Margaret Thatcher

So are Clegg and Cameron - you sound ideally suited to the job, Nonu!

When MT died, DD texted to say that Facebook was full of people her age (early 30s) saying that the first swear words they had learned came from their parents speaking about Margaret Thatcher. I'm sure it applied to DD herself

ANA, what Moi !!

Prefered her RP to TONES Estuary English.

Wish I'd watched the whole programme; saw the beginning though. Think she was quite a damaged person in some ways after hearing about her strict childhood. She hated the railways, and we're a railway family. Much as I enjoy the Michael Portillo programmes I often think that he interviews people when making them that hated everything the Thatcher Government were doing at the time to the railways and engineering in this country. His love of all things train goes against his politics at the time. What does anyone think of the strange film that they've pulled the pug on in America. Dreadful as the regime is in North Korea making a comedy about killing their leader seems very tactless; how would America feel if the North Koreans made a comedy about, for example 9/11?

Margaret Thatcher had lessons to lower her naturally shrill voice and "improve" her pronunciation. What she ended up with was not received pronunciation but words that sounded as if they had been squeezed out of a tube – involved with a long o, for example. She always sounded to me like a Roald Dahl kind of nursery school teacher making an effort to sound as if she really liked children when secretly she had nothing but contempt and loathing for them.

Tegan I agree regarding the film, talk about crass! What the hell were the film makers thinking?

Presumably the majority of you think Hilary Mantel's 'The Assassination of Margaret Thatcher' is wonderful, and only wish it had been true!

Glad we agree Mishap.

Just in case anyone does not remember it- can't watch it, but here it is:

youtu.be/A23PQCndPYU

I loathed Margaret Thatcher but I would never wish for anybody's assassination.

Didn't somebody once say every politician's career ends in failure? If that's true, I would imagine the risks are even greater for a prime minister.

Am really starting to think that I know very little about her other than the public image.... Was surrounded by fervent Tory supporters and rather naive I'm afraid. Do wish I'd seem the programme.

Would anyone on this forum have the remotest desire to lead a country? If not, what makes us different from those who do aspire to this?

Probably not many - or any. That is because we are all perfectly normal .

I would never wish for anybody's assassination.
No, so would Hilary Mantel appear to be deranged, do you think?

Why would you presume that Ana?

I still haven't forgotten the comments made on the threads on here when Margaret Thatcher died, absent even if you have.

I couldn't stand MT, but think that the recent book about her assassination is in very poor taste. Anybody who takes on the burden of leadership needs special qualities. She went far too far with her policies and eventually paid the price for so doing. The country has never recovered from her doctrines, and I don't think she did much good for the advancement of women.

I haven't forgotten either. She was a deeply divisive political figure and many people (including me) believe that she did a great deal of harm during her time in office. I was glad when she was booted out of Number 10 and pretty much indifferent when she died. Some people rejoiced at her death which, at worst, was only bad taste. I don't recall anyone suggesting that it would have been better if she had been assassinated sooner. To suggest that any Gransnetters, even one, support, approve of or advocate political assassination is pretty outrageous.

She could have invented the phrase 'divide and rule' and those that didn't suffer during her 'reign' don't understand why the hatred runs so deep, even now. But, as I've said before, what summed her up as a person was getting involved with selling cigarettes to third world countries after she retired from politics to make money. I thought that was disgusting.

To suggest that any Gransnetters, even one, support, approve of or advocate political assassination is pretty outrageous.

Well, I do apologise to any Gransnetters who have been outraged.

Hilary Mantel is a writer and writers begin the process of writing a novel by saying to themselves "What if .......". That doesn't make her evil or deranged.

Had the story been written while MT was alive, I can see that that might have been a cause for concern, but a work of fiction concerning someone who is dead and who died of natural causes - what's the problem?

I think it's something to do with power going to peoples heads so they seem to think they are Gods. That Thatcher woman was definitely one of them.

Look how her own, once loyal cabinet became to realise she was becoming damaging to the party and Geoffrey Howe made his very critical speech about her.
I really do think that anyone who is that divisive and so strongly disliked as a politician has clearly got things very wrong. Mrs Ts generally arrogant manner was incredibly condescending which is an immediate put off.

As for her "having strong convictions" about things this is by no means a good thing. Think Adolph Hitler, Cambodias Pol Pot, there is certainly no doubt they they had strong convictions, but were totally misguided and evil. (I am not making comparisons between the actions of Thatcher and Hitler) but they were both people who seemed to have become deluded with regard to their own very fixed views.

I don't believe Sony should have backed down in the face of threats from the North Koreans. I don't expect Mr Hitler was pleased with the way in which Charlie Chaplin portrayed him.
Bullying, threats - we shouldn't give in to them!

Agreed about the cigarettes Tegan- and even more shameful, for me, as Phillip Morris factory and Headquarters are not far down the road from me. She also loved the town of Zug, the centre of tax evasion for the rich- a bit further away.

I dont understand the fuss about the Hilary Mantel short story, it is no different from other stories/films such as The Day of the Jackal or The Eagle has Landed for example. Margaret Thatcher was a deeply flawed person whose legacy of selfish behaviour and greed is still with us.

On the other hand, many people will argue that she was a breath of fresh air after the disasters of the Labour Government.

She did develop a belief that she was absolutely right and should not be challenged - perhaps an argument for a Prime Minister not to remain in power for more than two terms; even if a government is re-elected then they should choose a new leader.

The subsequent Labour government had plenty of time to reverse some of the decisions that were made if they had wished. I would not call for the assassination of anyone but there are more than one or two who some could argue deserve it from the last government due to the wicked things they did.

Indeed rose - one of the great lost opportunities of the twentieth century was the subsequent labour government's failure to redress some of the excesses of the Thatcher era. But in order to get voted in at all they had to project their "new" labour image - and then had to operate with that particular millstone around their necks.

I am still intrigued as to how someone who was so clearly and visibly becoming deranged managed to stay at the top of the tree for so long; and was allowed to do so much damage unhindered.

Do we think there is anyone at the top now who is creeping that way, or has already arrived?

Most of them?
Certainly they think they are above the rules that the rest of us have to obey (expenses, jollies, being impolite - I don't care if they are rude to each other, but verbal abuse of the public, police etc).

Certainly living in a bubble if not deranged.