Commentary

Commentary (The Times)

MT & Reagan: “Old friends united by one man” (MT sees Nancy Reagan)

Document type: Press
Source: The Times , 17 June 2005
Journalist: Andrew Pierce, The Times
Editorial comments:
Importance ranking: Minor
Word count: 228 words
Themes: Autobiographical comments, Foreign policy (USA)

People with Andrew Pierce
Old friends united by one man

ONE woman was at his side as they made history on the world stage. The other was with him, at home, to the end.

Yesterday Baroness Thatcher and Nancy Reagan were reunited for the first time since Ronald Reagan’s funeral brought Washington, and much of America, to a standstill last June.

Mrs Reagan, 83, had afternoon tea with Lady Thatcher, 79, at her home in Belgravia, London. They spent 45 minutes reminiscing about the person Lady Thatcher described as "the second most important man in my life".

It was Mrs Reagan’s first time in London since her husband’s last visit as President in June 1988. It was also her first trip out of the United States since he retreated from public life in 1994 after the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease.

Lady Thatcher delivered a recorded tribute at Reagan’s funeral which transported the 4,000-strong congregtation in the National Cathedral, in Washington, back 20 years to the dangers of the Cold War era.

The former Prime Minister said that it was wonderful to see "an old friend" again. It was a happy end to a day that began inauspiciously when Mrs Reagan fell in her hotel room, requiring a hospital check-up.