Andy Burnham, the Makerfield MP born in Aintree, Merseyside, was sworn in as Prime Minister on Monday, July 20, after securing the backing of 349 Labour MPs. He officially becomes the first Prime Minister from the north of England in decades.
Previous Northern Prime Ministers
Margaret Thatcher, the Conservative Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990, was born in Grantham, Lincolnshire. She took elocution lessons at Oxford University to flatten her northern accent. Harold Wilson, Labour PM from 1964 to 1970 and again from 1974 to 1976, was born in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. He decided on his future career after a visit to London at age eight and was a lifelong fan of Huddersfield Town FC.
Conservative and Liberal Leaders
Anthony Eden, Conservative PM from 1955 to 1957, was born at Windlestone Hall in County Durham but was sent to boarding school in Surrey at age 10. Stanley Baldwin, Conservative PM three times between 1923 and 1937, was born in Bewdley, Worcestershire, but attended Harrow School in London. David Lloyd George, Liberal PM from 1916 to 1922, was born in Chorlton-on-Medlock, Manchester, to a Welsh family, but moved back to Wales after his father's death. Herbert Asquith, Liberal PM from 1908 to 1916, was born in Morley, Leeds, but moved to London at age 11.
19th Century and Earlier
William Gladstone, four-time Liberal PM between 1868 and 1894, was born and raised in Liverpool, but the city has largely disowned him due to his support for the slave trade. A student residence at the University of Liverpool, previously called Gladstone Hall, was renamed Dorothy Kuya Hall in 2021. Robert Peel, Conservative PM from 1841 to 1846, was born in Bury, Lancashire, to a wealthy industrialist. Robert Walpole, the first UK Prime Minister from 1721 to 1742, was born in Houghton, Norfolk, which is in the north of England by some definitions.
