After the 2010 general election failed to produce a majority government Westminster went into a frenzy.

As one of Labour's key negotiators, Andrew Adonis had a front-row seat for the five days of high-stakes political poker that were being played out in a series of secret meetings between the major parties.

His book 5 Days in May has been likened to a political thriller, and here Adonis gives Tom Clark a full-length interview.

Why did it take Gordon Brown so long to resign?

What preparations had been made for coalition talks prior to the election?

Why did the Liberal Democrats never fully engage with Labour's coalition offer?

And what preparations are being made now for a future coalition between the two parties?

Adonis describes his part in the negotiations and what was happening behind the scenes in one of the most dramatic week's in modern British politics.

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