Overview

• Thatcher would have turned 100 on October 13, 2025, prompting fresh assessments of her record across the political spectrum.
• She became prime minister on May 4, 1979, the first woman to lead a major industrial nation, and served for twelve years.
• Her agenda of privatizations, deregulation and strict limits on trade unions reshaped the economy but also drove deindustrialization and mass unemployment in many communities.
• The 1982 Falklands War boosted public support and aided her 1983 election win, whereas internal rows over Europe culminated in her 1990 resignation.
• Her influence endures and remains divisive in Britain, with international figures such as Japan’s LDP leader Sanae Takaichi citing her as a role model.