American Learns about Margaret Thatcher..

[@anncollier2094]

Having lived through the Thatcher years and seeing/being affected by it all, I can sum it up best by saying that the things she got right, she got spectacularly right, and the things she got wrong, she got disastrously wrong.

[@andrewdale9093]

That is the fairest comment so far.

[@deniserice157]

I lived through the Thatcher years and Ann’s comments sum Margaret Thatcher up in a nutshell

[@markwolstenholme3354]

Yes I agree, she moved to quickly on some of her "changes". Her policies affected the world and industries were impacted everywhere with manufacturers investing in China etc. Like Thatcher the business men/women were more interested in money than people pretty much turning back the clock to the Victorian ideals for a new industrial world. Countries like US and European countries really suffered the same with the moving of heavy and other industries abroad. This is why we are all in a globalised economy now and mark my words it will change again when Chinese and others demand higher pay. It may change earlier than we in the west think if China pushes hard enough to become the leading world power. Maybe it's time the west took many of the eggs out of the big Chinese basket before it's to late. The money people will only act when it's too late as the west did with known Russian threats.

[@jenniferharrison8915]

Go hard, or go home! 😁👍 There is no more room or time in the world for "popular" politics a "too hard basket", we must jump on problems as they arise! 🤨 Catching up is so much more expensive and more deadly! 😠

[@staticcentrehalf7166]

@@jenniferharrison8915 It's revealing that you respond to such a fair comment - and subsequent other reasonable comments - about a matter as serious as public policy with something as crass as "Go hard or go home."

[@Remnants100]

I had occasion to come across Margaret Thatcher in her latter years whilst walking in Battersea Park. She was accompanied by an elderley Lady with two tall dark suited gentlemen set back a few yards behind them. I instantly recognised who she was and as we passed a smile played across her face at my surprised reaction, she then asked "Where you one of my boys?" I took this to mean one of the Servicemen who had deployed to the Falklands. I was wearing my Veterans Badge at the time, but I was taken aback that she had noticed (A diagnosis of dementia having been already reported in the press). I meekly replied "Yes indeed Prime Minister" which was met with obvious approval. I turned to look as the four waked on, only then realising no-one else in the Park seemed to notice her. She looked withered due to age and cowed by illness at this time (only a few years after striding the World stage as 'The Iron Lady'). So very sad whatever view one holds of her.

[@sammic7492]

What was left out was when the Brighton bomb went off and she escaped being assassinated, was that the bomb went off in the early hours of the morning and at 9am she was giving a speech even though advised not to. Like her or not she had bigger balls than any politician today, and we desperately need some politicians with her balls and determination, because without people like her we get what we have now, which is a mess created by politicians out for themselves and who have no real beliefs other than what is popular on twitter.

[@antprice2277]

​@Paula Cherry I'm sure they were gutted 😂

[@danhicks684]

We American's still have Trump.

[@ben-9123]

@danhicks684 Trump has balls, but Thatcher had more class to go with the balls.

[@johnloony68]

9:29 “Am I missing something?” The economic chaos of the 1970s (inflation, widespread strikes) were the big reason why Thatcher (and Thatcherism) came to power. It wasn’t just switching from one government to another; it was a change from one consensus to a different style of government.

[@christendomdefenderbeready3251]

ALL DEEPSTATE THEY WILL KEEP YOU AS SLAVES

[@anthonyferris8912]

Churchill said "You've made enemies? Good. It means you've done something. I would swing between dislike and admiration. Given every PM before and since has left me indifferent, that's not bad.

[@generichuman2044]

Heard you mention movies about pit closures. Not sure if it will be your cup of tea but there's a sweet movie called "pride" and its about an LGBT group and their efforts to raise money for the miners and there families. It touches on people's feelings towards homosexuality in the time period and also shows how the miners were effected. A great film about 2 unlikely groups coming together over hardships

[@pv-mm2or]

yes and then I remembered the fracas over section 28 the woman was an abomination!

[@ianmax69]

Ive seen it too as part of my Letterbxed reviews and its a great pic !

[@stevebaker6149]

@@pv-mm2or Did you know more Labour voters supported this despicable Bill than Conservatives??

[@michaelfoster5577]

And lets not forget that Labour Governments under Wilson and Callaghan closed more pits in fewer years than the Thatcher government!

[@scouseaussie1638]

Sounds crap

[@beadot8629]

As a child of the 70s, we had nothing but a roof over our heads, food in our bellies and the love of our parents. One coal fire, no central heating. Shared bath on a Sunday, top and tailed on a Wednesday at the Kitchen sink. Black & White telly and no electronics. But we had imaginations, lots of friends and could play outside all day. For us, they were the best years of our lives.

[@goldenskeptic6309]

You just described my childhood perfectly, 👍👍👍👍

[@martinburke362]

And don't forget we had wreeell brwawn bred n buhta!! eeee😁😁😁

[@pv-mm2or]

I had a spare car battery I charge up when we had power, connected to a string of torch bulbs for emergency lighting at least we had gas to boil a kettle, well a cup of tea is the British cure when your down hearted.

[@ganymedes62]

I remember here in The Netherlands we had 'carfree Sundays' to save on fuel. On those Sundays, only emergency vehicles were allowed on the road. Kids could play out on the streets, the highways and even on interstates without any fear.

[@timglennon6814]

I had central heating back in the 70’s.

[@teejayy2130]

Met her once. She was quite small in stature but she had the most amazing presence

[@showmoke]

The positive aspect of the 1970’s was the music. Some great popular music was created by some great bands (including some of the progressive rock bands like ‘Jethro Tull’, ‘Pink Floyd’, ‘Yes’ and many others. For me and many others, the 1970’s was THE decade for great music.

[@Tidybitz]

Joel, Mrs Thatcher didn't close ALL pits in the Uk. People forget, or never knew, that loads of mines were closed for years before she even became leader of her party. I grew up where there were lots of surrounding villages with pits in the 60s, and most were closed before I was even born. My dad, grandad and other family members all worked at pits which all closed before Thatcher's time in government.

[@gitaryddcymraeg8816]

That's true. The labour party closed the first pits and more of them.

[@peterjackson4763]

The last coal mine in my home town closed in 1959

[@Stephen-lx9nm]

Labour closed more mines .I hated Thatcher ,but I now despise Labour and what they have done to our party .Middle class activist party now.

[@WaffleShaft]

One major omission from the video was that coal usage was in decline due to power stations switching from coal to nuclear power, there simply wasn't the demand for the coal that was being produced, this was a major factor in the coal industries downturn.

[@jamesolive6475]

I lived through the Thatcher years. The winter of discontent brought her to power. People talk about rubbish and dead bodies piling up and during that time I lived in North Wales. I remember visiting Liverpool and being shocked by the utter devastation. The point is that the winter of discontent was not too bad in rural areas but devastating in the larger cities.

[@charlesmarshall8046]

Don’t agree. I was a Londoner at the time. The winter of discontent did not cause “devastation”. What you saw in Liverpool had much more to do with a generation of unaddressed industrial decline than with any short-term strike action.

[@grahvis]

@@charlesmarshall8046 . Are you ignoring the streets filled with huge piles of smelly rat populated rubbish?

[@RB747domme]

@@charlesmarshall8046 bollks. My grandfather was in London during the 70s, and he told me about the lack of food, constant power cuts, on a daily basis, unable to cook meals, in case the power vanished during the cooking process. Local fish and chip shops closing. Local pubs closing. Inflation at 27%, and yes, there really was bodies outside cemeteries piling up, and there really was rotting stinking rubbish sacks piled 15 high on every street, smelling, and ripped apart by foxes and rats, spilling all over the street and in front of people's houses. All of this because there was no refuse collectors to pick it up. This caused thousands of rats to breed, spreading diseases in local parks and getting into housing basements sheds, and garages, with rat excrement rotting and spreading, with mothers stopping their kids playing in the street because of the risk. But with people unable to afford pest control because they had no money, what could they do? The three-day week only allowed them to put basic food on the table for the family (spam) which is all mothers could afford to buy, because food was going up every single week due to the out of control inflation. My grandfather was unable to buy a bicycle for his son because the bike shop said there was no steel, and all he had was second hand bikes. And so had to buy a ladies second-hand bike for his son to get to work. Which I'm sure he was over the moon about. Not. Please do not underestimate the effect that the devastation had on London, and the winter of discontent. It was an absolutely horrible period for everyone in the country. And the country was needing someone to overhaul it. And take the power out of the Union leaders greedy hands. And give it back to the people.

[@Tidybitz]

Jamesolive6475 ... totally agree, I lived through that time in a rural area and apart from the power cuts which weren't that bad as I recall, and I was too young for the 3 day week to affect me, but I knew people who were affected and liked the extra time off. No rubbish piling up where I lived either. As you say, it was probably worse in cities, but the TV news and papers always highlight the worst of things and not generalisation of things, and still do. The 70s for us were fabulous and if I could, I'd go back in an instant.

[@blueray1878]

It was Thatcher who caused the "Managed" decline of Liverpool because she was getting nowhere with the Liverpool Unions. She basically stopped giving local Government any GOVERNMENT money so Liverpool fell into decline because of this... Hence why we had the bin strikes and any other strike that was happening at the time. It also sparked the Liverpool riots in 1982.@@charlesmarshall8046

[@t.a.k.palfrey3882]

Billy Elliot, a great movie set during the Thatcher years and the impact on mining communities came out in 2000. Elton John composed a successful West End and Broadway musical based on the movie. The film won three BAFTAs and gained three Oscar nominations. The musical won awards in UK, US, Canada, Aust. too. I think you'd enjoy the movie.

[@trevorjackson4157]

We watched it on Patreon a few weeks ago.

[@iriscollins7583]

My favourite film.

[@trevorjackson4157]

@@iriscollins7583 one of mine too. I get very emotional at the end.

[@takata98]

I first watched Billy Elliot, it was my first insight into the impact of Thatchers politics in years which I didn't visit the UK. Later I watched the movie Pride! Which was very much more informative about the breaking of the coal miners union and the hardships of the communities affected by it. Little did I know until the end credits how many lives it impacted in very different ways and changed the course of human rights. The miners of course didn't just live through the strike but had to survive the aftermath which impacted the course of generations of families and communities for the rest of their lives.

[@nickyverra2175]

It’s a great film, but Thatcher did what was needed for the country and there are so many on the left who vilify her.

[@georgeamery]

At 78 I lived through her times. I supported her after the Falkland's not before. The "poll tax" (a nickname for a local tax) did not affect me. I worked at a steelworks all the time. It wasn't as bad in reality. I wish we had some of the coal mines with the present energy crisis. It was a pity that video did not include some of her Commons speeches.

[@peterc.1618]

She wasn't afraid to stand up to Brussels.

[@shaunhoole6504]

I grew up in Thatcherism,she was a conviction politician. Decisive,yes, powerful,you bet ya.

[@leeb6476]

Battle of Orgreave during the Miners Strike is grimly fascinating in the context of the Thatcher years. Police were brought in from all over the country, back then they had numbers on their shoulders for identification, they removed those so they couldn't be identified later, Thatcher upped their pay, and on at least one occasion they waved their payslips at the striking miners in a sarcastic protest at the picket line. And they beat the shit out of them on horseback. Whole towns beaten into submission. Ironic when you think about it, the Argentine Junta would have gleefully used these tactics, and worse.

[@peterjackson4763]

There was a chant "The miners united will never be defeated", but in 1984 the miners were not united. Scargill used a loophole in the union rules to call for the whole union to strike rather than calling for a national vote as had happened in the 1970s. That mean that in some areas the the miners did not strike and they had less support from other unions. Afterwards the union split. The police were involved in defending the working miners.

[@johnloony68]

17:30 in 1972, Edward Heath’s government did a big U-turn on economic policy, and gave in to pressure from the Trade Unions. When Thatcher’s new government got into difficulties in the early years, people were expecting that she would capitulate in a similar way. But in 1980 she made a famous speech in which she said “The Lady’s not for turning”.

[@lorrainet6798]

Check out Billie Elliott. It’s set during the miners strike and that part is very gritty. Regarding Thatcher, having left the UK in the 70s due to the state of the economy and the 3 day week, I was living abroad and saw the UK was regarded as not worth investing in due to the grip of unions. The changes to the UK were painful, no doubt about it but some were necessary to entice big companies to come and invest in UK industry.

[@79BlackRose]

Jps has reacted to this on Patreon.

[@Seaside5]

A favourite film! ❤

[@marionpetford7374]

Joel I lived throw Margaret Thatcher premiership. We had power every day in our homes. But did have power cuts and TV was shut down at 10pm so people would not stay up late that was another way of saving power. It was the factory’s that had 3day a week it was hard at times. She would not back down to the miners. It was sad to see the mining community’s going with out. She made some good decisions and made some bad . She was like marmite you loved her or hated her A good one Joel 🇬🇧

[@hetrodoxly1203]

Margret thatcher wasn't PM during the 3 day week, the mines turned down a 16.5% pay rise, their strike caused a lot of companies to close, 1000s lost their jobs, an incoming Labour government proceeded to destroy the country with the help of the unions, inflation at 27% rubbished piled high in the streets, bodies not being buried, etc, A Labour government having to go to the IMF cap in hand because the country was bankrupt, the reason why Margaret Thatcher was re-elected 3 times.

[@14Wheelhouse]

The 3-day week took place in the 1970s under the Heath Government and was caused by striking miners preventing the delivery of coal to power stations which meant that electricity had to be rationed.

[@rozhunter7645]

@@14Wheelhouse I remember the power cuts and three day week, I was at school and we would go out to the woods looking for wood to eke out the coal. When the cut was due my dad would build up the fire and mum would fill flasks for tea and we would toast bread, happy memories because didn’t realise how serious it all was

[@sashacottier9581]

Business had three days of electric then power cuts. We bought our sweets by candlelight in the local shop. There were absolutely no theiving and real integrity Bless us back then.

[@hellagood67]

Very balanced story. I have no opinion of Thatcher, being Australian , but I do remember the Falklands War and IRA bombings. It’s good that you are watching these types of informative videos, Joel. It seems to be opening all of us up to events we knew something about, but not the whole story. Cheers

[@kstar1489]

You should, she was terrible

[@hellagood67]

@@kstar1489 I was a teenager for 7 years of the 80s. British politics weren’t part of my life. British music was 🙈🙈🙈

[@Cjbx11]

I grew up under Thatcher and while she was a divisive figure and got many things wrong she did many things that needed to be done. We couldn’t continue on as we had in the 1970s and it was going to take a strong leader to make some pretty tough decisions. I think the problem we have now is we have to many politicians who are just weak and are afraid to make hard choices. The right choice isn’t always popular.

[@zo7034]

Then again, unpopular isn't always the right choice.

[@Cjbx11]

@@zo7034 That is perfectly true, but it’s easier to make the wrong choice if you think it’s going to popular rather than make the often harder unpopular choice which might be the correct one.

[@kevintwine2315]

We had a party down our street the day she died, she was pure scum.

[@RB747domme]

@@Cjbx11 I can feel a Sir Humphrey Appleby speech coming on.. lol.

[@Cjbx11]

@@RB747domme lol, maybe I should become a civil servant.

[@lindykeddie3119]

Even here in Australia, we watched on wondering what was going to happen next, she seemed to be be a person who would not take advise from her own ministers, she was uncompromising in everything

[@johanassumner5468]

That was a great evenly presented doco.... congrats for having the strength to show it. Please do not take sides... there is still much " unfiltered madess" from people on either side.... dont let it effect your fans and support...Regardless of te sides or belief there are still people who will strongly ho;ld their beliefs and threaten to leave you if you show any signs of belief in one side or the other... there are even others who will damn you for even daring to show it... tp them dont get off your bike, i will pick up the pump!!!! Congratulations Joel... well done

[@lachlanmain6004]

Well said.

[@generichuman2044]

This is going to be a sensitive one. She was and still remains one of the most divisive figures in British history. I'm sure it will be covered in the video, but in the North of England and many parts of Wales and Scotland, she was so dispised that people burned effigies after her death and partied in the streets. I'm young and grew up in the working class south. My older relatives have so many mixed views on her. Some see her as a great leader and others class her as the worst prime minister in their lifetime. My parents were pretty negatively effected by her policies and I often find myself voting for smaller parties or independent candidates in elections

[@JL16061980]

Exactly. This video is venturing into KZbin suicide with UK peeps... why has he not stuck to comedy or music.... clickbait?... many US reactors do this and I don't want to see him do the same thing.

[@frglee]

Indeed, a very divisive figure, adored by some and despised by others. When Thatcher became PM in 1979 she quoted the prayer by St. Francis of Assisi: _‘Where there is discord, may we bring harmony. Where there is error, may we bring truth. Where there is doubt, may we bring faith. And where there is despair, may we bring hope’._ Some might say that there was no shortage of discord, error, doubt and despair during her 11 years in office. Eventually she was forced out of office by her Conservative Party colleagues in parliament. Could it be she was too extreme even for most of them?

[@docsmellyfella]

Boy did we party when the old witch died. I had a bottle of champagne that I saved for the glorious day she popped her clogs and on the day of her funeral we had a barbie to celebrate getting rid of her. I was in my teens when she was PM, in a mining community and hated her with a vengeance. A lot of the problems in Britain today date back to her policies; lack of social housing, poor public transport, selling off of essential services (gas, electric, water), destruction of our manufacturing industry, removal of workers rights, de-regulation of the city/banks, benefit culture etc.

[@carolineskipper6976]

I have to say that was a pretty fair summary of the Thatcher Years. I was 17 in 1979 when she first came Prime Minister, and so all my young adulthood was lived within the UK she created. Like Marmite, you either loved her or hated her with a great passion. There is no-one who lived here under her premiership who is neutral about her and her policies. The fact is that she not only divided the country politically, but also economically. For some people it was a time in which they had more money than they could shake a stick at. The Yuppies (Young Urban Professionals) were buying wildly expensive homes and cars, and living a life of luxury, drinking champagne like it was tapwater. For them, Britain was a land flowing with milk and honey. At the same time the 'losers' whose livelihoods and traditional communities had been thrown on the scrapheap were suddenly reliant on Welfare Benefits, with no prospect of ever finding another job. Looking back at this distance from it all, the only positive thing I can say about her was she truly believed that what she was doing was right for the country as a whole, unlike her present day counterparts who seem to have a much less honourable agenda.

[@andy40456]

For me as a working class man in my early 20s the 70s was a great time. I bought a nice house at age 23 and had a Cortina mk 3 lol, a factory job with subsidised canteen even the three day week didn't seem so bad and enough money to raise a family. Now some of my family and friends can't see how they'll ever have a place of their own.

[@tonywarren2867]

That's because the true villain in this story is Blair , he destroyed her good work

[@barrymitchell6444]

Bet your Cortina had furry dice?!!

[@simonelsey]

@@tonywarren2867 took us too much into Europe

[@SpenceJS87]

@@tonywarren2867 🤣

[@kylestrain3231]

​@@simonelsey 😂😂😂

[@neuralwarp]

I remember the runaway unions. Power cuts two evenings a week. Three day weeks at school (yet we still learnt just as much). Using bunsen burners in the science labs to keep warm. The window frames caught fire.

[@grahvis]

I remember Bunsen burners in the physics lab being used to keep warm. However, that was back in the 50s.

[@elunedlaine8661]

A lot of UK areas which had steel works, coal mines and ship yards that were closed under Thatcher's leadership in 1980 struggled for decades afterwards. I lived in an ex pit village from 2000 and it was still bleak. Local shops had closed down because no one had any money. You should watch a film called 'Brassed Off'

[@improvesheffield4824]

Clearly you didn’t watch his reaction because that’s the very film he’s referencing that’s inspired him to make this video!

[@elunedlaine8661]

@@improvesheffield4824 Sorry, you're quite right. I missed the reference made to the film

[@Living_the_Scottish_Dream]

All unions pay money to Labour, that is why they were so active supporting strikers. Funny how many miners managed to buy their house and make profits from after Thatcher made it possible for people to buy their council properties but still put here down!

[@juliehaley4697]

These areas have never recovered.

[@juliehaley4697]

​@@Living_the_Scottish_DreamAs a result of the Right to Buy the Treasury received £28 billion. None of this money was ploughed back into building more homes. This is why we have a housing crisis and anyone earning a basic wage has no chance of ever buying a property or being able to rent a property from their local authority. It has increased the gap between those who can afford and those who can't and lead to countless people becoming homeless. It's unfair to blame the people who took the opportunity to buy their property ( who wouldn't?! Whether they were colliery workers or not). The blame lies entirely at the feet of Margaret Thatcher and her heartless tory government.

[@jenniferdundon5491]

The problem with the coal mines was that they were heavily subsidised and still losing vast sums of money as a country that was broke it just had to be changed. Not mentioned in this video was the investment in new technology that and industries that replaced the mines later on. It was painful but what was always interesting to me was on asking a miner about their life they to a man would say I don't want my son to follow me down the pits.

[@johnloony68]

The common factor about her downfall (the poll tax, and relations with the EU) is that she was beginning to lose her sense of knowing how to go at the right pace. In the early 1980s, the reforms of trade union legislation were done carefully, a bit at a time. The poll tax was originally meant to be phased in over a ten-year period, but she decided to introduce it all in one go. The disruption was too big.

[@iriscollins7583]

My sister was supposed to pay poll tax for a daughter , who was working in America at Disneyland.

[@Robob0027]

@@iriscollins7583 Then you sister was so stupid not to have advised her local authority that her daughter no longer lived in the borough. On the other hand if her daughter was purely on a working holiday she was still resident there and would have still been obliged to pay like the rest of us.

[@trailerman2]

When she was good she was good and vice versa but one thing you cannot take away is that she was a Patriot through and through. Her country came first.

[@kitzzybitz6058]

I was born in 1971, so I don't really remember that time to much, but was surrounded by people that hated her and I do remember the odd blackout now and again. Thank you for your interest in this.

[@Andy-et2qh]

Brilliant vid, great to see an unbiased view. Personally I think she was a very powerful woman.

[@davidsmith8279]

I'm Scottish, and whilst for us the Poll Tax was an unmitigated disaster, I'd give anything to have her back now. Love or loathe her, she was unquestionably strong willed and oozed inner strength and therefore deserving of respect. Unlike today's wet wipe simp politicians.

[@josiebridle1947]

People still blame Thatcher for closing some of the mines, but they ignore the fact that Labour closed more mines than she did. Also, during the strikes, dead bodies were not being buried, so they were being stockpiled in tents outside hospitals or in halls. I have never forgiven the Labour Unions for allowing that to happen to people's loved ones.

[@MrJoshmister]

As a young adult, with grandparents who were among the working class of the NHS when Thatcher was in power, SHE is the reason for the current state of the NHS, SHE is solely responsible for the wanted privatisation of the very thing we pride ourselves as British people on "no matter your race, religion, or whatever descriptive word you use. you can walk into a GP, or hospital, get medical care, and leave, without paying A. SINGLE. PENNY"...... if the current conservatives have their way, Britain will go the way of America, the poor not being able to afford to get basic healthcare, a fundamental human RIGHT, whilst the middle class and super rich steam ahead, driving inequality deeper and deeper into the country..... I remember when Thatcher died, and I remember the news saying all the major radio stations skipped the number 2 song that week, and I never understood why... but jesus christ.... i wish I knew then what I knew now....

[@BomberFletch31]

Joel, what you said about the state of the country at the time Thatcher took office is I think partly why she has become so divisive. It was clear that Britain needed to reform and grow its economy from what sounded like a devastating time in the 1970s, but there is also no doubt a lot of disagreement over how to go about it. Honestly, if this video hasn't exaggerated the way the unions have managed to bring the entire country to its knees, then I think Thatcher did exactly what she needed to do to reduce the ability of the unions to do so again in the future. I know understand why many Brits migrated to Australia at that time - the "10 pound Pom". I know some of them, they were able to pay a fee of 10 pounds to travel to and set up a new life here in Australia. And please, ignore the negative nancys in the comments section. Don't take this down, like you took down the Brexit video. Yes, it is a controversial topic, but just because a topic is controversial doesn't mean it shouldn't be discussed, and learnt from.

[@Snowman29101963]

I was born and raised in Sheffield, the two main industries in the area were steel, which was renowned for it's quality the world over, and coal. For me it wasn't just what she did to those industries, it was the complete lack of providing help to those areas affected by the closing of steel mills and coal mines. I'm not sure what the unemployment rate was when I left school but I have a memory of it being around 30%. I do know that the street that my brother lived on, approximately 25 houses, he was the only one with a job on that street.

[@Neil_Hyman]

I have taken many trains that pass through Sheffield and the one good point is that now you don't look out of the window and say to yourself 'It must be Sheffield because the ground is black and dead' Don't worry too much, I'm from Leicester so it's one shit town to another 😆

[@evorock]

And then, to top it off, Barry Hines had Sheff nuked in that seminal bucket of chuckles docudrama 'Threads'.

[@MsGilly60]

I remember the power cuts and the bread shortages, my mother started baking her own bread and we had candles when the lights went out, but we survived

[@nickyverra2175]

She was the greatest prime minister of the 20th century. She had a strong vision and was unflinching in her determination. The people who hate or despise her do so because she was the antithesis of socialism, she was a complete free market capitalist and believed that the state should be as limited and as non interventionist as possible. Many people who criticise her are completely against self achievement and personal success, which holds the country back and prevents individuals from realising their true potentials. She was loved by the Jewish community and she represented the most Jewish constituency in parliament.

[@nameisamine]

I remember when she died, some people were celebrating, the song “ding dong the witch is dead” from Wizard of Oz re-entered the U.K. music charts. It was all before my time so I thought “wow, is it really that serious?” But her policies created winners and losers, and the people on the losing end of those policies have long memories. Really long.

[@timglennon6814]

I was one of them. 🤣🤣

[@pheart2381]

A lot of the problems we have now are legacy of her decision making. Awful woman.

[@lillibitjohnson7293]

The people on the losing end are the normal working class people, the people on the winning end are now all billionaires and pedophiles off the backs of the British people

[@ftumschk]

@@pheart2381 Totally agree. The (IMHO) entirely predictable negative consequences of Thatcher's policies continue to damage the country.

[@lynnepashley4281]

@@timglennon6814and me

[@jeffhall9761]

Great video. Thatcher was a unique leader, divisive but focused on her beliefs for good or ill. I met Thatcher in 1981, she was visiting the small town where I lived and I managed to shake her hand. My recollection was that she had huge gravitas and made an immediate impression on me. Much later, I was on a transatlantic flight inbound to London in 1990, when the captain came on the intercom to advise us all that she has resigned, the entire cabin just fell silent for the remainder of the flight.

[@richardsuttill54]

I was a student during the late seventies and early eighties (about your age then). The video was a fair summary of her history. Life then for the majority was not as dark as it might seem from this video. One of the forgotten issues was that her response to the unemployed workers in the north was her advice "they should move". I took this literally after completing my PhD and moved to Australia, a great personal outcome for me. Love her or hate her or be indifferent she had a major influence on my adult life - I paid my taxes to a sunnier, happier society than the one I left.

[@grahvis]

The Three Day Week, only applied to commercial industry, not to the public.

[@PokhrajRoy.]

You should definitely watch ‘The Crown’ for Gillian Anderson’s portrayal as Margaret Thatcher. Meryl Streep played her brilliantly as well.

[@seansmith445]

Gillian Andersons portrayal is best avoided.

[@PokhrajRoy.]

@@seansmith445I thought it was good.

[@helenbailey8419]

I had a tshirt that said,"The Iron Lady","May she rust in peace' and Atilla the Hen.A strong character.In her diary she had an appointment with Carmen.When asked what it mean't..her hair style redo Carmen electric curlers.

[@neilme2634]

I was child in the 70s, in the North, the coal mines and steel works were a death sentence for those that worked in them, as my dead relatives. Food cost a fortune, gas and electric cost a fortune. If you worked and in a powerful union it was ok. The rest of us struggled to make ends meet. If it was not for free school meals me and my friends would have starved. Yes Thatcher was hard but someone had to change thinks

[@kerristeed6688]

It’s very easy to forget that the reformation of the coal industry was necessary to firstly reduce the use of fossil fuels and secondly, because the government had been losing money in mines that hadn’t been making any profit for years. Mining is a dangerous and costly process and, although it was always going to be a life changing event for many workers whose heritage lay in the mining towns, ultimately closing the pits would have been necessary to move with the times. Since the eighties new ways of harnessing clean energy have created work and a better way of life for the entire population. The British have a knack of bouncing back. Sometimes though, we need a kick in the pants to make us realise that change is not always a bad thing.

[@britanniafirst1254]

Joel. I've been to the Falkland Islands. During the illegal invasion, only Canada, Australia and New Zealand stood by the British. The USA was embarrassingly neutral, due to the economic ties with South America. The French sold arms to Argentina, the Italians openly supported Argentina because a large part of the Argentinian population is of Italian descent. The Argentinian soldiers treated the British inhabitants terribly. All of the children in Port Stanley, the capital, had to be evacuated to outlying farms otherwise they would have starved, because the Argentinians just walked into peoples houses to take food. Every morning, five British men were chosen at random and taken to the waterfront in Stanley blindfolded where a revolver was pointed to the back of their heads as if they were about to be executed. Then the click from the empty gun followed by Argentinian laughter who thought it was funny. Margaret Thatcher will always be a hero to Falkland Islanders; she saved their way of life and gave them back their freedom.

[@JL16061980]

Let's not forgetbitnwas the Falklands Islands themselves who wanted to remain British territory. We respect what the people want now. 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧 I'm proud of the UK and the commonwealth... those who want to be a part of it.

[@piggypiggypig1746]

While publicly claiming neutrality between Argentina and the U.K, Reagan’s administration had developed plans to loan USS Iwo Jima to the Royal Navy if it lost one of its aircraft carriers in the war, Reagan also supplied the brits with sidewinder missiles. Reagan had also told Lehman and the then Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger to _ “Give Maggie everything she needs to get on with it”_

[@sammic7492]

The US tried to get her to back down, Reagan even tried to put pressure on her to do so. She basically told him to keep his nose out of it. I can't see any British politician now doing the same.

[@josimpson7999]

Well said! 👏🏻

[@jarrodglover2311]

This is literally not true. The European Union imposed sanctions on Argentina, including a total import ban. Contrary to what you say, France imposed an arms embargo on Argentina. France also allowed the UK to use French bases in Africa. This is so easy to look up. Why do you prefer to lie and spread fake news?

[@7ismersenne]

She was a revolutionary on the right. She had little compassion for those who suffered most from the political and economic changes she initiated - in that respect, she was a true revolutionary. Regarding her policies, as the doco points out very well, they were a mixed bag regarding their outcomes, but her loosening of the financial markets in the UK have certainly led to London's resurgence as one of the major world financial centers. So far as the rest of the UK beyond the home counties, they had to rely on the trickle down phenomenon, i.e. the gradual improvement of the UK economic situation passing on some of the goodies to the rest of the UK population. My take away from this doco is that on occasion policies are needed that do affect some segments of the population very adversely. When this is the case, it is the responsibility of the government to ameliorate those adverse effects, to lessen the pain as much as possible. In this respect, Thatcher's career is a prime example of how not to go.

[@erichalfbee503]

France is still struggling with the issues that Thatcher fixed in the 80s. It wasnt pretty but it needed to be done. Even the poll tax was a good thing badly implemented. I remember discussing the previous system at college and everyone agreed that a little old lady living in a house on her own shouldnt be paying the same as neighbours who could have 3 people working. No system is perfect including the one we have now. Many unions were overpowered and needed to be reigned in to stop them holding the country to ransome.

[@lynette.]

The Navy had been told to stop the tour of the South, this is what emboldened the Argentinas.

[@newuk26]

She was definitely a marmite politician! Personally I think she was great, not perfect, but great all the same. One thing I think almost everyone can agree is she was strong, and when she said she would do something, she would do it. Basically the complete opposite of modern politicians

[@stuartkeen1712]

Towards the end of the 70’s Britain was failing fast, known as the sick man of Europe. She turned that right around. There was no alternative, she was the right person at the right time.

[@Addsy]

Speaking of pioneering women Politicians!, it just been announced that Baroness Betty Boothroyd the fist ever female Speaker of the House of Commons has passed away, she was 93, she may have featured in one of your previous House of Commons reactions!

[@pendorran]

Oh that's a shame. She was a great Speaker. Tough and fair.

[@MichaelJohnson-vi6eh]

About the 70's Look at all the music that came out of the UK in the late 70's and early 80's - especially punk, ska, and even their pop music had a edge of "the world is ending" to it. The working class really had a megaphone to speak to the rest of the world.

[@glennhills3476]

I was a child when Thatcher became Prime Minister. I can remember the devastation in our area and the affect the coal mine closure had on my family. She also introduced section 28 which banned the promotion and discussion of homosexuality. When I realised I was gay this frightened me so much. She brings so much out of everyone. I can see good points but I cant forgive the affects on me and my family

[@hetrodoxly1203]

The devastation in my area was caused by striking miners, companies already struggling had to shut, i lost my job, to rub salt into the wounds the miners got massive pay outs, we got the bare minimum, a miner brought my local pub and i couldn't afford to buy a pint in it.

[@toniswift6058]

I lived in the winter of discontent in Central London. The rats and smell was horrendous. I was a big fan of Margret Thatcher. If you get a chance, check out images of the winter of discontent, it may allow you to put some prospective on what we were dealing with. Take care. x

[@robertfraser9873]

I remember when I was young in the late 70's early 80's there were random power cuts. I remember my parents had candles in the house all time as well as a gas camping stove so when the electric went off they could at least cook tinned beans etc.

[@Secret19977]

The Labour Party didn’t create the nhs the plans were in place before the election but labour implemented it, both parties agreed to a NHS system but Attlee won power and put the policy of both parties in place

[@nigelrequiem]

I lived every second of the Thatcher years,she was the best P.M we ever had she would turn in her grave if she knew how liberal and woke the UK has become!

[@richnorcal]

I'd say agree or disagree with her policies, there is no question that she was a British Patriot and did what she did for the good of the nation in her eyes. A fault in almost every politician now days, British or otherwise is promote policies that favor people at election time and do for corporations when it's not. Margaret Thatcher was never like that. I really recommend you watch the movie, "The Iron Lady" starring Merrill Streep

[@diane9656]

I dont care what anybody says, i had great admiration for Maggie Thatcher, she had bigger balls than any man in that era. She rescued the nation from near collapse. Lets face it, she got 3 terms, she couldnt have been that bad. BTW Labour under Harold Wilson closed more mines way before Thatcher did

[@RB747domme]

In 1979 there were just 470 millionaires in the whole of the UK. By 1985 there were over 20,000. Now there is 2.9 million millionaires in the UK. That's nearly 5% of the entire population. I know that money, or economic status is not everything, and the end sll - that economic prosperity, and what it can do to a country means an awful lot, and she turned a virtually broke and destitute, and bankrupt country into one of the world's biggest economies, and world leading financial centers. Love her or hate her, you cannot deny these facts. And by the way, she wasn't my favorite prime minister. But neither was Blair. I'm a centrist, I'm neither left or right.

[@NewkemG]

The Uk and the world needs people like her today more than ever .

[@marymary5494]

🎼 Ding-dong ........

[@NewkemG]

@@marymary5494 quite contrary ….

[@matthewhillier7484]

It was a great video. A fair and balanced discussion of her in such a short video.

[@pgr3290]

The UK was falling to pieces in the 1970s. It was deindustrialising. Nothing we have seen since then has been remotely as bad. Brexit, Covid and the Ukraine war have battered the economy but it's not even close to how it was in the mid 1970s when inflation was 20+ percent, 5x worse than mainland Europe, everyone always on strike and the government fuelling it. Thatcher came along and gave the country some pretty harsh medicine. Despite the problems today it is obvious it would not be as prosperous as it is if that shock therapy had not been delivered. She'll be remembered for the miner's strike but they held the country hostage, coal was history not the future. Nobody should expect massive public subsidies forever to try and hold off the future from inevitability of change. She restored some of Britain's prestige with the Falklands victory and helped break the back of communism for good with Reagan. No British politician since has had such an impact.

[@kevanwillis4571]

"Brassed Off" is a very good film about this era. With a very good cast. Please try it.

[@philiptodd6255]

You had to be there in the 1970 s to the early 90 s in the early days I didn’t agree with her policies but as I grew up I got to see her legacy and what she did for our country as for the 1970 s I enjoyed that decade as a teenager

[@Sion67Productions]

She came from Grantham, Lincolnshire, not to far from where I live. They put a statue up which I believe was a mistake, she's not well liked much in the East Midlands. Maybe rural tory places don't mind her, but the statue gettung vandalised was so inevitable. Regardless though Thatcher's legacy was giant, I wouldn't want to fault her as a family woman but the impact on the nation's regional disparities is legion. Other countries have that industrial and non industrial divide, but in the UK it's very apparent.

[@Cheezsoup]

This lady's not for turning is actually a quote of part of a speech of hers. When she was replying to another speech about would she do a U-turn about a proposition of hers She was known as someone who once she made a decision kept that attitude. "U-turn if you want too The lady's not for turning".

[@the_hermits_cave]

And no mention of Section 28, and her intolerance and homophobia

[@PandaMartin-wq4yn]

One of her greatest supports was a TV series called Spitting Image...the Thatcher puppet was a grotesque character but marvellously horrible and a superb tribute to her power. It made many politicians reputations and the people got to know their names...very few are known today in the same way.

[@johnnyc3298]

Love this song so much! 😍😍😍 Catchy cool and great video too! 👍❤️🇬🇧

[@bjb123ch]

Love her or hate her, she was the medicine that the country needed at the time. Everyone was on strike, unemployment was high, the unions had a stranglehold on the economy, inflation peaked at 25% and the UK was in general decline. No other politician would have had the guts to sort it out like she did.

[@wolfie5]

What did she sort out? She increased unemployment from 1.5 to 3.5 million people. Got rid of apprenticeships - ditched school milk - sold off all the national industries. Created a me me me culture. She was a disaster

[@cameracamera4415]

Medicine?!

[@philiptodd6255]

She was the greatest prime minister she turned the country around from the basket case of europe to a world economic leader

[@nannaknannak]

Interesting video. Your comment that there are ways to go about things that don’t just involve devastating entire communities is spot on. Australia faced many of the same economic problems in the 1970s as the UK and also needed to undergo huge economic reforms. Where Thatcher chose conflict as the tool to achieve aims the Australian government under PM Bob Hawke chose to build consensus between unions, businesses and government. They put in place many of the same changes (de-regulation of industries and financing, privatisation of public assets, floating the currency, removing trade tariffs, reducing union power, etc) and they managed it without mass social unrest and the destruction of entire communities. (To be clear many Australians experienced pain because of those changes and there were winners and losers, but nothing like that felt in the UK.) There’s a very strong argument that she could have achieved many of the same outcomes without destroying people’s lives. At the very least she could have tried to do that. She didn’t! She actively chose the path of destruction over construction.

[@richardjones4466]

Awful woman. She set the working classes against each other and went on about the enemy within, meaning the unions, immigrants, gay people, video nasties, New Age Travellers etc. And don't get me started on Hillsborough! I'm still proud to say I did my bit during the Miner's Strike, doing benefit gigs for strikers and their families.

[@brianhepke7182]

Check out the movie "Iron Lady" starring Meryl Streep. It is very good. There is also a KZbin video where she addresses the U.S. Congress... she got a standing ovation . She did make her audience sit up and listen. I admired her even though I didn't necessarily agree with her.

[@audience2]

The Falklands war seemed very personal to the British people. There was radio commentary from the Islands governor as Royal Marines defended his house from the Argentinian invaders. The British people were very concerned about the plight of the Falkland Islanders as they could ralate to them as British.

[@johnloony68]

24:20 When her husband Denis died, Margaret was already so badly affected by dementia that she thought she was going to the funeral of her father rather than her husband. After his death, her children made excuses by saying that he was “on a business trip to Africa” because otherwise she would get upset each time they told her that he had died.

[@acommentator4452]

that is unfortunately common with dementia. best to avoid or make excuses

[@paulguise698]

@@acommentator4452 With Dementia, My Nanna thought I was going to marry my Niece

[@susanmckay695]

We here in British Gibraltar have been bullied for over 300yrs by Spain, but with Margaret Thatcher they layed off a bit

[@BomberFletch31]

Whether one thinks she is the best or worst PM ever really depends on which side of politics you mostly favour - whether you are conservative, or liberal. Given that I'm not British, and wasn't of voting age when she was Prime Minister, none of what she did actually affected me, so I might feel differently if I lived in Britain in the 1980s. But having conservative leanings myself, I think if I was a voting age Brit then there is a good chance that I would have voted Conservative. Just listening to her views on Europe makes me respect her all the more.

[@grahamcampbell8297]

Joel, I was a teenager during this period, turning 18 in 1976. It was a dreadful period, truly dreadful. It felt like the country was falling apart. I remember in 1979 walking through Leicester Square in London and walking past piles of garbage bags stacked 40 feet high, uncollected garbage with rats everywhere. Thatcher changed all that, however, she devastated areas of Britain with her economic policies. Many of those areas have never recovered.

[@stephwaite]

Hi Joel, the 70s was a really horrible decade.. the unions had the country on its knees. I worked with my father in a petrol station/repair shop and the strikes really affected us, the 3 day week was even worse.. The miners Union leader, Arthur Scargill, is a man I utterly detest. The biggest, richest Unions, were able to pay their workers while on strike but eventually the money ran out and the workers were left struggling for rent, food and other bills And then one day, while all this is happening, I'm at work, we've got no electricity so we have to manually crank the petrol pumps for every customer. It's bloody hard work. Mid afternoon, I'm cold, tired, hungry and sitting in the dark when a big vehicle towing a boat pulls in.. I draw the short straw and go over to the pump just as the driver gets out and I was stunned, because the driver was Arthur Scargill... His miners are struggling and he's off to play with his boat!!!

[@s4ss1n]

i can only assume you are projecting your fathers conservatism here and at best remembering false memories. while scargill wasn't a national saint he was attempting to rescue under paid and overworked people struggling to over come the breadline which admittedly was brought on by previous labour failures but inherently overlooked and ignored by thatcher. or do you believe she brought equality and wealth to this country by disbanding the coal industry like she eventualy did ?

[@lescarpenter162]

Steph I also detested the man, I blame him for the closure of the mines and the loss of all of the jobs. He forced the price of coal up so much it was cheaper to buy and transport it from places like Denmark. What's more the coal was of better quality too for the power stations. I really felt sorry for the miners at that time but all they wanted to do was put me in hospital for the very thought that Arthur Scargill was their real enemy.😢

[@stephwaite]

@@s4ss1n projecting my father's conservatism?? You assume wrong. You insult me by suggesting I'm "remembering false memories" my memories are most certainly not false. Each of us had our own experiences of those years. I'd be interested in hearing yours.

[@stephwaite]

@@lescarpenter162 it's good to know I'm not the only one who felt that way about him :)

[@s4ss1n]

@@stephwaite its the boat memory i am refering too, can you show evidence of such a claim, as he doesn't seem to have any registration on boat owner ship, and also the claim of your utter distaste of a man that was passionately labour orientated while running the num seems to suggest hard conservatism with bias. my experiences was the unfortunate one of every step of my life was hampered and tarnished by almost all british policies implimented by the thatcherite era. it was a time that the stock market was considered the "be all" mentality and be damned to british owned/run entities and just making the fast bucks for short term gains. and thus creating the foriegn ownership of british business/commerce, oh and the slow implimentation of the dismemberment of the N.H.S. and welfare systems. and to just point out, i was a labour supporter right up until blair joined forces in the illegal war in iraq, and while i have never actually commited to the conservative party i never had any real issue about john major and i personally think sunak isn't the worst conservatives have to offer in recent times, just to show that i don't have any hard bias 😉

[@johnfisher9816]

The '70's in Britain was grim, whereas for us in North American it was comparatively much better. Simon Whistler presentations are essays! I really enjoy watching his videos. This one was particularly good. Thanks Joel, John in Canada

[@O.O.O.K999]

Well, M.T. was only P.M. for the last six months of the 1970's and as someone who lived through the 1970's in Britain, yes it had problems, every decade does, but I'd go back to the UK as it was in the 1970's in a heartbeat and it's a sentiment shared by many.

[@101steel4]

The 70s were great. Best decade of my life so far.

[@johnfisher9816]

@@101steel4 I had a ball in the '70's, and the 80's too. Very fond memories. Mind you, my stays in England since 2000 have been absolutely outstanding!!! John

[@W0rdsandMus1c]

@@101steel4 Although I love a lot about today, the 70s was my teenage years and it was great even with the power cuts, All downhill from MT 80s I'm alright Jack attitude, everyone out for themselves, I do think a lot of the younger generation are becoming more socially caring again, but is it to late? I hope not

[@lynette.]

We were still rebuilding after the war. The 70s were a strange time but also a fun time to be alive.

[@paulguise698]

Hiya Joel, that horrible cow knocked the Great Out Of Britain, that's all I have to say on this topic, this is Choppy in Whitehaven, Cumberland, England

[@Thorpeman]

70’s was a great time to be alive! We couldn’t get sugar so stopped having it in tea & coffee and no more sugar on cereal either and after the strikes were over I never started back on it. Also the 3 days of power? Obviously he wasn’t around that was rubbish we had 3 day weeks but power used to go off for 3 or 4 hours at a time and the TV went off air at 10pm to encourage people to go to bed and stop using power. We used to play outdoors a lot more back then so it wasn’t the end of the world when power was restricted we boiled water and put it in a flask we also had gas so we had hot water and could cook we just couldn’t use the pump to distribute the water to the radiators. But we could bath and shower and back then landline phones still worked without power from your home 😉

[@bobbyoscroft9341]

she is the leader we need right now,,, would love to see her none nonsense approach to the immigrant invasion and the ni protocol,, the strongest the u.k has been in years was under her..... god rest her soul

[@gloriahoulihan8717]

Harold Wilson said that whoever came after him would have a tough job. When I was working in the 70's we would all pile into a candle lit pub when the electric went out. Great music and clothing,hair styles etc. Great time for me I am afraid 😊

[@alisonrodger3360]

Boys from the Blackstuff, a tv series of the time, is an excellent and hard hitting watch showing the impact of her policies.

[@rafaelbarrera2612]

As an American speaking, The 1970s were an economic malaise for Britain as they were for America. Both Reagan and Thatcher left their countries stronger overall by the 1980s. I actually saw her signing her books at Marshall Field’s, Chicago, during the 1990s .

[@annedunne4526]

Reagan and Thatcher smashed the trade unions and led to today's kind of capitalism including cutting benefits and treating workers like cogs in a wheel designed for making money for the rich. " Strong" is not the word. I never saw more joy in the UK than when she died.

[@wolfie5]

How was doubling unemployment in the UK - selling off nationalised industries and putting it greater in debt ever making it stronger? In what category was Britain stronger because of Thatcher?

[@brettrigby2226]

I live in her home town, there was a statue erected of her here and people cover it in a paint all the time; It was suppose to be put up in london but they didn't want it because of all the negativity it would bring

[@TheDiplococcus]

Thatcher destroyed my life. She introduced something called Section 28, a ruling that forbade schools from discussing LGBTQ+ issues positively. As a result of her homophobia a whole generation of LGBTQ+ youth grew up with no idea of who they were beyond playground talk. negative media and the rise of HIV. I grew up with no positive role models and no affirmations, thinking and genuinely believing that I was some kind of disgusting monster destined to die young and debauched among people celebrating my passing. To this day I still suffer the mental health scars.

[@JonInCanada1]

She was a vile and evil harpy.

[@DavidJonesy]

Section 28 placed an obligation on LEAs, not schools, and not teachers.

[@astronowolf]

@@DavidJonesy LEAs ran the schools. The actual effect was that schools and teachers treated the subject as taboo. It was not to be discussed and any homophobic bullying was ignored. Along with the terrifying AIDS adverts on TV, rampantly homophobic press, and Thatchers own homophobic rhetoric led to young people growing up in a highly hostile environment. She won't be forgiven for that by many who experienced it.

[@DavidJonesy]

@@astronowolf S28 was a stricture on LEAs. My other half was a teacher while S28 was still in effect. It never stopped her discussing it. Bullying was never ignored.

[@astronowolf]

@@DavidJonesy Are you trying to just defend your partners honour here? That they were a decent teacher and didn’t tolerate bullying. Or are you trying to defend section 28?

[@petedenton9434]

Having lived through the Thatcher era I find this fascinating. She had some vile views and many of her policies and actions had a huge negative impact on millions of people's lives. She also had a clear grasp of some things which almost certainly needed to happen - and which had a positive impact on millions of people's lives. Like all of us, she was flawed. My sense is that she acted with integrity and was truthful to her internal values. My personal view is that a well governed country needs to fluctuate between 'left leaning' and 'right leaning' political leadership. Left leaning tends to be important for improving the lives of people who are least likely to have their voices heard. Right leaning tends to be important in terms of keeping the people who have money and power engaged and investing in a country. Thatcher found a way to eliminate some of the problems that blighted the 1970s (although I remember that period as one where we learnt to make the most of what we had and generally be happy). I think she remained in power about 10 years too long - enabling her to go on and do more damage to individual people's wellbeing and the communities they lived in. Life is complex, politics is messy. Just about everyone on the planet does a mix of good and harm in their lifetime.

[@revbenf6870]

The only redeeming thing about the 70s was the sheer volume of great rock and pop music from Britain with the rise of bands like Pink Floyd, the Who, Led Zeppelin, Queen, artists like Eric Clapton and others. 1971 was a year in which many important seminal albums were released....

[@stevepritchard2756]

Her policy of selling all state owned things are now showing how bad it can be.

[@tonyblackshaw5047]

I taught in school in the mining area of Nottinghamshire during the Miners' Strike. I had children who had fathers on strike and children who had fathers not on strike. I drove from where I lived to school. A journey of 40 minutes. With Police from the Nottinghamshire Constabulary, sometimes from Essex Constabulary and the Metropolitan Police from London. I was stopped at every road junction on the journey while the Police asked me each time who I was, where I was going and why...EVERY junction to and then later home from school. On my own in the car with a teachers' union sticker in the rear windscreen. The journey began to take an hour and a half! It was like living in a Police state...stopping me without good cause whilst going about my lawful business. Now the miners were not angels by any means but the police were brutal by British standards. Thatcher went on to destroy the mining communities in Nottinghamshire and every where else. She even turned on those miners who had stayed in work. She is THE most divisive prime minister we have had. She should NEVER have been awarded a (State) Ceremonial Funeral. She pretended to be using diplomacy to avoid war in The Falklands but wanted a war against Argentina and is responsible for the order to sink the Argentinian battlecruiser The Belgrano with great loss of life! All this over a group of wind-blown rocks in the South Atlantic and against the opposition of the US Government. I think you get my drift...I am not a Thatcher supporter! Her ministers were mired in sleaze which got worse after her departure from office until in 1997 when the Labour Party swept to power with a landslide majority.

[@johnloony68]

17:23 Margaret Thtacher admitted in her own autobiography that she realised that a new approach was needed to the conflict in Northern Ireland (because the status quo wasn’t working) but that she genuinely didn’t know what the solution was. Now there is a power-sharing system in which the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister come from each of the two communities. It sometimes doesn’t work well, but it’s better than the conflict continuing.