Stephen Glover discusses Suez Crisis novel Levin's War on GB News
Stephen Glover discussed his novel Levin's War and the legacy of the 1956 Suez Crisis in a GB News interview.
How it was covered
- GB News was the only channel found covering it, concentrating on the novel's Suez and Second World War backdrop and Britain's post-imperial decline.
- Channel 5, BBC News, BBC One, BBC Two, Channel 4, ITV and Sky News: not found in tracked broadcasts.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story. Facts only one channel reported are attributed to it.
GB News broadcast an interview with the columnist and novelist Stephen Glover about his book Levin's War, a novel set against the Second World War and the Suez Crisis. The programme described the book as a story of friendship, politics, love and betrayal, following two men once united by war who end up on opposite sides of history.
During the GB News interview, Glover said the Suez invasion and the Hungarian Revolution, both about 70 years ago, have been largely forgotten. He argued that Suez put Britain on a different track and accelerated a sense of decline and defeatism in British politics, which he said lasted until the Falklands War.
GB News said the novel moves back and forth in time. Its central characters are Robert, a privileged English officer described as a bounder who wants to be good, and Levin, a communist Jewish homosexual who falls in love with him. The two meet at Al-Alamein, where they save each other's lives during the Second World War, before losing touch after the war. According to the GB News interview, Robert commits what is essentially a war crime, which Levin conceals.
In the GB News interview, Glover also discussed the role of the Daily Worker. He said a storyline in which the newspaper killed a story that might have frustrated the Suez invasion was imaginary in its exactitude, but that Suez suited the Soviet Union by taking attention away from Hungary.
GB News said Levin's War is available from all good bookshops. The interviewer recommended it, saying he had read it in pretty much one sitting, and GB News said the full interview would be available on its digital platforms from the following day.
Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |
|---|---|
| Only on one channel | |
| GB News described 'Levin's War' as a story involving friendship, politics, love and betrayal. | |
| Glover argued that Suez accelerated the view that Britain had declined as a great power. | |
| Glover stated that the Suez invasion and the Hungarian Revolution are largely forgotten. | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
GB News gave the story a single, extended interview slot focused on the literary and historical themes of Levin's War. It framed Glover's novel around the Suez Crisis and the Hungarian Revolution, and allowed him to argue that Suez accelerated Britain's sense of decline until the Falklands War. The segment ended with a book recommendation and details of where to watch the full interview.
- “Suez really put Britain, I think, on a different track”
- “both events have been largely forgotten”
- “Levin's War is available from all good bookshops and I'd strongly recommend it.”
Who was on air
People and organisations each channel put on air while covering this story. Channels' own presenters and reporters are not listed. Names as transcribed, and the list can miss people.
- 20:47 GMT
Stephen Glover, Daily Mail columnist
Jacob Rees-Mogg's State Of The · Mon 9 Nov
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.