UNPLANNED - The Snakes and Ladders of a Life in the City of Westminster

Memories of Robert Davis’s fascinating life as a member of the leadership team at Westminster Council for nearly twenty years and a councillor for over thirty-six years.  From dining at Buckingham Palace with Nelson Mandela to an A-list private dinner with Boris Johnson and the Mayor of New York, from an appearance in an Oscar-winning film to a private drink with Robert De Niro in New York, Robert Davis has led an amazing, eclectic, and exciting life.  Robert became not only the longest-serving councillor in the city’s history but the youngest Lord Mayor of Westminster and the longest-serving Deputy Leader. He also accumulated nearly two decades leading the planning team of the most significant planning department in the country.  With behind-the-scenes anecdotes of numerous leadership and other battles at the most important local authority in the country, this book also includes numerous amusing stories of incidents that have, until now, remained untold.  His year as Lord Mayor of Westminster is told with fascinating insights into life in the Establishment. Added to this are the stories of how he met his husband, Sir Simon Milton, and how they were outed by a full front page of the Evening Standard. The book also deals with Simon’s battle with leukaemia and his rise to become the senior Deputy Mayor of London in Boris Johnson’s mayoralty and describes anecdotes of Simon’s close relationship with Boris Johnson.  Amusing, interesting, revealing and absorbing, this book gives a colourful insight into the way central London is governed as well as Robert’s life in the fast lane.