The Prime Ministers the book that features Avner as the narrator, and Hollywood actors as the voices of Israel's prime ministers. Yehuda Avner had served as Israel's ambassador to Great Britain, Ireland and Australia. He has also been speechwriter and secretory to Levi Eshkol and Golda Meir before becoming adviser to Yitzhak Rabin, Menachem Begin and Shimon Peres. He had also worked with Rabin when he was serving as an ambassador to the United States. Impressed by Avner's writing skills, Begin called him "[his] Shakespeare." During his service he made notes and recorded several important events and conversations. Avner wrote that the book
Prime Minister of Israel in power until 1992. Rabin became prime minister for the second time when he led Labour to victory in the 1992 elections. After his assassination on 4 November 1995, Peres took over as prime minister. During the thirteenth Knesset (1992–1996) it was decided to hold a separate ballot for prime minister modeled after American presidential elections. This system was instituted in part because the Israeli electoral system makes it all but impossible for one party to win a majority. While only two parties—Mapai/Labour and Likud—had ever led governments, the large number of parties or factions in a typical Knesset usually