Reviews of Andrew Roberts's 2003 BBC2 TV series 'Secrets of Leadership'

'This fine series ... Roberts argues with intelligence and panache.'

Sunday Telegraph

'Andrew Roberts concludes his smart, highly focused series about leadership techniques with John F. Kennedy.'

Independent on Sunday

‘This engrossing documentary proves it wasn’t what he did, but how he did it, that made JFK such a political phenomenon.’

Sophie Heath, Daily Mail

‘This intelligent film …’

David Chater, The Times

‘Andrew Roberts’s excellent series on the art of political leadership marks the 40th anniversary of JFK’s assassination. A fascinating programme.’

Gerard O’Donovan

‘The historian Andrew Roberts presents this elegantly argued new series about the nature of leadership. He provides a lucid analysis of four major 20th century figures and their qualities and deficiencies as leaders. But as well as demonstrating an acute grasp of the historical detail, our perceptive guide draws a number of provocative – and at times alarming – parallels with contemporary figures in politics and business. Roberts’s imaginative historical arguments are both perceptive and persuasive.’

Sunday Telegraph

‘Roberts’s strength as a small-screen historian lies not so much in his mastery of the details as the sardonic way in which they are marshalled – agree or disagree, it makes wonderful television.’

Daily Telegraph

‘Judging by tonight’s programme on Hitler, Andrew Roberts’s four-part series unlocking the secrets of leadership is going to be unmissable. Simply and clearly, Roberts outlines Hitler’s style of leadership in both its strengths and weaknesses.’

The Times

‘Roberts draws intriguing parallels between Hitler’s leadership techniques and those of Richard Branson, Robert Maxwell and Ronald Reagan.’

Mail on Sunday

‘Necessarily contentious’

Daily Mail

‘In this weighty series, Andrew Roberts scrutinises the varying leadership styles of 20th-century figures Winston Churchill, John F Kennedy, Adolf Hitler and Martin Luther King.’

The Independent

‘Excellent.’

The Observer

‘Andrew Roberts’s masterful series.’

The Times

‘This compelling series.’

Sunday Telegraph

‘A clear and concise explanation of how John F Kennedy begat Tony Blair.’

Evening Standard

‘Roberts’s analysis of Martin Luther King’s motives is lively and persuasive.’

Sunday Telegraph

‘He is a clever chap, this Andrew Roberts who presents this first programme in a new series. The idea that someone might have something new to say on the subject of Hitler is staggering.’

The Times