Margaret Thatcher transformed the British political landscape and left a legacy that still divides the nation today. While supporters praise her for saving the economy, critics remember her for the harsh closure of the coal mines. However, few people know that she started her career in a chemistry lab rather than a law firm. Furthermore, she survived a high-profile assassination attempt that destroyed her hotel room. Prepare to open the handbag of the most powerful woman in 1980s Britain.
Margaret Thatcher
She worked as a food scientist before entering politics. Thatcher studied chemistry at Oxford and later worked for J. Lyons and Co. taking part in developing emulsifiers for ice cream. Consequently, a popular myth claims she invented soft serve, though she was actually just part of the team that refined the recipe.
A Soviet newspaper gave her the nickname “Iron Lady.” Captain Yuri Gavrilov wrote an article in the Red Star newspaper calling her the “Iron Lady” because of her strong opposition to communism. Surprisingly, she loved the title and immediately adopted it as a badge of honor.
She reportedly slept only four hours a night. Thatcher famously worked late into the night and woke up early to listen to the farming news. Her ability to function on little sleep intimidated her staff, who often struggled to keep up with her grueling schedule.
Professional coaches trained her to lower her voice. Early in her career, advisers felt her natural speaking voice was too shrill and lacked authority. Therefore, she took lessons to lower her pitch and speak more slowly, which resulted in the calm, deep tone she used as Prime Minister.
The IRA bombed her hotel in Brighton. In 1984, a terrorist bomb tore through the Grand Hotel where she was staying for the Conservative Party conference. She narrowly escaped injury and famously insisted that the conference open on time the next morning to show she would not yield to terrorism.
The dictionary officially includes the verb “to handbag.” The Oxford English Dictionary defines “handbagging” as an action by a woman to verbally attack or crush a person or idea ruthlessly. This term originated from the way she treated her ministers during cabinet meetings.
She was the first British Prime Minister with a science degree. Unlike most politicians who studied history or classics, she held a Bachelor of Science in chemistry. She often stated that she was prouder of being the first scientist in the role than being the first woman.
Critics nicknamed her “Margaret Thatcher, Milk Snatcher.” As Education Secretary in 1971, she ended free school milk for children over the age of seven to cut government spending. This decision haunted her for decades and cemented her reputation as a hard-hearted politician.
She refused to hire a private chef for Downing Street. Despite her intense workload, she often cooked breakfast and dinner for her husband, Denis, herself. She believed in traditional wifely duties and supposedly cooked meals for her cabinet ministers on occasion.
Her husband played a crucial role in her success. Denis Thatcher supported her financially so she could study for the bar and enter parliament. She frequently referred to him as her “rock” and admitted she could not have handled the pressure of the job without him.
She sued the New Statesman before she became Prime Minister. In a rare move for a politician, she took legal action against the magazine for suggesting she hoarded food. The publication apologized, and this victory showed her willingness to fight the press.
The Falklands War saved her political career. Her popularity was extremely low before Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands in 1982. Her decisive military response and subsequent victory caused her approval ratings to soar, ensuring her landslide re-election.
She fainted during a visit to Chile. While visiting General Pinochet in 1994, the heat and stress caused her to collapse briefly. This incident marked one of the first public signs of her declining health in her later years.
The “Poll Tax” eventually led to her downfall. Her introduction of the Community Charge, which taxed every adult the same amount regardless of income, caused massive riots in London. This unpopular policy led her own party to turn against her and force her resignation in 1990.
Finally, she suffered from dementia in her final years. The film The Iron Lady depicted her struggle with memory loss, which her daughter Carol confirmed in a memoir. She often forgot that her husband Denis had died and would ask where he was.
