News: National Unity Government Formed

26th November 1988: BBC News announced the suspension of Parliament and the creation of a Government of National Unity under Prime Minister Cranwell as Britain slid into civil war with elements of the Armed Forces attempting to seize control of centres of industry and other important resources from the Government. Cranwell appeals to the British public to remain calm and "report any incidents of insurrection or disloyalty to the Police of Security Services".

News: Guards Division Rebels

25th November 1988: the crisis in Britain deepened and Civil War loomed as elements of the Guards Division and Household Cavalry Regiments resisted attempts by the Security Service to arrest senior officers in the units as small arms fire rocked London. The rebels subsequently decamped from the capital moving northwards up the M1 towards Leeds with the aim of securing the Royal Ordnance Factory there.

News: Government Suspends Habeas Corpus

24th November 1988: BBC News announced that Habeas Corpus, allowing the Judiciary to order the detention of individuals without trial. The Home Office claimed that this extraordinary measure was "temporary and undertaken to ease the huge strains put on the legal system in the country arising out of the anti-establishmentarian factions bent on destroying the rule of law and democratic traditions of Great Britain".

News: Cranwell Announces Republic

21st November 1988: Prime Minister Cranwell announced to the nation on ITN News the intention of the Government to set up a Republic following the abdication of the Queen. He explained that the Government had found evidence of that "clearly implicated the Royal Family and members of the old Establishment in attempts to overthrow the elected Government of the country by illegal means". He added that following the abdication and the fact that the Prince of Wales actions in fleeing to the United States "clearly demonstrated his guilt" that it was impractical to have another Royal on the throne and that "a modern republic in a modern Europe was clearly the only sensible option open to the Government".

News: Queen Abdicates

20th November 1988: The Queen abdicated following a series of meetings with Government officials including Prime Minister Cranwell rising out of the BBC siege and General's Mutiny. The involvement of the Royal Family in the opposition to the Cranwell government led to making the Queen's position untenable in the United Kingdom. Following the abdication she flies immediately to Washington D.C. where she met outgoing President Reagan.

News: BBC Television Centre Stormed

18th November 1988: Loyal troops stormed the BBC Television Centre and regained control of BCC broadcast facilities after the rebels were alleged to have threatened to destroy the building and the hostages within. Over 50 people were killed in bloody room to room fighting including a number of BBC staff and journalists.

News: Army Hijacks BBC News Broadcast

17th November 1988: British troops storm the BBC Television Centre taking over news output and broadcasting a message from the Chief of General Staff calling on the British public to oust the Cranwell Government which is "denying individual liberty, attacking the Royal Family and putting the nation's security at risk". The Security Service attempted to jam the broadcast part way through distorting the picture and sound before eventually blocking the signal.

News: Chief of Defence Staff Flees UK

17th November 1988: BBC News reported to the nation that the Ministry of Defence confirmed that the Chief of Defence Staff and Chief of General Staff had been charged with being absent without leave and that the Military Police leading the investigation into their disappearance.

News: Prince of Wales Arrives in USA

15th November 1988: the Prince of Wales arrived in Washington D.C. following his escape from incarceration and met President Reagan and President-elect Bush in the White House. The British government is outraged that the leader of the U.S. would publicly meet a fugitive wanted for trial on allegations of attempting to overthrow a democratically elected government.

News: Police Raids Against Enemies of the State

14th November 1988: BBC Breakfast News reports on a series of dawn raids carried out by the Security Service and Police arresting dissidents and "suspected enemies of the state" on the orders of the Home Office. The Government had become increasing concerned at the actions of certain right wing politicians and leading establishment figures including judges and senior members of the armed forces and took this pre-emptive action to prevent a coup d'etat.

News: MoD Announce RMP "Attachments"

13th November 1988: Whilst the "General's Mutiny" of 5th November was not universal, the Ministry of Defence acted swiftly to prevent a repeat by announcing that Military Policy officers, operating under the prefix Inspector before their standard rank, would be attached to Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Navy command units. In an interview with BBC News the Provost Marshal Brigadier stated that, "whilst such a move was unprecedented, it was important for the nation, for the public, to see that the Armed Forces were not above the rule of law or the country's civilian masters".

News: US/Soviet Non-Aggression Pact Signed

12th November 1988: Soviet President Gorbachev flies to the White House to sign a Non-Aggression Pact with the United States. In the surprise move, the Soviets agree to withdraw all their forces from Afghanistan by the end of February 1989 and the Americans to respect British neutrality and evacuate their UK bases by the end of 1988. Both leaders hailed this pact as the first step in improving relations between the two countries and "improving peace and stability across the globe".

News: Rogue SAS Break Prince Out

9th November 1988: Rogue SAS troopers launched a daring assault on Clarence House rescuing the Prince of Wales where he had been under house arrest awaiting trial on charges of treason. Six Security Service personnel were killed in the attack and the Prince was quickly evacuated to a British Army base in Germany where he was met by sympathisers in the British Army on the Rhine, before being flown to the United States.

News: USSR Warns US Over British Crisis

8th November 1988: ITN reports increased dialogue between President Gorbachev and President Reagan over the "British Crisis". The Soviet President issued a series of vaguely veiled threats to the US on how the Soviet Union would react to any overt military action on British soil and demanded that the US respect British neutrality and evacuate its remaining bases in the UK.

News: Cranwell Warns Against Enemies of the State

8th November 1988: Prime Minister James Cranwell warned the British people against "enemies of the state, both within and without" in a television address on both BBC and ITN. The speech, in response to the increasing pressure from the United States over its UK bases, the "Generals' Mutiny" and alleged planned coup, set forth the Prime Minister's defiant line against the increasing pressure on his government and his promise that "undemocratic imperialist forces will not overturn the will of the British people".

News: Prince of Wales Arrested

7th November 1988: BBC Newsnight breaks the news that the Prince of Wales has been arrested on suspicion of treason. Police sources report that it is alleged that the Prince had been colluding with high ranking military figures to refuse the orders of the democratically elected government and to organise a coup to replace the Prime Minister. The Home Office confirmed that further arrests were "inevitable".

News: Army Generals Refuse Government Orders

5th November 1988: a number of British Army generals refused Government orders for troops to enter US bases and take American service personnel into custody. Military Police were instructed to arrest any soldier refusing to obey orders and a number of high ranking officers were imprisoned. Units that had been instructed to return to base by these officers were later returned to their positions outside the US bases under new command.

News: US Air Force Begins Supply Missions

3rd November 1988: The US Air Force began missions to supply its bases in the United Kingdom. C-141 Starlifters from bases in Iceland and the United States flew a series of airlifts to a number of the isolated bases. Cranwell warned the US to "respect British airspace or face the consequences". France and the Soviet Union tabled an emergency motion at the UN Security Council but this is veto'd by the US.

News: Government Orders Blockade of US Bases

1st November 1988: Following the refusal of the US to remove its troops from mainland Britain by midnight on 31st October, the UK Government ordered the army to surround US bases and cut off contact from the outside world. President Mitterrand of France called upon President Reagan to respect "Britain's sovereignty and right of national self-determination".

News: US Refuses To Withdraw Troops From UK

25th October 1988: President Reagan refused to Prime Minister Cranwell's demand that all US forces are withdrawn from the United Kingdom by the end of October. Reagan stated that such a move would "endanger the security of the United States" adding the "Americans don't bow to threats from jumped up little Commies".

News: Britain Withdraws From NATO

10th October 1988: ITN News breaks the news that Britain is to leave NATO and become a neutral country. President Mitterrand of France and Soviet General Secretary Gorbachev both praised Prime Minister Cranwell's bold move to further world peace.

News: James Cranwell Wins Leadership Battle

2nd October 1988: Far Left Labour MP James Cranwell was the shock winner of the 1988 Labour leadership battle, ousting Prime Minister Neil Kinnock in the second round of voting. An ex-member of Militant Tendency, Cranwell was regarded as a black horse in the contest entering as a third candidate at the eleventh hour. Following the defeat of Tony Benn in the first round of voting, Cranwell was able to obtain enough support to overturn Kinnock's first round lead and claim victory. Following the leadership victory Cranwell was appointed Prime Minister.

News: BBC Reports Labour Leadership Challenge

3rd August 1988: BBC News reports from Westminster that a leadership challenge is to be launched by far left members of the Labour Party . This follows Prime Minister Neil Kinnock's statement on amending the constitution of the party and the potential removal of Clause IV with its commitment to the nationalisation of industries and the expulsion of Militant Tendency members from the party. Sources from within the party claim left-winger Tony Benn will challenge Neil Kinnock in a leadership election.

News: Kinnock Wins 1987 Election

12th June 1987: The United Kingdom wakes up to a new socialist government as the Labour Party trounce the Conservatives in the General Election with an over 200 seat swing shocking pundits and defying predictions.