Stephen McGinty tells for the first time the full life-story of Cardinal Thomas Winning, arguably the most controversial and pugnacious Archbishop in recent British history. Cardinal Winning never ceased to be an outspoken and unashamed champion of traditional Catholic values, fiercely anti-abortion and anti-homosexuality. Too conservative for the Conservative Party yet too socialist for New Labour, he picked fights with both, while his sympathy for the poor remained constant. Before his death in 2001, Cardinal Winning gave dozens of hours of exclusive interviews to the author, who has also enjoyed the assistance of Winning's family, friends and colleagues.