Handbagged by Lady T? Now it has a whole new meaning!
Mother-in-law would certainly approve as new Lady Thatcher designs range of... luxury bags
NINE years ago, Lady Francis Russell became the new wife of Sir Mark Thatcher, acquiring the title Lady Thatcher in the process.
And it seems it is not the only thing she has inherited from her formidable Iron Lady namesake.
For it has emerged that Lady Thatcher also has a passion for handbags – and has even co- designed a new collection of her own. The colourful bags, purses and keyrings, which range from £95 for a keyring to £4,960 for a tote, were launched this week by the website LuxuryPromise.com, which specialises in high-end bags, shoes and jewellery.
‘I have always had a passion for handbags,’ Lady Thatcher says. ‘I developed my love for bags at a young age – my friends and family know how much I adore handbags.’
The former Prime Minister rarely left No 10 without her iconic black Launer bag, and it became a key component of her image.
Indeed, the Iron Lady’s vigorous approach to tackling opponents – both inside and outside the Tory Party – ensured that the verb ‘to handbag’ made it into the Oxford English Dictionary.
An auction of many of her personal effects at Christie’s in 2015, two years after her death from a stroke, saw bags snapped up by international bidders, with one fetching £47,500.
The Victoria and Albert Museum has announced it is hunting for an original Thatcher handbag to exhibit alongside a collection of her famous frocks.
So closely associated was the Baroness with her handbag that a project last year to erect a £300,000 statue to commemorate her political career was halted by the intervention of her daughter Carol, who complained that the sculptor had omitted the crucial detail.
The current Lady Thatcher married Sir Mark in Gibraltar in 2008, and the couple divide their time between Britain, Spain and Barbados.
In an interview on the website, she says her new collection is handmade by a company in South Africa from ethically farmed ostrich, python and Nile crocodile skins.
‘I wanted to create pieces that would be considered timeless and appeal to today’s modern woman,’ she says. ‘I think fashion and colour are a great way of expressing yourself. My passion was to create a bag which was luxurious that would make any lady holding my bag feel elegant and empowered.’
A sentiment with which the late Baroness Thatcher would undoubtedly have concurred. The V& A once described her wardrobe as ‘a strategic tool to project power and inspire confidence’.
And a £4,960 black Nile crocodile tote would be perfect for handbagging any fashion rivals.