Carol Thatcher

The Honourable
Carol Thatcher

Thatcher (left) with U.S. President Jimmy Carter and her mother (middle right) in 1979
Born Carol Jane Thatcher
(1953-08-15) 15 August 1953
Hammersmith, London, England
Residence Klosters-Serneus, Switzerland
Alma mater University College London
Occupation Journalist, author, media personality
Style The Honourable Carol Thatcher
Parent(s) Denis Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Relatives Mark Thatcher (brother)
Alfred Roberts (grandfather)

Carol Jane Thatcher (born 15 August 1953) is an English journalist, author, and media personality. She is the daughter of Margaret Thatcher, a former British Prime Minister, and Denis Thatcher. She has written biographies of both her parents and also produced a documentary about her father which contained his only public interview. She won the fifth series of the reality show I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!.

Early life

Thatcher was born in Hammersmith, London, on 15 August 1953. She and her twin brother, Mark, were born six weeks prematurely by C-section. According to Margaret Thatcher, her husband Denis Thatcher responded to seeing their children for the first time by saying, "My God, they look like rabbits. Put them back."[1] Thatcher's mother was selected for Finchley in 1958 and was elected as a Member of Parliament in 1959.[2][3]

In 1960, Thatcher was sent to Queenswood School, a girls' boarding school near Hatfield, Hertfordshire,[4] before attending St. Paul's Girls' School.[5] She graduated with a law degree from University College London,[5] before moving to Australia in 1977 to begin a journalism career.[4] While she was there, her mother was elected Prime Minister. Thatcher later said, "You need quite good shock absorbers and a sense of humour to be the Prime Minister's child."[4]

Career

Thatcher began her career as a journalist in Australia, working on the Sydney Morning Herald from 1977 to 1979. She became a TV reporter at Channel Seven, also in Sydney, and later a reporter on its news morning show, 11AM. On her return to Britain, she worked as a presenter for LBC, BBC Radio 4, TV-am and wrote travel articles for The Daily Telegraph. Due to her mother's high-profile political position, many newspapers refused to publish work with her byline.[6][7]

Her first book, Diary of an Election: with Margaret Thatcher on the campaign trail, was published in 1983. Her second book, a collaboration with tennis player Chris Evert (Mrs Lloyd) called Lloyd on Lloyd, was released three years later. It became Thatcher's first best-seller.[7][8]

Later publications included a 1996 best-selling biography of her father, Below the Parapet.[7] In 2003, Thatcher produced a Channel 4 documentary about him called Married to Maggie. Thatcher captured the only public interview Denis Thatcher gave in his lifetime; he died shortly after its release.[9] Thatcher's freelance career has included contributing articles to magazines and papers as well as television work.[10]

The One Show

From 2006 to 2009, Thatcher was a freelance contributor to the BBC One magazine programme The One Show, making filmed reports and joining the presenters and guests in the studio for discussions. On 3 February 2009, British media reported that during the 2009 Australian Open Thatcher had, in a conversation in the show's green room, referred to a black[11] tennis player, reportedly Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, as a golliwog.[12]

According to The Times, Thatcher called Tsonga "half-golliwog" and "the golliwog Frog".[13] Presenter Adrian Chiles, comedian Jo Brand, journalists and several guests[14] were with Thatcher when she made the remark. The BBC stated that Thatcher would not work again on The One Show unless she made a more sincere apology.[15] Thatcher refused, saying "I stand by what I said. I wasn't going to apologise. I never meant it in a racist way. It was shorthand. I described someone's appearance colloquially—someone I happen to greatly admire."[10]

Reality shows

I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!

In November 2005 Thatcher was selected to appear with a number of fellow celebrities on the ITV television show I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!. The format of the show meant that she would be forced to spend at least a week in the Australian rainforest with a minimal supply of food in basic living conditions.

She had to undergo one of the more infamous "Bushtucker Trials" during her stay in the jungle — which saw her eat jungle bugs and kangaroo testicles as a challenge to earn food for her fellow celebrities. Ultimately, she emerged as the fifth series winner and second 'Queen of the Jungle'.[16]

Most Haunted

Thatcher appeared on Living TV's Most Haunted on 13 February 2007 as a celebrity guest alongside presenter Yvette Fielding and medium David Wells as well as Joanne Gregory to search for paranormal activity at Tatton Hall in Cheshire.

Mummy's War

In 2007, Carol Thatcher travelled to the Falkland Islands and Argentina for the documentary Mummy's War, in order to explore the legacy of the Falklands War. Whilst receiving a highly positive reception from the pro-British islanders (who regard her mother as a heroine), her reception in Argentina provoked protests and demonstrations (including the cry "Your mother is a war criminal!"). During her stay in Argentina, she met a group of mothers who lost their sons during the conflict and stated, "We were fighting a war; we won, you lost," and reminded them that it was their country that invaded the islands, thus initiating the conflict. The interview ended with one of the women claiming that "God will punish her (Margaret Thatcher)".

Bibliography

Thatcher has written several books, including: Below the Parapet: the Biography of Denis Thatcher (1996) and Diary of an Election: with Margaret Thatcher on the Campaign Trail (1983). On 4 September 2008 Headline Publishers released A Swim-on Part in the Goldfish Bowl: A Memoir, which recounts the decline of Margaret Thatcher's health and the onset of her dementia.[17]

Personal life

Thatcher had a relationship with Jonathan Aitken, which ended in 1979.[18] As this happened just after the Conservatives won the general election, Aitken's breaking up with Thatcher is alleged to have been the reason for his being bypassed for a ministerial career; Thatcher's mother, the Prime Minister at the time, reportedly told cabinet colleagues that she was "damned" if she was going to give a job to a man "who had made Carol cry".[1][19]

Thatcher lives with ski instructor Marco Grass in Klosters-Serneus, Switzerland.[20]

References

  1. 1 2 Gillian Bowditch "Oh Carol, why are we so in love with you?" The Scotsman, 7 December 2005. Retrieved on 8 February 2009.
  2. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 41842. p. 6433. 13 October 1959. Retrieved 28 February 2008.
  3. ↑ "Biography". Margaret Thatcher Foundation. Retrieved 9 December 2007.
  4. 1 2 3 Langley, William (30 August 2008). "Carol Thatcher, daughter of the revolution". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 25 June 2009.
  5. 1 2 Hoggard, Liz (27 November 2005). "Queen of the jungle". Guardian.
  6. ↑ Liz Hoggard "Queen of the jungle", The Observer, 27 November 2005. Retrieved on 8 February 2009.
  7. 1 2 3 Thatcher, Carol (25 September 2006). "Carol Thatcher: My Life in Media". The Independent. UK. Retrieved 25 June 2009.
  8. ↑ "Amazon Entry: Lloyd on Lloyd". ISBN 0825303745.
  9. ↑ Thatcher, Carol (2002–2003). "Married to Maggie". Central Books. ISBN 1904734049.
  10. 1 2 Bryony Gordon (3 June 2009). "Carol Thatcher: Life in my mother's shadow". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 25 June 2009.
  11. ↑ "Thatcher axed by BBC's One Show". BBC News. 4 February 2009. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
  12. ↑ Singh, Anita (4 February 2009). "Carol Thatcher 'golliwog' jibe referred to black tennis player Jo-Wilfried Tsonga". The Daily Telegraph. UK. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
  13. ↑ Carol Thatcher's golliwog remarks ‘made eyes roll in the green room’ Archived 15 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine.
  14. ↑ "BBC defends action over Thatcher". BBC News. 5 February 2009. Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  15. ↑ Pierce, Andrew (5 February 2009). "Carol Thatcher golliwog row: behind the doors of the Green Room". The Daily Telegraph. UK. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
  16. ↑ Robin Stummer "Carol Thatcher: 'I partly blame Mark for Mummy's anguish'", Archived 1 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine. The Independent, 11 December 2005. Retrieved on 7 February 2009.
  17. ↑ "Book Recounts Margaret Thatcher's Decline". CBS News. 25 August 2008.
  18. ↑ Francis Elliott "Lady Thatcher's friends hit back at 'betrayal of family secrets'", The Independent, 28 May 2006. Retrieved on 7 February 2009.
  19. ↑ "UK Politics: Jonathan Aitken – a 'swashbuckling' life", BBC News, 7 December 1998. Retrieved on 8 February 2009.
  20. ↑ http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2310777/Carol-Thatchers-Swiss-ski-instructor-boyfriend-Marco-shoulder-mothers-funeral.html
Preceded by
Joe Pasquale		 I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here!
Winner
2005 		Succeeded by
Matt Willis
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