British Duo Undaunted by Rivalry ; Prime Minister Tony Blair and Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown Push an Ambitious Agenda despite Political Differences

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They have been called the Lennon and McCartney of politics: visionary harbingers of generational change, international A- listers with a global following, formidable partners so intertwined it is hard to think of one without the other.

But British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown may wince at the analogy. After all, John and Paul's harmonies eventually gave way to discord and dissolution. And Britain's foremost political relationship has long since fallen flat.

Every few months a new set of anecdotes swirls around Westminster, detailing the strident antipathy that supposedly divides the prime minister and his right-hand …