In Memory of Mrs Maggie 'T' Thatcher

Just heard the news that Margaret Thatcher has died. In memory of the Prime Minister I was born and raised under, here is a perfectly fitting tribute from Shane Meadow's This is England. I hope this does not come across as disrespectful. No matter how much people hated the woman, she will still be an intrinsic part of my childhood. Fortunately for me, she didn't ruin the lives of those around me so I guess I have a lot less hostility towards her than some.

As soon as I heard the news of her death, I thought geez I still haven't seen The Iron Lady and I saw someone's amusing tweet saying, can we just check on Meryl Streep and make sure we definitely have the right one. I'm not sure it's quite the time for jokes yet but that was still quite funny.

Anyway I was too young to know exactly what Thatcher was up to in those days but I've since picked up enough to know she was loved and hated all around the country and was a fascinating character. I don't think I agree with much of her politics at all and I think this opening scene from This is England is the tribute most fitting. There's barely any Maggie in it as it is more about Britain in the 80s as a whole but as pop culture nostalgia turns to war, Mrst T's presence does increase towards to the end of the clip. There's a clear message in the editing of all these found footage clips and I don't think it taints the Baroness in a very positive light. Still, RIP Margaret Thatcher, you were a big part of my 80s childhood, along with Roland Rat and Knight Rider, but maybe a bit less fun!



Here's a piece I wrote on Margaret Thatcher for Yahoo.