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Serialised book readings, featuring works from various genres

Serialised book readings, featuring works of non-fiction, biography, autobiography, travel, diaries, essays, humour and history

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Book of the Week: Margaret Thatcher: Everything She Wants

Charles Moore

Nicholas Farrell

Jill Waters

Book of the Week: Margaret Thatcher: Everything She Wants: Episode 4

Factual: Life Stories

Margaret Thatcher: Everything She Wants

Episode 4

BBC Radio 4 - Book of the Week, Margaret Thatcher: Everything She Wants, Episode 4

The Iron Lady and the Queen beg to differ over the Commonwealth and South Africa.

Margaret Thatcher felt that sanctions were not the best way to oppose apartheid, members of the Commonwealth appealed to Her Majesty, and rumours of a rift followed.

In the aftermath of the Falklands victory, Margaret Thatcher's stock was rising. This period of almost five years, up to the 1987 election, could be described as her golden years. With a decisive majority and a pre-eminent place on the world stage she could truly begin to make her mark.

Charles Moore was authorised by Margaret Thatcher to write her biography on the condition that it was published after her death. She also encouraged her former staff and colleagues to readily offer their recollections, diaries and memoirs of their time working with and for her.

This abridgement for Radio 4 of his second volume offers a series of windows onto the key events of her second term - a term that was packed with challenges and drama.

Episode 4:
The Iron Lady and the Queen.

Music :
The music used to frame this series reflects the title of the book. As the author writes, "I have called this book Everything She Wants - the title of a song of the time by Wham! - because it expresses Mrs Thatcher's appetite for achievement and change and the degree to which she was the commanding personality of the era; but, hard as she fought for everything she wanted, this was not always what she got."
Track: 'Everything She Wants' from the Wham! album Make it Big, 1984

Read by Nicholas Farrell
Abridged and produced by Jill Waters
A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4.

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Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

Second volume of Charles Moore's portrait of the former British prime minster

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