Tributes have been pouring in for Denis Thatcher who died on Thursday at the age of 88.
Prime Minister Tony Blair described the millionaire businessman, who had suffered a series of heart problems in recent months, as a "kind and generous-hearted man, a real gentleman". Meanwhile, former Tory party chairman Lord Tebbit referred to him as "a very decent man who put his interests second to those of his wife and country".
Current party leader Iain Duncan-Smith also paid tribute to the man Margaret Thatcher once called the "golden thread" in her life. "His role as husband to Lady Thatcher has for too long been unrecognised. He was a vital element in her success. His common sense and straight talking often helped her."
The millionaire businessman was married for 52 years to the legendary Iron Lady and his death will have come as a tremendous blow to the former premier says her ex-press secretary Sir Bernard Ingham. "A great deal has been lost in her life. She's not all that well in herself in terms of loss of memory, therefore I don't think she's going to find it easy to recover."
Mr Thatcher's title – he was awarded a hereditary baronetcy in 1991 - will pass to the couple's son Mark, 49, who lives in South Africa.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
