We shall study the lives and work of the following people: Tom Paine, William Cobbett, Robert Owen, William Morris, Annie Besant, Ernie Berin, Sylvia Pankhurst, Keir Hardie, Ramsay Macdonald, attempting to see if there is any common thread linking their origins and their success – most came from very disadvantaged backgrounds. We shall try to evaluate their contributions to their times and our own.