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Monarchs of the United Kingdom
1952-1981:
Elizabeth II (Windsor)
1981-2021:
Charles III (Windsor)
2021-0000:
William V (Windsor)
Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom
1979-1982:
Margaret Thatcher (Conservative)
1979 (Majority) def. Jim Callaghan (Labour), David Steel (Liberal), Harry West (Ulster Unionist)
1982-1983:
Willie Whitelaw (Conservative majority)
1983-1984:
Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton (Conservative led National Government)
1984-1984:
Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton (Conservative led Caretaker Government)
1984; David Steel (Liberal), Michael Foot (Labour), disputed (Social Democratic), vacant (Conservative), Robert Bradford (Ulster Unionist)
1984-1989:
David Owen (SDP-Conservative coalition, with Liberal confidence and supply)
1989-1993:
David Owen (Social Democratic)
1989 (Coalition with Greens and Conservatives) def. Tony Benn (Labour), David Icke (Green), Jimmy Goldsmith (Conservative), David Penhaligon (Liberal), Robert Bradford (Ulster Unionist)
1993-1994:
'Cabinet Government' (SDP-Green-Conservative coalition, with UUP confidence and supply)
1994-1998:
Jimmy Goldsmith (Peoples')
1994 (Majority) def. collective (Democratic Opposition - Labour, Liberals, Greens), Ian Paisley (Ulster Unionist)
1998-1999:
Alan Clark (Peoples' majority)
1999-2004:
'Cabinet Government' (Peoples')
1999 (Majority) def. Dennis Skinner (Labour), David Icke (Turquoise Alliance - Turquoise Group, UUP), collective (United Democracy)
2004-2014:
Tim Collins (Peoples')
2004 (Majority) def. Dennis Skinner (Labour), Peter Hain (United Democracy), David Icke (Turquoise Alliance - Turquoise Group, UUP)
2009 (Majority) def. Dennis Skinner (Labour), Nick Griffin (National Front), 'Hunter S. Thompson' (United Democracy), David Icke (Turquoise Group), Peter Robinson (Ulster Unionist)
2014-2021:
Zac Goldsmith (Peoples')
2014 (Majority) def. Nick Griffin (National Front), Dennis Skinner (Labour), 'Johnny Depp' (United Democracy), Peter Robinson (Ulster Unionist)
2019 (Majority) def. Steven Patrick Morrissey (National Front), J.K. Rowling (United Democracy), Dave Nellist (Socialist Alternative), Edwin Poots (Ulster Unionist)
2021-0000:
'Cabinet Government' (Peoples' majority)
The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy. If you believe that, I have a bridge to sell you.
In 1981, Queen Elizabeth II was assassinated while on a state visit in New Zealand. This plunged the Westminster Government into a constitutional crisis, terminally weakening then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's leadership. This was accentuated by emerging allegations of widespread sexually predatory behaviour, and her protecting certain perpetrators allied to her political project. In 1982 she left of her own accord. While Whitelaw did some patching, his own leadership was undermined by the loss of the Malvinas Islands to Argentina. While the Tories had adopted elections for their leadership in the 1960s, this was an unprecedented moment of crisis. The King intervened, forming a National Government led by former Prime Minister Macmillan from the Lords.
Macmillan continued to lead after the 1984 elections and the immediate collapse of the SDP-Liberal Alliance as Roy Jenkins and David Owen fell out over the circumstances of building a governing coalition. Once again, the King intervened, smoothing the path to a broad (and anti-socialist) coalition. Owen would govern for nearly a decade, facing off against a firmly republican Labour leadership, enduring the near collapse of the Liberal Party over the aftermath of Thatcher era revelations and the continued confidence and supply agreement, and taking the insurgent rise of the Greens in his stride.
In 1993 however, the wheels came off Owen's government - David Icke had been an invaluable ally in ensuring his governing coalition's viability. The start of his 'Turquoise Period' put an end to that as he began to speak openly of conspiracies, involving the British monarchy amongst others. While the Green Party splintered into multiple shards, and Owen was forced to submit his resignation, King Charles entered the Cabinet Office to chair meetings of his Ministers personally. The brief 'Cabinet Government' saw the formalisation of what had been happening for over a decade - deep personal involvement of the monarchy in the day to day running of the country. And to ensure his legacy was secured, the allies of the King were formalised into the Peoples' Party. Including hard-right adherents of absolute monarchy and running across to christian democrats and centrist ecologists, the Peoples' Party is the de facto parliamentary wing of Buckingham Palace.
The undermining of the Opposition has become routine and almost naked. The Labour Party became a party of doctrinaire republican socialism, unwilling to collaborate with potential allies in the former Liberal and Green Parties, while the conspiratorial fusion of Ickeists and British Israelites in Ulster was tolerated to present a contrast to the governing party. With the eventual collapse of that alliance, the National Front was sponsored, fragmenting Labour support in their working class heartlands and of the UDP in their prosperous suburbs. The UDP became ensnared by 'celebrity politics', initially as a publicity gimmick, and now formally under the leadership of Rowling who has led their party in a similarly conspiratorial route - albeit one that distracts from the true conspiracy that has centralised power in the monarchy's hands more thoroughly than any time for nearly three centuries.
But change is afoot. The charade is falling apart, as Prince William undertakes a palace coup, holding in his hands the receipts of bloody assassinations. Now in power, William shows no sign of seeking to restore true parliamentary democracy. But the founding articles of the modern British state have been aired in public. The naked display of Royal power has rankled, and a client media establishment finds it difficult to adapt without totally revealing their abject surrender to monarchical authority, or fall afoul of Palace disapproval.