Prime Ministerial, from the New Statesman | Margaret Thatcher

01/11/22 • 48 min

3 Listeners

The New Statesman | UK politics and culture

Welcome to Prime Ministerial. In each episode Jonn Elledge and Stephen Bush will look at the legacy of the previous six prime ministers and ask whether they achieved success on their own terms.

This final episode examines Margaret Thatcher’s premiership. The first woman to be prime minister and one of the Conservative Party’s most successful election winners, she was a divisive figure in British politics, and her legacy remains so. Thatcher won three general elections before being deposed by her MPs and replaced by her chancellor John Major, but she leaves a long shadow over the party today.

Stephen and Jonn speak to the historian Florence Sutcliffe-Braithwaite, and Thatcher’s former aide, the MP John Whittingdale.

Produced by Adrian Bradley and May Robson, with thanks to Caroline Crampton and Nick Hilton.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Prime Ministerial. In each episode Jonn Elledge and Stephen Bush will look at the legacy of the previous six prime ministers and ask whether they achieved success on their own terms.

Stephen and Jonn speak to the historian Florence Sutcliffe-Braithwaite, and Thatcher’s former aide, the MP John Whittingdale.

Produced by Adrian Bradley and May Robson, with thanks to Caroline Crampton and Nick Hilton.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Previous Episode

Will Boris Johnson survive 2022?

1 Recommendations

Boris Johnson’s approval rating plummeted at the end of 2021 following a string of Christmas parties at No 10, sleaze scandals and senior resignations – and his troubles continue into 2022.

Anoosh Chakelian and Stephen Bush discuss whether the Prime Minister can survive as energy bills soar, taxes rise in April and pressure mounts on an overwhelmed and underfunded NHS.

Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks what’s behind the Greens’ surge, after they managed to gain more council seats in by-elections this year than any other party, and how successful will they be in the next general election?

If you have a question for You Ask Us, send an email or a voice note to [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Next Episode

Will Boris Johnson’s non-apology save him?

Boris Johnson has been caught red-handed and forced to admit that he attended a party in the Downing Street garden in May 2020, however he claimed that he believed it was a “work event”. Stephen Bush, Anoosh Chakelian and Ailbhe Rea, discuss his chances of survival and the awkward questions this culture of insouciance raises for his potential successors.

Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks if Labour is right to speak positively about Tony Blair and the New Labour government given Blair’s unpopularity.

If you have a question for You Ask Us, send an email or voice note to [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.