Could Michael Portillo have become PM if mobile phone usage had spread a little earlier?
Conrad Black, in his memoirs, records when John Major brought a leadership challenge on himself.
“Cellphones were not yet popular in Britain so I went to my car, which was equipped with a phone, and called Rupert Murdoch to ask whether he would join in a solid front for Michael Portillo, a possible leadership candidate — a rather exotic, unlikely member of the Tory caucus due to his Spanish ancestry and interest in opera,” says Black.
“He said he would, so I called Portillo, who said he had only just announced he would not run but explained that he had rented space and ordered the installation of a large number of phones because he thought someone else would stand and force Major out, and he could take advantage without the opprobrium.
"Trying to be a loyalist while really being an opportunist is risky.”
How might history have changed had Black been able to make the call earlier by not having to go to his car ...
