When the police clapped him in handcuffs, Graham Smith was preparing to perform that most fearful of treasons: shuffle around Trafalgar Square waving a placard bearing the words ‘Not my king’. The book also sets out a clear blueprint, not just of what kind of republic we should aspire to be – something that is often lacking in other republican texts – but also of the road to that republic. However, I did feel that the book started to lose it’s way when it was talking about the House of Lords, seemingly ignoring concerns that a fully elected chamber runs the risk of having some of the same issues and the Commons. Apart from tearing apart the concept of hereditary, unelected heads of state and aristocracy, Smith also shows us a wholly democratic Britain with concrete, productive proposals for what we could have if only we went for it!

I mean, I was always going to enjoy a lengthy diatribe on why the UK should get rid of its outdated and expensive monarchy. A crucial, riveting polemic in support of one of the most precious things humanity has built - democracy itself. Most worrying is the way in which we have created a ruling elite that can bypass the elected Parliament. If you were hoping that the fall of the Windsors would at least mean no more tampon metaphors, think again. Despite the scandal, the outrage and falling support, MPs and the wider establishment have turned a blind eye to this issue, just as they try to avoid other questions of wider constitutional reform.He brings to his subject a wealth of knowledge, but also a wealth of experience in making effective arguments, challenging monarchists and winning people over to the cause. Apparently he is guardian of our constitution - but we're also told he wouldn't dream of interfering in politics. The figures have come down over recent years so that even royalists admit it is close to half the country wanting to be rid of the institution. I am in favour of a republic, but I am not entirely convinced by his arguments for keeping the Westminster system of democracy.

Of the approximately 1,200 charities with a royal patron, 74% had no contact with their patron during the preceding year. It will be achieved, says Smith, by forcing the public to come to its senses about the chasm between its own values and those of the crown, perhaps by giving everyone a copy of this book. How we get there and where we end up are crucial issues that must be addressed if we’re to get people away from the dead-end debates about tourism, celebrity and warring royal houses.I was already fairly convinced, but Smith sheds alarming light, through recent political events, on quite how much unchecked power de facto trickles down to the government de jour, as well as how little the monarch actually does to keep it in check. Meanwhile the uglier institutional undercurrent is often, conveniently for the British Monarchy, left out of most conversations. In every case it was obvious the reviewer had never read the book at all and had just decided that Smith must have ignored all these classic arguments (because they're so strong, right?