Necessary Women: The Untold Story of Parliament’s Working Women

By: Mari Takayanagi and Elizabeth Hallam Smith

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Synopsis: Drawing on unique research based on the Parliamentary archives, government records and family history sources, Mari Takayanagi and Elizabeth Hallam Smith show how women touched just about every aspect of the life of Parliament, largely unacknowledged - until now. Along the way, we meet an array of impressive and life-affirming women: from the Rickman sisters eavesdropping on Parliamentary debates from the roof space above the Commons in the 1820s; to Jane, the doyenne of Bellamy's, purveyors of tea, chops, steaks, pies and wine to MPs in the 1840s; and to Jean Winder, the first female Hansard reporter, who fought for years after being appointed in 1944 to be paid the same as her male counterparts. As historians and Parliamentary insiders themselves, Takayanagi and Hallam Smith bring these unsung heroes to life, charting along the way the changing context for working women within and beyond the Palace of Westminster.