Margaret Thatcher Trivia Quiz

Answer: Grantham, Lincolnshire

Margaret Hilda Roberts was born and raised in the small market town of Grantham, which is also the birthplace of Sir Isaac Newton.

Answer: Grocer

Alfred Roberts was Grantham's grocer and the young Margaret Thatcher grew up above the shop; 'the Grocer's daughter' became the first of many nicknames. Roberts was also Alderman of the town and he is credited with getting his daughter interested in politics.

Answer: 1959

Margaret Thatcher fought for and lost the safe labour seat of Dartford in the 1950 and 1951 elections before winning Finchley in 1959 and taking her seat in the House of Commons.

Answer: Secretary of State for Education

In 1970 Margaret Thatcher became Secretary of State for Education. In the post she stopped free milk for schoolchildren earning her the nickname 'Thatcher, the milk snatcher.'

Answer: Yes

Although Margaret Thatcher is renowned for being a Eurosceptic, in 1975 she supported remaining in the European project and though throughout her premiership she was critical of Europe she never advocated a UK withdrawal.

Answer: May, 1979

On 4th May 1979 Margaret Thatcher defeated James Callaghan in the general election to become the forty-ninth Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the first woman to hold the post.

Answer: Soviet propaganda

The Soviets were calling Margaret Thatcher 'The Iron Lady' before she became Prime Minister, due to her strong opposition to communism. Although coined by one of her critics, Mrs Thatcher was said to like the nickname.

Answer: The invasion of Grenada

The relationship between Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher is considered one of the closest and most important political friendships of the twentieth century. That relationship was tested to its limits on 25th October 1983 when, without talking to Mrs Thatcher, President Reagan invaded Grenada, whose head of state is Queen Elizabeth, in Operation Urgent Fury.

This led to a very angry telephone exchange between Reagan and Thatcher that became legend in both the White House and Downing Street.

Answer: Arthur Scargill

Arthur Scargill was leader of the National Union of Mineworkers during the coal miners' strikes in the 1980s. The strikes were started by the union when the Thatcher government began to close the coal pits. Unlike previous PMs, Margaret Thatcher stood up to the unions and after a year of strikes the miners finally gave in and Mrs Thatcher continued her reforms.

Answer: Michael Heseltine

In 1986 Michael Heseltine famously walked out of Downing Street in the middle of a cabinet meeting and announced his resignation to the stunned journalists outside. Heseltine had resigned because of a disagreement he had had with Margaret Thatcher over the struggling Westland helicopter company.

Heseltine wanted Westland to merge with BAe and Agusta but Mrs Thatcher favoured a merger with Sikorsky and Heseltine was overruled. Known as the Westland affair the resignation is seen as the beginning of the end for Margaret Thatcher's premiership.