Exceeding my brief: memoirs of a disobedient civil servant

From an idyllic childhood growing up in Cornwall, to working as press officer for two Prime Ministers, Barbara Hosking went from rural obscurity straight to the forefront of British government, and found herself at the centre of power during a testing time in both domestic and world politics.

She subsequently went on to become part of the rise and development of breakfast television. 'Exceeding My Brief' is also the very personal story of her struggle with her sexuality as a bewildered teenager and as a young woman in the 1950s, a time when being gay could mean social ostracism.