Number 10 [Hardcover]

Sue Townsend (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2003

“Townsend has a rare gift … wickedly funny.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred)

“It’s not pretty, it’s not subtle, but it’s wickedly funny and skewers London’s prime-time players.”—Columbus Dispatch

Praise for Sue Townsend:

“It’s a good thing British subjects are no longer beheaded for treason, or Sue Townsend’s head would roll . . . outrageously cutting.”—Newsday

“[Townsend] is a national treasure.”—The New York Times Book Review

Edward Clare, PM of England, doesn’t know the price of a liter of milk. Worse, he’s admitted it on national television. The public that ushered him to a landslide election has turned against him.

Edward decides the only way to get closer to the men and women on the street is to travel the country dressed in drag. Leaving his high-powered, ambitious wife to attend to things in his absence, he sets out.

In this comic romp Sue Townsend sends up, roasts, hoists and generally petards the once and future prime ministers as only she can.

Sue Townsend is celebrated as the author of the bestselling

Adrian Mole series, read by millions, as well as the #1 British bestseller, The Queen and I. She lives in Leicester, England.


From the Trade Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Townsend's latest British farce (after 1993's The Queen and I, which put the British royal family in public housing, to hilarious effect), the prime minister, known by much of his public as "that pratt Edward Clare," sets out to get in touch with the masses. Speaking at a press conference, Edward is caught unprepared by questions on the price of milk and the last time he took public transportation; the little fib he tells makes him a laughingstock. Edward decides a trip across the country will reacquaint him with "the concerns of the majority of British people," and under the watchful eye of Jack Sprat, an intellectual but street-savvy police officer, Edward begins his journey-as Edwina. (It's reasoned that his wife's clothes, and later his own enthusiastically chosen ensembles, will allow Edward to remain incognito.) Edward and Jack visit the grave of Edward's mother, and they endure the pain and humiliation of public transportation before hiring a Pakistani cabdriver, who takes them to visit a poverty-stricken single mother in Leeds. Here, Edward suffers something like a heart attack, which lands him in the hospital-as ill-run as public transportation-and then the psychiatric ward, where he is described as "pathologically unable to commit to an opinion for fear of displeasing the questioner." In the meantime, Edward's loopy wife, Adele, quits taking her medication and gets a nose job, and Jack's mother opens her humble home to a bevy of crack addicts. The three story lines are masterfully and hilariously interwoven, and the book's delightfully absurd characters (especially Edward, and Jack's mother, Norma) are unforgettable. This madcap romp through England is sure to delight Anglophiles and the many fans of Townsend's beloved Adrian Mole books.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

British novelist Townsend, who has already earned an army of ardent fans with her series of books on the hapless diarist Adrian Mole, is characteristically hilarious in this hybrid that combines social satire with an odd-couple road trip. The buddy team includes Jack, a policeman who grew up on the edge of squalor but manages to emerge a decent and levelheaded man. The other half is Edward, reared in privilege to take his all-but-predestined place as prime minister. Struck with the realization that he has no idea what life is like for ordinary citizens, Edward sets off, incognito, for a week-long safari into the land of the common folk, with Jack as his escort. Because it's hard for the prime minister to travel unnoticed, he does what any sensible man would do--slips into a wig and high heels and becomes "Edwina." The book doesn't lack for skewering observations of the upper and lower classes, but Edward and Jack are both such well-meaning characters, the book comes off ultimately as more affirming than biting. Karen Holt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Soho Press (November 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569473498
• ISBN-13: 978-1569473498
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,968,253 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Brit Satire, January 14, 2004

By 

Louis N. Gruber "Author of Jay" (Lexington, SC United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Number 10 (Hardcover)

Number 10 is, of course, Number 10 Downing Street, where the British Prime Minister resides. In this rollicking political satire, the P.M. in question is Edward Clare, a man with many issues, who finds himself in political hot water for being out of touch with ordinary Britons. The solution is a secret tour, with Edward dressed as a woman, to meet people from all walks of life and find out how they really live. Edward is accompanied by loyal constable Jack Sprat, and the tour goes from one madcap scenario to another.

So, what happens? Will Edward gain new insight into the plight of everyday people? Will he come home with better ideas for the governance of Great Britain? Will he learn something about himself? You will just have to read the book to find out.

Author Sue Townsend, who is also the creator of the Adrian Mole books, is a brilliant comedic writer. She creates one improbable yet fascinating character after another, one implausible scene after another, and somehow it all works. Author Townsend clearly has a heart for people; even though you may laugh all the way through the book, you will also find a depth of feeling that makes her characters somehow, strangely, believable. I recommend Number 10 highly. Reviewed by Louis N. Gruber

9 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Some great political caricatures, November 23, 2003

By 

Gavin Wilson - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Number 10 (Audio Cassette)

As an impressionist, John Sessions is not up to Rory Bremner's standard, but he does some very passable versions of Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, John Prescott and Peter Mandelson. John takes us on an enjoyable ride through this story, and his narrative is let down only by the plot, which comes undone every time it focuses on the family of Jack Sprat, the policeman who guards Number 10.

The idea at the root of this novel had potential: Tony Blair lives in a bubble (though on a lesser scale than George Bush), and though good at dealing with politicians and the chattering classes, his rare performances in direct confrontation with Joe Public have often been poor. Thus Sue Townsend's concept of forcing her protagonist, Edward Clare, to meet the common man, totally unprotected, had considerable promise. But the idea of his dressing up as a woman to enable this tour of Britain was utterly implausible, though it proffers many comic moments. I particularly enjoyed the Balkan psychologist's report on Edward Clare in which he reveals all his concerns, after Clare checks into hospital after his prescient heart scare. (Sessions invents some great accents for every one of these minor parts, by the way.)

The continuing story of Adrian Mole has been a wonderful creative achievement, and I'm delighted to hear that, despite her blindness, Townsend is writing another episode in his unillustrious career. 'Number Ten' is by no means a total failure, but there is considerable scope for improvement in the plotting.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Balanced satire, April 10, 2004

By 

Neal N Klein (Delray Beach, FL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Number 10 (Hardcover)

One thing that is engaging about "Number 10" is that it is not a shallow political satire that many Americans are accustomed to reading. (After all, this is British politics, and to expect the average American to understand half the jokes in a typical non-American satire is asking a lot.) With a minimum of acquaintance with the British government, one can get a very healthy dose of ripping humour from Sue Townsend's book. If you know a little more than the average, you can get some of the subtle jokes. My favorite is where actor Brian Blessed is quoted as saying that someone was loud.

That is a tame example of the humor in "Number Ten". The book is for adults and requires both an appreciation for British humour and an objective observation of political views and all their shortcomings. The story is not entirely funny or satirical. It has legs of its own, so it's interesting regardless of the political content, and it is worth your time to read.