The Thatcher administration of 1979 to 1990 had a profound and apparently lasting effect on British theatre and drama. It is now roughly a decade since the fall of Margaret Thatcher and, with the benefit of hindsight, it has become possible to disentangle fact from fantasy concerning her effect on the British theatre. During her administration, there was a significant cultural shift which affected drama in Britain. While some critics have argued that the theatre was simply affected by financial cutbacks in arts subsidies, this volume challenges that view. While it looks at the economic influence of Thatcher's policies, it also examines how her ideology shaped theatrical and dramatic discourse. It begins by defining Thatcherism and illustrating its cultural influence. It then examines the consequences of Thatcherite policies through the agency of the Arts Council of Great Britain. Having established this political and cultural environment, the book considers in detail the effect of Thatcher's administration on the subject-matter and dramatic and theatrical discourse of left-wing drama and on the subsidized political theatre companies which proliferated during the 1970s. Attention is then given to the development of constituency theatres, such as Women's and Black Theatre, which assumed an oppositional cultural stance and, in some cases, attempted to develop characteristic theatrical and dramatic discourses. The penultimate chapter deals with the effect of Thatcherite economic policy and ideology on new writing and performance, while the final chapter draws conclusions and suggests that the cultural shift perpetrated by the Thatcher regime has altered the status of subsidized theatre from an agency of cultural, spiritual, social, or psychological welfare to an entertainment industry which is viewed as largely irrelevant to the workings of society.

What links Margaret Thatcher, Rupert Murdoch, Prince Charles and Mick Jagger? Each have illuminated our Elizabethan age in their own, inimitable, way. Margaret Thatcher - the first female Prime Minister, who dedicated herself with messianic zeal to breaking the mould of post-war British politics Rupert Murdoch - the billionaire media mogul whose empire, built on an ethical void, has polluted the channels of communication from London to Sydney, from New York to New Guinea Prince Charles - the royal dilettante whose erratic exploits shook the throne and put his own succession to it at risk Mick Jagger - lead singer of the Rolling Stones, who embodied the sixties counter-culture of sex and drugs and rock 'n' roll yet aspired to be a gentleman and accepted a knighthood at the behest of Tony Blair. The sequel to Brendon's bestselling Eminent Edwardians, Eminent Elizabethans is written in the same witty, ironic and irreverent style and reveals how each one played out a major theme in the new Elizabethan medley. Each portrait vividly and vitally captured through pungent anecdote, piquant quotation and mordant commentary. In short, these brilliant miniatures are as entertaining as they are illuminating. 'Excellent' Guardian 'Entirely refreshing' Daily Mail 'A delight' Daily Express

This book synthesizes urban design and urban regeneration by examining the revitalization of a number of historic urban quarters. Its focus is on quarters or areas where there is a significant number of historic buildings concentrated in a small area; with places and area-based approaches. Many cities have such quarters that confer on them a sense of place and identity through their historic continuity and cultural associations. The quarters are often an integral element of the city's image and identity. The lessons and observations from the experience of the revitalization of such historic urban quarters forms the core of this book with a number of case study examples from North America and Europe showing a variety of approaches to and outcomes of revitalization.

Britain's first female prime minister remains a political figure of almost mythical proportions. Margaret Thatcher divided a political nation, became a cultural icon, and was the longest-serving prime minister of the twentieth century. Her period in government coincided with extraordinary changes in British society and in Britain's place in the world. Thatcher's Britaintells the story of Thatcherism for a generation with no personal memories of the 80s, as well as for those who want to revisit the polemics of their youth. It seeks to rescue Thatcher from being seen as John the Baptist for Tony Blair, stresses that Thatcherism was not a timeless phenomenon, but rooted in the 70s and 80s, and focuses our attention away from her legend, to what her government actually did during this tumultuous period in British history.

A new exploration of the relationship between the Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan administrations in domestic policy. Using recently released documentary material and extensive research interviews, James Cooper demonstrates how specific policy transfer between these 'political soul mates' was more limited than is typically assumed.

The history of Britain for the last three decades, under both Conservative and Labour governments, has been dominated by one figure - Margaret Thatcher. This is Simon Jenkin's 'argued history' of Britain over nearly 30 years.