ARCHIVED
National Archives 1981
Resources
Secret UK government papers from 30 years ago are revealed each December. This time it’s 1981 - year of the royal wedding, the Toxteth riots and the purge of the ‘wets’ from Mrs Thatcher’s cabinet
Year of turmoil highlighted in archive
In 1981, Margaret Thatcher stuck to her pledge that she was ‘not for turning’ and sacked five cabinet members in proving it
Tories debated letting Liverpool ‘decline’
Senior members of Margaret Thatcher’s government queried economic regeneration in cities such as Liverpool
Tories no friend of Liverpool, says council chief
City faces ‘exactly the same situation’ as it did under a previous Conservative government in 1981, says Labour leader
Thatcher retreated to inner cabinet to defeat ‘wets’
To overcome damaging leaks, the prime minister enforced a secretive style of government, 1981 records show
UK secretly supplied Saddam
The government tried to sell an exhaustive list of equipment from Hawk fighter jets to military air and naval bases, says the 1981 archive
Related content and features
Interactive
1981 archive quiz
This interactive quiz challenges you to match the 1981 diplomats’ descriptions, as revealed in the UK national archives, with a selection of world leaders
Slideshow: 1981 in pictures
This slideshow looks back at some of the key moments of the year
