Angela Rayner is writing a memoir about her rise to become deputy prime minister and her subsequent fall from grace, the Guardian can confirm. The book, which will detail her life from an impoverished childhood and teenage pregnancy through the union movement and Labour party to the second highest office in the land, is to be published in the second half of 2026.
Rayner has kept a relatively low profile since quitting as deputy prime minister in September after failing to pay stamp duty on a flat. She has only intervened publicly on policy issues close to her heart, such as workers' rights, on which she warned the government not to “blink or buckle” on the bill.
Often considered a potential successor to Keir Starmer, she declined to rule out running for the leadership or returning to frontline politics in her first public comments after stepping down, saying she had “not gone away”. Speculation about her ambitions has continued. Earlier this month, Starmer said she was “hugely talented” and he would bring her back to the cabinet.
After a bidding war between several different publishers, the memoir will be released by The Bodley Head, an imprint of Vintage, a division of Penguin Random House UK. Rayner is yet to settle on a title, with a few options said to be under consideration. Unlike several other notable politicians, she will use a ghostwriter to capture her plain-speaking style on the page, and will read the audiobook version herself.
Sources said Rayner wanted the book to inspire and encourage others to overcome adversity. Alice Skinner, the editorial director at The Bodley Head, said: “We are so delighted and proud to be publishing Angela Rayner. Her book will be unvarnished and upfront – you can expect her authenticity to shine through – and an empowering vision for a fairer, kinder society that will enable everyone to flourish.”
