X-Nico

54 unusual facts about Tony Blair


ABS Hovercraft

In 1998 Tony Blair announced on TV the Millennium Product award of the UK Design Council for the ABS M10 Hovercraft.

Alex Okosi

Interviewees have included former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Sir Richard Branson of Virgin Group, and Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf.

Angelo Sodano

On 27 December 1998, he wrote, at the request of the democratic government of Chile, an official letter to the British prime minister Tony Blair stating that "the Chilean Government considers it an offence to its territorial sovereignty as a nation the fact of being deprived of the power to judge its own citizens" through the detention of Pinochet in Britain.

Anselmo Sule

According to La Cuarta, Sule held a friendship with important politicians such as Erich Honecker, Tony Blair, and Fidel Castro, throughout his life.

Anthony Blair

Tony Blair, Anthony Charles Lynton Blair, British Prime Minister 1997–2007

Booth family

Cherie Blair, daughter of Tony Booth and the wife of Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Clive Betts

Betts was made an opposition whip under Tony Blair in 1996, and after the 1997 general election, he entered the government as an Assistant Whip.

Courtney Coventry

She was flown to UK by the Metropolitan Police at British taxpayers' expense on the day before Tony Blair was to resign from office, 26 June 2007 where she was met at London's Heathrow Airport by plainclothes police escorts.

Covert listening device

In 2003, Alastair Campbell (who was Director of Communications and Strategy from 1997-2003 for the UK PM) in his memoirs The Blair Years: The Alastair Campbell Diaries alleged that two bugs were discovered in the hotel room meant for visiting British PM Tony Blair planted by Indian intelligence agencies.

Death and funeral of Ariel Sharon

Foreign dignitaries who attended the official service included U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, former Dutch Prime Minister Wim Kok, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Czech Prime Minister Jiří Rusnok and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, among others.

Dennis Tirpak

He was the Chairman of The International Scientific Steering Committee for Avoiding Dangerous Climate Change Symposium on Stabilisation of Greenhouse Gas Concentrations which took place at the invitation of the British Prime Minister Tony Blair in 2005.

Eddington Transport Report, Victoria

In May 2006 the Victorian Government announced that as part of its "Meeting Our Transport Challenges" action plan, it had appointed Eddington–then reviewing Britain's transport system for the Blair Government–to head an independent investigation into the best transport solutions for connecting Melbourne's eastern and western suburbs.

Errol Black

He was considered to be on the left-wing of the NDP, and opposed the party's drift toward the "Third Way" socialism favoured by Tony Blair.

Europa XS

In 1997 UK Prime Minister Tony Blair launched the Millennium Products competition to promote British industry in the 21st Century.

Everyday Demons

"Too Far Gone" was written in response to then-Prime Minister Tony Blair's plans to introduce ID cards in the UK.

Freedom of Information Act 2000

By contrast, former prime minister Tony Blair responsible for passing the Act as "One of the biggest mistakes of his career".

From the Mars Hotel

This inspired the name of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair's band, Ugly Rumours.

G.ho.st

The beta launch near Jerusalem was attended by Quartet Representative and former UK prime minister Tony Blair.

Hilary Armstrong

The daughter of Labour MP Ernest Armstrong, she was shortlisted for the vacant Sedgefield constituency in 1983, only to lose out to Tony Blair.

In the Crossfire

This is the first political song of the band which denounced the alliance of Prime Minister Tony Blair with president George W. Bush (I don't see myself when I look at the flag) during the war on Iraq.

Is It Fair?

In October 2004, the petition was handed in to the then Prime Minister Tony Blair at 10 Downing Street.

Jean-Marie Bockel

On the right wing of the Socialist Party, he declared himself to be an admirer and strong supporter of the policies of Tony Blair.

Jim Dickson

Politically he is identified with the right wing of the Labour Party and was leading Lambeth's Labour Group when it was described as "more New Labour than New Labour" by then Prime Minister, Tony Blair.

Llin Golding, Baroness Golding

Baroness Golding was the peer who vouched for the two 'Fathers for Justice' protesters who threw a flour bomb at Prime Minister Tony Blair during Prime Minister's Questions on 19 May 2004.

Mayor of Mega-City One

Tony Blore in "Day of Chaos" is an obvious reference to Tony Blair, while the Illiberal Progressive/Liberal Conservative marriage refers to the then-recent Conservative – Liberal Democrat coalition agreement.

Morpeth School

Special guests who have visited Morpeth School have included Tony Blair the British Prime Minister who visited the school during his first month in office.

Murder of Yvonne Gilford

While Parry had been saved from the death penalty, there were still many questions about the overall fairness of the trial, and in March 1998, Tony Blair personally appealed to King Fahd during a state visit to resolve the situation.

National College for School Leadership

Established in 2000 as the National College for School Leadership, its physical centre – a learning and conference centre (LCC) situated in a striking building designed by Sir Michael Hopkins on the Jubilee Campus of the University of Nottingham – was opened on 24 October 2002 by Tony Blair.

Nurit Peled-Elhanan

She has criticized Israeli textbooks as being anti-Palestinian and accused George W. Bush, Tony Blair, and Ariel Sharon of fostering anti-Muslim views.

Ontario New Democratic Party

As the recession worsened, the NDP implemented what it called the Social Contract — which represented a shift to fiscal conservatism that anticipated that of the Labour Party in the United Kingdom under the leadership of Tony Blair.

Peter Stoffer

Stoffer is a populist and has been an advocate of Third Way policies championed by Tony Blair.

Plane Stupid

John Stewart explained their actions saying: "Tony Blair talks the talk about taking action on climate change while building more runways and allowing more planes at airports".

Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000

In December 2006 Prime Minister Tony Blair and politicians of other parties were questioned by police as part of their investigation into the Cash for Honours affair.

Postwar Britain

Privatization was an enduring legacy of Thatcherism; it was accepted by the Labour administration of Tony Blair.

Tony Blair was leader of the Labour Party from 1994, and three times Prime Minister (1997–2007).

Radiofrequency ablation

In 2004, former British prime minister Tony Blair underwent RF catheter ablation for recurrent atrial flutter.

Rover 800 Series

Tony Blair owned an early 800 in the 1980s, and the vice-chancellor of Middlesex University had two — one for personal use and one for official duties.

Saskatchewan New Democratic Party

Romanow later quipped that he was a supporter of Tony Blair's Third Way concept before it even existed, and there were many who doubted the party's continued commitment to social democracy.

Sheffield iSchool

John McTernan - Director of Political Operations at 10 Downing Street under Tony Blair.

Sir Michael Barber

In the past, Sir Michael served as a partner and head of the global education practice at McKinsey, advisor to UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and a global expert on education reform and implementation of large-scale system change.

During Blair’s second term, from 2001 to 2005, Barber served as the Chief Adviser on Delivery, reporting directly to Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Social Democratic Alliance

The initial attempt failed however as a group of Alþingi representatives rejected the new party's platform – which was inspired by that of Tony Blair's New Labour – and broke away before the merger to found the Left-Green Movement (Vinstrihreyfingin – grænt framboð), based on more traditional democratic socialist values as well as green politics and euroscepticism.

SpeakOut

In 2006, SpeakOut administrator Chris Johnson was recognised by British Prime Minister Tony Blair for exceptional work in the voluntary sector.

Student loans in the United Kingdom

The Labour government under Tony Blair passed the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998 which introduced tuition fees of £1,000 to start in the 1998/9 academic year.

Sule Lamido

After a September 2001 meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair in London, Lamido told the BBC that Britain was passionate over the numerous problems retarding Africa's its peace, progress and prosperity, described the meeting as "fantastic".

Thomas J. Dodd Prize in International Justice and Human Rights

2003: Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, T.D., Prime Minister of Ireland and the Right Honourable Tony Blair

Tottenham by-election, 2000

Both Sharon and Bernie Grant had been on the left-wing of the party whereas the leading black contender for the nomination, David Lammy, was a supporter of Tony Blair.

Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe

On 20 April 2004 then British prime minister Tony Blair unexpectedly promised a referendum, a proposal which he had previously rejected.

United Kingdom agency worker law

The Directive was the culmination of initial resistance by the Government under Tony Blair, and a final surge of Parliamentary support for a Temporary and Agency Workers (Equal Treatment) Bill.

Wheelbase

While Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Tony Blair was given a long wheelbase version of the Rover 75 for official use.

World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists

Tony Blair used the second congress to explain the Quartet on the Middle East's plans for the resolution of the Israel–Palestine conflict.

Zimbabwean parliamentary election, 2005

Zanu-PF is using claimed interference of Tony Blair, the British prime minister, and United States president George W. Bush in Zimbabwean politics, as an election issue.

Zoran Đinđić

His meetings with Western leaders George W. Bush, Tony Blair, Jacques Chirac and others strongly indicated that the West supported his politics.

Zubeida Malik

She has interviewed key figures for the BBC, including Kofi Annan, President Musharraf, Tony Blair, Prince Saud Al Faisal, Desmond Tutu, and the spiritual leader of Hamas Sheikh Yassin.


Azarias Ruberwa

The list also included other notable politicians such as former British PM Tony Blair and U.S. President Barack Obama.

Bond Offshore Helicopters

The company also provides VIP charter services, and in the past have flown Tony Blair, Razorlight and Supergrass to various locations.

Campbell Live

Campbell Live has interviewed various notable personalities, including Al Gore, Robert Fisk, Tony Blair, as well as an array of celebrities, including Adam Lambert and Metallica.

David Lawley Wakelin

His work includes "The Alternative Iraq Enquiry", a documentary alleging that Tony Blair is a war criminal.

Derek Foster, Baron Foster of Bishop Auckland

After Tony Blair became leader in 1994, he was keen to appoint a new Chief Whip and asked Foster to stand aside, in return for the promise of a seat in the Cabinet if and when Labour returned to power.

Des O'Connor

He has worked with many personalities of the day, from rock and pop stars, actors and TV performers, to politicians, princes, to luminaries such as Frank Sinatra, Adam Faith, Sean Connery, Liberace, the Beatles, Shirley Bassey, Barbra Streisand, Robert Redford, Cilla Black, Tony Blair and members of the Royal Family.

Directive on services in the internal market

In Tony Blair's speech to the European Parliament on 23 June, he committed the UK Presidency to try to "resolve some of the hard dossiers", of which the Services Directive was one.

Flour bomb

An example from May 2004 was the use of purple-dyed flour in condoms thrown at Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair in the chamber of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom by Fathers 4 Justice.

Foreign Policy Centre

They include 'After Multiculturalism' by Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, 'The Post-Modern State and the World Order' by Robert Cooper, 'Network Europe' and 'Public Diplomacy' by Mark Leonard, 'Brand China' by Joshua Cooper Ramo, 'Voices from Iran' by Alex Bigham and 'A Global Alliance for Global Values' by Tony Blair.

Four-hour target in emergency departments

Tony Blair felt the targets had been successful in achieving their aim.

Gary Gibbon

Gibbon won the 2006 RTS Home News Award with Jon Snow for his scoop on the Attorney General's Legal Advice on Iraq, and revealed details of Tony Blair's pre-war meeting with George W. Bush.

Itchen College

Itchen Sixth Form College was widely publicised during the 2001 General Election after a visit by Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Karen Hicks

Hicks has worked as Deputy National Field Director for the Democratic National Committee, including John Kerry's presidential campaign in 2004, and for Prime Minister Tony Blair and the Labour Party of Britain (2005).

Kat Fletcher

Although a long standing member of the Labour paty, she ran on a leftist platform as a member of the Campaign for Free Education (CFE) criticising the NUS proximity to Tony Blair's Labour government, particularly on the issue of tuition fees.

Kevin Barron

Kevin Barron was a leading figure in the campaign to rewrite Clause IV under the new leadership of Tony Blair and it came as a surprise that there was no job in government for him after the victorious 1997 general election.

Kimberly Quinn

In 2001, she married Quinn; during this marriage, she had an affair with David Blunkett, Home Secretary in Tony Blair's ministry.

Linda Colley

In 1999, Colley was one of several speakers invited to deliver a Millennium Lecture at 10 Downing Street by the then Prime Minister, Tony Blair, and his wife Cherie Blair.

LiveLeak

The site came to prominence in 2007 following the unauthorized filming and leaking of the execution of Saddam Hussein, and was referred to by White House Press Secretary Tony Snow and then-British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

New Labour, New Danger

The main poster used in the campaign involved a picture of Labour Party leader Tony Blair on a black background with a strip of the poster appearing to be torn off across the eyes of Blair.

Office for Judicial Complaints

On 23 January 2010 Cherie Booth QC, wife of Tony Blair (who until recently had been Prime Minister of the United Kingdom), was sitting as a Recorder in a case where a man was found guilty violent assault in which he broke another man's jaw in a queue in a bank.

One more heave

The electoral success of such an approach was never tested as Smith died of a heart attack in 1994 and Tony Blair won the subsequent leadership election.

Operation Murambatsvina

Kate Hoey MP called on former British Prime Minister Tony Blair to encourage South Africa to use its regional influence to put pressure on Zimbabwean authorities to cease the crackdown.

Pavle Kalinić

He wrote introductions for several books translated into Croatian, such as The Third Way by Tony Blair, Clash of Fundamentalisms by Tariq Ali, Disarming Iraq by Hans Blix, The Fateful Triangle by Noam Chomsky.

Pontifical Irish College

Important contemporary visitors to the college include Pope John Paul II, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and Irish President Mary McAleese.

Roger Gale

His Labour Party opponent in the 1983 election was Cherie Blair, wife of the former Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Saddam Hussein's alleged shredder

The Suns political editor Trevor Kavanagh wrote in February 2004 that "Public opinion swung behind Tony Blair as voters learned how Saddam fed dissidents feet first into industrial shredders."

Sidney Blumenthal

He was present at the two original conferences, both in the U.K. and America in which he became friends with the newly elected Labour leader Tony Blair.

TeaMp0isoN

The group published in Pastebin what appeared to be the address book and other private data of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, in June 2011.

Ted Wragg

Although initially his beliefs were reflected by the government of Tony Blair, he later fell out with it and attacked it, nicknaming Ruth Kelly "Ruth Dalek" and "The Duchess of Drivel"; he also coined the nickname 'Tony Zoffis' (Tony's office) for Andrew Adonis, then a member of the Downing Street policy unit but subsequently ennobled and appointed as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Education.

The Curious Incident of the WMD in Iraq

It is a fictional autobiography of then British Prime Minister Tony Blair, parodying the style of Mark Haddon's novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

The Swaminarayan School

Since its creation, it has been visited by many famous people, including Tony Blair, General Sir Richard Dannatt GCB, The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall.

United Kingdom agency worker law

In 1997, when Tony Blair led New Labour to election victory, the approach to employment policy he brought was one of upholding labour market flexibility.

Walter Scheib

His creations were served to many world leaders, including Tony Blair, Jacques Chirac, Vicente Fox, Václav Havel, Nelson Mandela and Boris Yeltsin.