Anthony Seldon is a leading authority on contemporary British history and headmaster of Wellington College, one of Britain’s best-known independent schools. He is also author or editor of over 30 books on contemporary history, politics and education, and is the biographer of Number 10 and several recent Prime Ministers.
After gaining an MA in Politics, Philosophy and Economics at Worcester College, Oxford, and a PhD at the London School of Economics, he became the top teacher in his year at King’s College, London. He also has an MBA. He taught at Whitgift School, Tonbridge (his old school), and St Dunstan’s, where he was Acting Headmaster. He then became Headmaster of Brighton College until he joined Wellington College in January 2006 as 13th Master. He was given a chair at the College of Teachers as Professor of Education, is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society and the Royal Society of Arts, and a governor of numbers bodies including the Royal Shakespeare Company.
He founded, with Professor Peter Hennessy, the Institute of Contemporary British History, and the Action For Happiness with Lord Layard and Geoff Mulgan.
Margaret Thatcher moved into Number 10 in June 1979 shortly after winning her first general election. She was not greatly impressed by the untidy flat and dullish official rooms, and when she left Downing Street eleven and a half years later, …