An unauthorized biography of Aneurin Bevan, this work depicts him as a man of deep humanity and generous anger, and as the most compelling orator of his generation, who preached and fought for true socialism. The author argues that Bevan's life highlights the rise and fall of the idea of democratic socialism in Britain. He traces the development of Bevan's ideas from his early experiences as a militant young miner in South Wales, up to his election to Parliament as MP for Ebbow Vale in 1939 and onwards to his appointment by Attlee as Minister of Health, thereby being instrumental in the creation of the National Health Service.