I read the newspapers avidly. It is my one form of continuous fiction.

Meaning of the quote

The quote suggests that Aneurin Bevan, a Welsh politician, enjoys reading newspapers as if they were a made-up story. He sees the news as a constant source of fiction, meaning the information in newspapers is not always completely true or accurate. Bevan likely found the news entertaining and engaging, like reading a novel, even though it was supposed to be a factual account of events.

About Aneurin Bevan

Aneurin ‘Nye’ Bevan was a prominent Welsh Labour politician who played a key role in establishing the British National Health Service. Born to a working-class family, he rose through the ranks of the miners’ union before becoming an influential Member of Parliament and a leading figure in the Labour Party’s left-wing ‘Bevanite’ faction.

More about the author

More quotes from Aneurin Bevan

This is my truth, tell me yours.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

He seems determined to make a trumpet sound like a tin whistle.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

I would rather be kept alive in the efficient if cold altruism of a large hospital than expire in a gush of warm sympathy in a small one.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

No amount of cajolery, and no attempts at ethical or social seduction, can eradicate from my heart a deep burning hatred for the Tory Party. So far as I am concerned they are lower than vermin.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

I read the newspapers avidly. It is my one form of continuous fiction.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

It is not possible to create peace in the Middle East by jeopardizing the peace of the world.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

I have never regarded politics as the arena of morals. It is the arena of interest.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

We know what happens to people who stay in the middle of the road. They get run down.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

I know that the right kind of political leader for the Labour Party is a desiccated calculating machine.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

The Tories, every election, must have a bogy man. If you haven’t got a programme, a bogy man will do.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

Fascism is not in itself a new order of society. It is the future refusing to be born.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

Poor fellow, he suffers from files.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

Reading is not a duty, and has consequently no business to be made disagreeable.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

It is an axiom, enforced by all the experience of the ages, that they who rule industrially will rule politically.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

This island is made mainly of coal and surrounded by fish. Only an organizing genius could produce a shortage of coal and fish at the same time.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

The Prime Minister has an absolute genius for putting flamboyant labels on empty luggage.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

The purpose of getting power is to be able to give it away.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

Stand not too near the rich man lest he destroy thee – and not too far away lest he forget thee.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

Politics is a blood sport.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

Freedom is the by-product of economic surplus.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

No attempt at ethical or social seduction can eradicate from my heart a deep burning hatred for the Tory Party. So far as I am concerned they are lower than vermin.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)

Reactionary: a man walking backwards with his face to the future.

Aneurin Bevan

Welsh politician (1897-1960)