Several situations in the novel are drawn from Archer's own early political career in the British House of Commons, and the fictional characters interact with actual political figures from the UK and elsewhere including Winston Churchill, Alec Douglas-Home, Harold Wilson, Edward Heath, Margaret Thatcher, Douglas Hurd, Muammar al-Gaddafi, Gary Hart and Queen Elizabeth II.
As a result, several plot elements revolving around Fraser were transferred to other characters, notably Simon Kerslake, who suffered through a change of heart toward a prospective marriage partner and the later loss of a child.
In an interview, Archer joked that he found his American friends were generally more supportive of Kerslake, while his British readers backed Gould.
The son of Stephen Gould, a butcher, Raymond from a young age had wanted to pursue a political career rather than enter the family business.
Due to the fact that Raymond and Joyce spent much of their time apart in London and Leeds respectively, Gould engaged in a number of extramarital affairs, and had solicited a prostitute early in his ministerial career (which resulted in attempted blackmailed against him).
Following the election of a hung parliament in 1991, Fraser agreed to support a Labour-led government headed by Raymond Gould on condition that two Cabinet positions be granted to SDP MPs, and that a referendum be held on proportional representation.
As he is the younger of twins (by a mere nine minutes), he does not inherit his father's peerage, shares in a merchant bank, a castle in Scotland or the 20,000-acre (80 km2) family estate.
He lost the second ballot largely thanks to the defeated Alec Pimkin deciding to vote for Kerslake (he later confessed that he wanted to go to his grave knowing he done at least one decent thing).
Seymour was also damaged by the donation of a famous and expensive family portrait of the First Earl of Bridgewater to the British Museum.
Believing that Seymour had donated the portrait himself, many Conservative MPs regarded the act has opportunistic, swaying opinion towards Kerslake.
His fate was sealed when his embittered ex-wife sold his story to the tabloid News of the World revealing all his underhand tactics.
Kerslake was not bitter, however, and made Charles (who at this point was aging rapidly) numerous offers to return to the front bench.
Charles had a poor relationship with his mother, he detested his brother the Earl, and his two marriages both ended in divorce; his first wife, Fiona, had engaged in an extramarital affair with the chairman of the local Conservative association of Charles' constituency, whilst his second wife, Amanda, secretly sold off several Bridgewater family heirlooms for personal profit.
Simon Kerslake is a British Conservative Party politician, representing the Coventry Central and later Pucklebridge constituencies, who served under Prime Ministers Edward Heath and Margaret Thatcher.
Simon's biggest rival is Charles Gurney Seymour, an aristocratic Conservative MP who does everything he can to stymie and sidetrack him.
Simon narrowly survives each attempt to bring him down, and ultimately defeats him in a closely fought contest to be elected Leader of the Conservative Party.