England in 2024, and just a few decades away from being a minority in my own country, I am not at all sure that we should have fought Germany in WW2.

[@alan-dx2zf]

Enoch Powel was to my mind one of the greatest thinkers of his age. His views at the time did not represent the lessais faire attitudues and norms of the political cogniscenti. However he was not of his time but a harbinger of what has transpired.

[@mikemines2931]

Greatest Prime Minister we never had.

[@stephensmith4480]

And now can only Dream of Having 🙏

[@philltaylor8442]

IF we HAD Britain wouldn't be the mess ITS in TODAY! But WE ARE.

[@conradwood6700]

Tom V. It was entirely extempore. I know. I was the interviewer and nobody else was ever present in our sessions.

[@EugenusRex]

@Conrad Wood Wow. It is a privilege to know that you are watching this upload, Mr. Wood, let alone commenting on it. As you may be able to imagine, your voice has become extremely familiar to me in recent years; through both editing this upload together and listening to many other tapes in the IWM collection. I would like to thank you for the extremely high quality of your work during this time. Speaking as someone who was born eight years after this recording was made, these tapes serve as a vital resource for many aspects and perspectives of modern history upon which I was never formally educated. I personally consider this particular recording to be the fullest portrait of Enoch Powell, as a man, currently available online. Lastly, I was wondering if you might be able to spare the time to answer a few questions of mine? I understand entirely if this not possible but please send me an e-mail at [e-mail] if you are at all interested. Thank you for your time.

[@conradwood6700]

I should be glad to answer your questions. Conrad Wood

[@EugenusRex]

@@conradwood6700 I do appreciate your time, Mr. Wood and I note that you have already given an answer to many of the questions I hoped to ask you in your second post, for which I thank you. Firstly (and I do apologise by beginning with such a personal question), what exactly is your accent? I have been puzzled by it for quite some time. My instinct is to guess that you are a Yorkshireman who has been educated in the south of England, not unlike myself, though I concede that I could be very badly wrong in this estimation. Secondly, are you surprised at the extent to which Mr. Powell has remained such a perennial figure on the landscape of U.K. politics? It is now 2023, 25 years since Mr. Powell's passing, yet he still remains a figure of great controversy and influence. Mr. Powell is lionized as a sage, a seer and a man of resolute conviction by the 'New Conservative' movement whilst, in the same moment, being condemned as a folk-devil and "fascist" by The Guardian reading Neo-Marxist left. Through the emergence of KZbin and open-access internet archives, many young men with socially-conservative, traditionalist instincts are finding themselves drawn to the politics of Mr. Powell. What do you make of his legacy? Did you garner any sense that legacy was important to Mr. Powell? Thirdly, the I.W.M. collection is one of the better online archives in the United Kingdom. That said, it can be somewhat difficult to navigate at times, with the descriptions and captions that label uploaded tapes failing to convey a sense of the 'flavour' of the conversations contained, therein. Looking back upon your work with the I.W.M., which of your interviewees do you regard as the greatest storytellers? I shall appreciate any reply, Mr. Wood and I shall wish you good health. Thank you, again, for commenting on this upload.

[@conradwood6700]

Question 1. I was born in York 1942 but left in 1946 for Hull when my dad was demobbed from the Navy. He was a Hull man. I grew up in Hull going to Hull Grammar. Left 1960 for Cambridge , St Catharines. 1960-63. Hull University Dip Ed.1963-64. 1965- 71 Bury St Edmund's schoolmaster. 1971- 82 Shooters Hill SE18, MA and PhD SOAS and schoolmaster in Blackheath. 1979'- 2002 IWM living in Eltham then Woking. So basically a Hull accent which is a Yorkshire accent that is very peculiar . Listen especially to the o sound : phone is " fern'. But much modified by my wanderings round south east England and East Anglia. Other answers later .

[@conradwood6700]

Question 3. Regarding the unsatisfactory cataloguing of the Sound Archive accessions. I was not a cataloguer. But after a while I developed the technique of writing a provisional summary of the contents of each reel. I wrote each summary as the informant was speaking. It was in the form of headings for each point made. These handwritten summaries were put in the Archive's wallets kept for each informant. They should still exist.

[@huwzebediahthomas9193]

A T.E. Lawrence/Winston Churchill type of character. An individualist in the regiment.

[@theresafarren3236]

He was obviously some sort of genius , can be a curse too

[@syourke3]

A genius.

[@S_Edward_Burns_ArtsEditor]

My appreciations. Carry on. -Seb!

[@DarylSaunders737]

Love of country before personal gain.... Politicians need to take a lesson from such a Great man.🇬🇧

[@NAMVETSTARLITE]

WHEN A MAN IS RIGHT HE SHOULD BE RECOGNIZED. ENOCH POWELL WAS 99% RIGHT ALL the time. OOHRAH SEMPER FIDELIS

[@rogerdodger1790]

What on earth does that silly noise have to do with Enoch?

[@docastrov9013]

Enoch was right about the invasion over the Channel. He just got the date wrong by 83 years.

[@conradwood6700]

As I understand it, he was saying that the Germans would not invade , and was contradicted by a Royal who said they would. He got it right; the Royal got it wrong.

[@AlfieTheHammer363]

Bless Him

[@tomblack8211]

When I was doing Classics at the University of Liverpool (1968 to 71), we invited Enoch Powell to talk to our student society about Herodotus, as he had published a lexicon of that author before the war. He declined, on the ground that his knowledge of the subject was not up to date. I remember thinking that if he had simply talked about his experience as a student, a Fellow and a researcher at Cambridge this would have illuminated the field of classical scholarship and put flesh on the bones of a potentially dry subject. He could easily have described his visits to famous continental libraries to study the ancient manuscripts and given us his impressions of Italy, Germany and other places in those years. It was an opportunity lost. The detail and depth of his war reminiscences shows how interesting it could have been. In those days, I regarded myself as a democratic socialist. I used to argue against my parents who considered the African colonies too undeveloped and uneducated for self government. They predicted disorder and chaos. I thought those nations might well make mistakes, but should have the right to make their own mistakes. Later, I welcomed the Heath government's decision to honour the British passports and nationality of the Ugandan Asians expelled by Idi Amin. In 1972, I was doing doctoral research at Durham on Aristotle's philosophy. Having, less than a year earlier, lost my belief in Christianity, I was looking for an alternative system and used to attend the meetings of the International Socialists (who later became the SWP). These were presided over by a balding, long-haired figure, obviously older than the rest of the students. I asked what was meant by the revolution which the IS was proposing. Would this involve violence? Oh no, I was told, it was a revolution of consciousness by reason and persuasion, after which society would naturally transition to Socialism. That sounded fair enough. At that time, the university Conservative Association invited Enoch Powell to speak on immigration and he agreed. They advertised the date of the meeting. An agitation immediately began to "stop Powell", the IS taking a prominent part. At the next meeting, speech after speech advocated direct action. "We must organise and get out on the street and make his speech impossible". I then stood up and said, "Look, we are Socialists, we are in the right on this issue, we have nothing to fear from open argument. Free speech is the essence of democracy. Let Powell speak and then let us put the opposite case and show that he is wrong". The chairman then stated that this would be a mistake. "Bourgeois free speech is not truly free. In a bourgeois society, there is no real democracy. The media, the universities, the political parties, the courts, all these institutions are part of the bourgeois system. It is impossible to win the argument from within the system". Another speaker then stood up and said "This calls for mass action. Remember the battle of Cable Street. We have to smash Fascism in the streets. We must be ready for action at any time". Then he looked directly at me and said, "There are fascist agents everywhere". Not wanting to get in any deeper, I said nothing more, but I never went back. Thus ended my brief flirtation with socialist revolution. In the event, Powell's proposed speech was cancelled for fear of disturbances. On the subject of accent, as is very well known, "He ... never quite lost his Brummie accent". www.prisonersofeternity.com/blog/enoch-powell/ "Powell is widely regarded as a gifted orator, and Iain McLean explains his appeal as follows: ‘The name; his unmistakable accent, which seemed to move from the Birmingham of his birth to the Black Country of his constituency; and his equally distinctive piercing blue eyes, formal clothes and black hat, made an unforgettable combination.’ " app.amanote.com/v4.0.50/research/note-taking?resourceId=hquSAnQBKQvf0BhiG99z

[@drwhatson]

"(Communist Party) ...members and front organisations must continually embarrass, discredit and degrade our critics. When obstructionists become too irritating, label them as fascist, or Nazi, or anti-semitic... (*or today, racist/homophobic/transphobic/islamophobic/anti-vaxxers/climate change deniers/far-right conspiracy theorists etc.)" (Moscow Central Committee directive, 1943)

[@colinelliott5629]

I read maths at UoL and graduated 1968. Peter Griffiths visited on one occasion. Few attended, and the lefties (several from outside the uni.), packed the first row. At first, they tried to disrupt things, but gradually fell silent, and listened, because he didn't speak like the racist they had expected. I never saw Powell in person, but ~1973, my wife sat opposite him on the underground.

[@tomblack8211]

@@colinelliott5629 Do I detect a note of satire? Appreciate the humour, but the relevance of the Durham episode is, it shows cancel culture is nothing new.

[@superhandsifacation]

i like the idea more than the reality this is a great man that should have been subjected abit more, this is an issue. i can assure you this is an ideal that has died but has brought with it alot more fundamental realities. i can appreciate this

[@Aethul-wd9ke]

I couldn't imagine he would feel the same way if he saw the state of the allied powers today.

[@alanle1471]

Remarkable military career. Private to Brigadier (7th level officer) in 7 years the stuff of legends.

[@Horizon344]

If Powell had been leading UKIP in 2016 he would had created a realignment of England's moribund politics, but he missed it by 30 years. Interesting whispered thought at the end - Powell thought the Germans are still a threat to England.

[@johnbull8047]

The European Union is a continuation of Germany by other means.

[@ferdaferd]

It should of happened in his life time, we must carry the torch

[@gamingwithslacker]

@@johnbull8047 Peter Hitchens

[@MGJS71]

A few years later, Powell openly suggested that Thatcher & Gorbachev should intervene, if necessary militarily, to prevent the reunited Germany dominating Europe.

[@Ghostmanriding]

@@ferdaferd The torch itself now survives only as a flicker.

[@lenwilkinson672]

@Pet. Enoch Powell will be remembered by intelligent,decent and honest men within these isles.He should have been Prime Minister.Edward Heath among others destroyed this Brilliant man.

[@HuHWhat-yi8cp]

@len. Lot of unsavoury business concerning Heath.

[@rayw3294]

He was a prophet. Unfortunatly, too early. Probably Genius level. I am British, and looking back. But we stopped wars and massacres. Especially stopped slavery and people eating each other. Actually stopped Vietnam war for example. Then the frogs who pissed everyone off. Then the Yanks, who didnt like imperialist UK. But had the greatist war machine in history. But the Yanks to this day are useless. What make me feel good as a Brit. We banned slavery. And much more like railways which stopped famine in so many ways.

[@geoffreyking4515]

Bless him,best P.M. we never had

[@EndingSimple]

Picking up Russian is not easy to do. Isaac Asimov, who wrote about 500 published works in his lifetime and was the son of Russian emigrants was unable to do it. Enoch Powell had an amazing brain.

[@mymgb66]

A politician with PRINCIPLES. How rare nowadays.

[@larrydickman5936]

Had this courageous lion known what will become of this country, would he have enlisted to fight....?

[@JohnBrennan-pt9kg]

Now we can clearly see why the authorities feared him here. we have a man of huge intelligence linked to an almost psychic ability to see the future

[@mavisspearhead1742]

He was right though.. Every word he says is truth, but truth means 'RACIST' these days.. its a shame and a pity that nobody paid attention to him back then..

[@Albert-Arthur-Wison225]

Clear evidence, wholly unsurprising, really, considering both his erudition and marvelous command of the tongues of antiquity, of him having been a superb educator was the echo of Mr Powell’s intellectual and rhetorical heft in the career of one of his Sydney students, Australia’s greatest prime minister ( and fellow WW2 veteran, albeit serving as a navigator in the RAAF ). The late E.G ( ‘Gough ‘) Whitlam, who spent much of his retirement from public life leading tours of a score of sights of both Greek and Roman derivation.

[@bobbeck5866]

He was the best Prime Minister the United Kingdom never had, If he was with us now I wonder what he would say to the current politicians