The Fall of Thatcher - Ken v Maggie
Big Ben History
by Ben Monro-Davies, Big Ben History
2y ago
Ken Clarke was Margaret Thatcher’s Health Secretary. They had regular shouting matches over the future of the NHS - and at the end he told her to her face that she had to go ..read more
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The Fall of Thatcher - the other woman in the room
Big Ben History
by Ben Monro-Davies, Big Ben History
2y ago
There were only two women in the cabinet room when Margaret Thatcher resigned in November 1990. The Iron Lady herself - and her Private Secretary Caroline Slocock. She provides a unique perspective on her dramatic fall ..read more
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The Fall of Thatcher - the Poll Tax and Patten
Big Ben History
by Ben Monro-Davies, Ben Monro-Davies and Chris Patten
2y ago
Chris Patten was appointed Environment Secretary with a brief to make the Conservative party look Green as well as blue. But also in the in-tray was a reform to taxation - known as the poll Tax. It was he says perhaps the most disastrous domestic policy ever - and the key to Thatcher’s fall from power ..read more
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The Fall of Thatcher - A Scottish perspective
Big Ben History
by Ben Monro-Davies, Ben Monro-Davies and Malcolm Rifkind
2y ago
Sir Malcolm Rifkind was Margaret Thatcher’s final Scottish Secretary - and in her words - her sharpest critic in the cabinet. He explains how he she failed to understand his homeland - and the tensions that caused between them ..read more
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The Fall of Thatcher - it ends in tears
Big Ben History
by Ben Monro-Davies
2y ago
Peter Lilley was and is an ardent Thatcherite. And out of loyalty to her - he felt duty bound to tell her frankly that her time was up after she failed to avoid a second ballot in the Conservative leadership battle of November 1990. Here he recalls a painful experience ..read more
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The Fall of Thatcher - Morrison to blame
Big Ben History
by Ben Monro-Davies, Big Ben History
2y ago
Michael Howard was an ardent Thatcherite - and believes Thatcher could have won a fourth general election against Neil Kinnock. But after she’d lot the support of so many MPs in the first leadership ballot in November 1990, even he felt she had to resign. And he pins the blame for exit fully on Peter Morrison the MP who ran her hapless leadership campaign ..read more
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The Fall of Thatcher - "more grandeur, less Grantham"
Big Ben History
by Ben Monro-Davies, Ben Monro-Davies and Andrew Turnbull
2y ago
Andrew Turnbull, like other senior officials and her cabinet ministers, witnessed Margaret Thatcher tearfully read out her resignation statement to her colleagues in November 1990. He was also in the room for a series of one to one meetings beforehand where her colleagues told her the game was up. He recalls the events of her fall - and how the Prime minister had become incredibly preoccupied with foreign affairs - prompting the observation there was “more grandeur, less Grantham” - the town where she was born ..read more
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The Fall of Thatcher - loyal Lamont faces reality
Big Ben History
by Ben Monro-Davies, Ben Monro-Davies & Norman Lamont
2y ago
Normal Lamont considers himself a Thatcherite. He thought his leader was right on Europe - unlike most of his cabinet colleagues. But even ideological affinity and personal loyalty could not trump the numbers in November 1990 - when the results came in he had to tell her it was time to go ..read more
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The Fall of Thatcher - and the last man in
Big Ben History
by Ben Monro-Davies, Ben Monro-Davies and Wiliam Waldegrave
2y ago
Perhaps no-one has experienced as bewildering a month in politics as Wiliam Waldegrave in November 1990. He was running the diplomatic effort to oust Saddam from Kuwait when he was suddenly promoted to the cabinet. Then just weeks later he was advising Mrs Thatcher if she could stay on. She couldn’t and he had a new boss - John Major. All just in just over three weeks. I the last Big Ben History conversation on the Fall of Thatcher, he reflects on the longest month ..read more
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The Fall of Thatcher - she could have held on
Big Ben History
by Ben Monro-Davies, Big Ben History
2y ago
Lord Baker was Chairman of the Conservative Party at the time of Margaret Thatcher’s fall. He’d been given the job with specific aim of keeping in No 10 - and until November 1990 all seemed to be going fine. But Mrs Thatcher lost her temper with Geoffrey Howe in cabinet - he resigned - and gave a devastating speech to parliament calling for her to go. Even then he thinks she could have survived had she been willing to schmooze backbenchers, appoint a decent campaign manager, and face down her cabinet. Had she done so - her chairman thinks she would have gone on to an unprecedented fourth elect ..read more
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