Theresa May trivia: 103 amazing facts about the British politician!

Theresa May is a British politician that for three years was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. She recently resigned!

So it’s the perfect time to find out some trivia and facts about her career!

Her full name is Theresa Mary May
She was born on 1 October 1956
She is a British politician
Serving as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
And Leader of the Conservative Party since 2016
May was first elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Maidenhead in 1997
And served as Home Secretary from 2010 to 2016
Ideologically, she identifies herself as a one-nation conservative
May grew up in Oxfordshire and attended St Hugh’s College, Oxford
After graduating in 1977, she worked for the Bank of England
She also served as a councillor for Durnsford in Merton
After unsuccessful attempts to be elected to the House of Commons she was elected as the MP for Maidenhead in the 1997 general election
From 1999 to 2010, May held a number of roles in Shadow Cabinets
She was also Chairwoman of the Conservative Party from 2002 to 2003
When the coalition government was formed after the 2010 general election
May was appointed Home Secretary and Minister for Women and Equalities
But gave up the latter role in 2012
She continued to serve as home secretary after the Conservative victory in the 2015 general election
And became the longest-serving home secretary in over 60 years
During her tenure she pursued reform of the Police Federation
Implemented a harder line on drugs policy
Including the banning of khat
Oversaw the introduction of elected Police and Crime Commissioners
The deportation of Abu Qatada
And the creation of the National Crime Agency
And brought in additional restrictions on immigration
She is to date, the only woman to hold two of the great offices of state
In July 2016, after David Cameron resigned, May was elected as Conservative Party Leader
Becoming Britain’s second female Prime Minister after Margaret Thatcher
As Prime Minister, May began the process of withdrawing the UK from the European Union
Triggering Article 50 in March 2017
The following month, she announced a snap general election
With the aim of strengthening her hand in Brexit negotiations and highlighting her “strong and stable” leadership
This resulted in a hung parliament
In which the number of Conservative seats fell from 330 to 317
Despite the party winning its highest vote share since 1983
The loss of an overall majority prompted her to enter a confidence and supply arrangement with the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP)
To support a minority government
Since forming a second ministry on 11 June 2017, May has faced a significant number of ministerial resignations
May survived a vote of no confidence from her own MPs in December 2018
And a Parliamentary vote of no confidence in January 2019
May said that she would not lead her party in the next general election scheduled for 2022
Under the Fixed-term Parliaments Act
But did not rule out leading it into a snap election
May carried out the Brexit negotiations with the European Union
Adhering to the Chequers Agreement
Which resulted in the draft Withdrawal Agreement between the UK and the EU
This agreement was defeated by Parliament in January 2019
In the largest majority against a British government in history
May announced a revised deal
But this was defeated in Parliament by 391 votes to 242
In March 2019, May committed to stepping down as Prime Minister if Parliament passed her Brexit deal
To make way for a new leader in the second phase of Brexit
However, the Withdrawal Agreement was rejected for a third time
On 24 May 2019, she announced that her resignation as party leader would take effect on 7 June
She stated that she would remain in office as prime minister until a successor is chosen in a Conservative Party leadership election
Born on 1 October 1956 in Eastbourne, Sussex
May is the only child of Zaidee Mary and Hubert Brasier
Her father was a Church of England clergyman
Who was chaplain of an Eastbourne hospital
He later became vicar of Enstone with Heythrop
And finally of St Mary’s at Wheatley, to the east of Oxford
May’s mother was a supporter of the Conservative Party
Her father died from injuries sustained in a car accident in 1981
And her mother of multiple sclerosis the following year
May later stated she was “sorry they [her parents] never saw me elected as a Member of Parliament”
May initially attended Heythrop Primary School
A state school in Heythrop
Followed by St. Juliana’s Convent School for Girls
A Roman Catholic independent school in Begbroke
Which closed in 1984
When she was 13, May won a place at the former Holton Park Girls’ Grammar School
A state school in Wheatley
During her time as a pupil, the Oxfordshire education system was reorganised
And the school became the new Wheatley Park Comprehensive School
May attended the University of Oxford
Read geography at St Hugh’s College
And graduated with a second class BA degree in 1977
She worked in a bakery on Saturdays to earn pocket money
And was a “tall, fashion-conscious young woman who from an early age spoke of her ambition to be the first woman prime minister,” according those who knew her
A university friend, Pat Frankland, said: “I cannot remember a time when she did not have political ambitions. I well remember, at the time, she was quite irritated when Margaret Thatcher got there first”
May has been married to Philip May
An investment relationship manager currently employed by Capital International
They are married since 6 September 1980
It is widely believed that former Prime Minister of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto introduced the two during their time at Oxford
May has expressed regret that she and her husband have not been able to have children
The Mays are passionate walkers
And they regularly spend their holidays hiking in the Swiss Alps
May is also a cricket fan
Stating that Geoffrey Boycott was one of her sporting heroes
She also likes cooking
And has said that she owns 100 cookery books
May is a member of the Church of England
And regularly worships at church on Sunday
The daughter of an Anglican priest, the Reverend Hubert Brasier, May has said that her Christian faith “is part of me. It is part of who I am and therefore how I approach things”
May is known for a love of fashion
And in particular of distinctive shoes
She wore leopard-print shoes at her ‘Nasty Party’ speech in 2002
As well as her final Cabinet meeting as Home Secretary in 2016
On Desert Island Discs in 2014, she chose a subscription to Vogue as her luxury item
However, she has been critical of the media focusing on her fashion instead of her achievements as a politician
May was diagnosed with diabetes mellitus of type 1 in November 2012
She is treated with daily insulin injections