We all have our heroes; and the wonderful, human thing about heroes is that, like us, they are always flawed. We know what happened to Achilles, one of greatest mythical warriors, he embodied courage, loyalty, and an unrelenting drive for glory, yet he was ultimately undone by pride and rage.
Today, we live in an age of relentless scrutiny. Our leaders, celebrities, and role models are under constant spotlight. Show any, or perceived, flaws and you risk cancellation, unless, somehow, you can turn those flaws into a Trump-like virtue.
I think of Winston Churchill. A titan of the 20th century; he escaped a Boer POW camp, led Britain through its darkest hour, inspiring a nation to stand alone against Nazi tyranny. But Churchill was also deeply flawed — some say erratic, alcoholic, culpable in the failure of Gallipoli, and a man whose world view on race and empire feels jarringly out of step today. In 1945 he lost the election; in 2025 many would cancel him!
A childhood hero of mine, Norman Tebbit, recently passed away. With him, we lost the fierce clarity and energy of a generation of purpose-driven politicians. As a young Tory Boy, I admired his message: “You should be master of your own fate.” He railed against the increasing power of the state and the unions, an experience made personal when he had to use his savings to pay for his wife’s care during a health union strike.
Lord Tebbit’s public image was that of the uncompromising enforcer — Michael Foot famously described him as a “semi-trained polecat”, and Spitting Image nailed the look with their leather-clad puppet. Yet his devotion to his wife, tragically paralysed in the Brighton bombing, led him to step away from frontline politics to care for her full-time. As an adult, I disagreed with much of what he stood for, but he remains a hero to me for standing up for what he believed and helping to effect unpopular but transformational change.
So how do we in business, politics, government, and unions retain the zeal, courage, and conviction of past heroes in an age where perfection is expected, and creativity must be carefully measured?
People want to be led, teams want to believe in a shared purpose and voters want leaders who will tackle real issues and not just avoid scandal. Of course, we shouldn’t canoodle with the Head of HR (especially not when caught on kiss-cam), but we do need authentic leaders: People whose values we share, who can admit that focusing on growth might mean lower taxes or looser regulation, or who are honest, so when they say they are pro-business they don’t immediately undermine already fragile, labour intensive industries such as hospitality.
Only this week, our local, the Dog and Pheasant (est. 1597) closed its doors. The mood music in the UK is growing more downbeat after the optimism many felt post-election in July 2024 dissipates. We need leaders willing to take courageous, and sometimes risky, decisions. Continuing on our current path feels like slow decline. And unless someone steps up with real conviction, we risk getting more Farage or Trump-like figures, rather than principled risk-takers with the courage to lead.
Lord Tebbit himself said of today’s political class that they’ve “become a bunch of arse-crawling social workers.” It’s a sharp line, but it lands because it feels partly true.
Who can believe we are at the summer holidays? Which makes now the right time to share our H1 2025 sector reviews (Software, Business Services, Sustainability, Manufacturing and Health & Education). Also please do enjoy Annabel’s great blog on brand and staying relevant via an adaptive relationship with your younger audience. We at Polestar wish you a relaxing and restorative summer, Let’s hope we can all come back in September full of vim! In the meantime, my summer reading is Jeremy Hunt’s “Can We Be Great Again?” – a timely birthday gift from a dear friend.
