We Shall Fight on the Beaches...

We Shall Not Flag or Fail... We Shall Never Surrender.

“Next time you are in London please let me know.”

As I said goodbye to my guest speaker, a member of Parliament who had just given a stirring talk about “The Business of Defense” to the Stanford Graduate School of Business Politics and Government Club, he kindly threw out a line that many of us might use in a variety of conversations. The invitation seemed genuine, but almost an afterthought.

In that moment, I had a quick reply, “Well, I’m actually going to be in London in a week and a half. I have a business meeting.”

“Wonderful! Do you want to come to Parliament for dinner?”

Now that was a sentence I had never heard before. Nor had I ever expected to hear it in my lifetime.

He didn’t have to ask twice.

“That would be amazing!”

“Good! I’ll have my Chief of Staff coordinate with you.”

Goosebumps

I’ve always enjoyed history — it was my favorite subject in High School. I studied Political Science as an undergraduate at the University of California, Berkeley. Entering the inside of Parliament felt like a moment in my life. As I walked into the building I passed by a statue of Oliver Cromwell.

I remember reading about Cromwell in my Advanced Placement World History class. I recall his role in the establishment of the Commonwealth of England, his being a part of the execution of Charles I, and his title as Lord Protector (now that’s a cool title — I bet it looked great on his business card) from 1653 until he died.

After clearing security I met the MP’s Chief of Staff who walked me towards the House of Commons Chamber. The inside of the building was incredible — stained glass windows, paintings, and stone steps.

“Does it ever get old? Do you walk around in here in awe or does it become commonplace after awhile?”

“The first few times are awe inspiring. But you get used to it.”

I had a hard time imagining that I could ever “get used” to this place.

She walked me through the Central Lobby and then into a small room where they checked my passport. After handing over my umbrella and cell phone, I was escorted down a hallway. The setup was explained to me, “We are going to sit you on the Labor side so that you can see Tom when you look across to the other side of the chamber.”

The House of Commons Chamber

We entered a side doorway and I was seated in a gallery looking down on the House of Commons. My friend Tom looked up and waved at me. I quietly took my position and sat mesmerized by what I saw for the next three hours. The MPs were debating the King’s Speech, an annual event in Parliament. King Charles III had given the 2026 speech at the opening of Parliament on 13 May 2026, the week prior to my visit.

The above is a stock photo from the internet — I wasn’t allowed to have my phone and camera in the chamber. But it looked a bit like this — there were more MPs in their seats than you see here. I was sitting in the upper gallery on the right side of this picture looking down to the MPs.

As the debate unfolded it seemed that I was watching a well-choreographed dance. A member of the Labor Party spoke, followed by a Conservative, or a Green, or a Reform UK politician. Then back to Labor. And then again back to the opposition.

They talked about the challenges of Brexit, about a road that needed to be built in someone’s district, about the issue of energy independence, the status of the current government, if England is currently in a crisis or not — all the while sprinkled in with a dash of insults and heckling from the other side.

It was magic.

When there was cheeky banter and laughter I recalled seeing Margaret Thatcher in her “Last Stand Against Socialism” on the final day she took the Prime Minister’s Questions. I remembered her quick wit and response to a zinger from the opposition about her taking the governor’s seat in the central bank which would manage a new single currency of the EU. “What a good idea! I hadn’t thought of it!” (3:10 mark in the video.) “I’m enjoying this! I’m enjoying this!” (4:05 mark in the video.)

She was right there. Not more than 10 meters away from where I was sitting at that moment.

36 years ago.

My brain also floated back to Churchill’s speech in June, 1940, rallying a nation that was reeling from the Battle of Dunkirk. History states that his speech was not broadcast live on the radio, but it was re-recorded by him in 1949. More recently, the movie Darkest Hour portrayed a stirring rendition of his exhortation to the British people to defend their homeland.

Even though large tracts of Europe and many old and famous States have fallen or may fall into the grip of the Gestapo and all the odious apparatus of Nazi rule, we shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be. We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender. And even if, which I do not for a moment believe, this island or a large part of it were subjugated and starving, then our Empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, would carry on the struggle, until, in God's good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and the liberation of the Old.

Eight-six years ago.

That Was a Thing. This Is a Thing.

The House of Commons Chamber was rebuilt in 1950 following its destruction the year after Churchill’s speech on Dunkirk. A chamber with a history that dates back to the sixteenth century.

The foundation of democracy and rule by the people.

Yeah. I don’t think I could ever “get used to this.”

Thanks, Tom. I am grateful.