Melanie C says Margaret Thatcher was “absolutely not” the first Spice Girl
Her bandmate Geri Horner claimed in the '90s that the former PM was the “pioneer” of Girl Power
By Tom Skinner
Melanie C has shared her own thoughts on Geri Horner’s past claim that Margaret Thatcher was “the first Spice Girl”.
Back in 1996, Horner (aka Ginger Spice) told The Spectator: “We Spice Girls are true Thatcherites. Thatcher was the first Spice Girl, the pioneer of our ideology – Girl Power.”
This summer, the singer was criticised after being pictured hugging the then-Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries and hanging out with Liz Truss. Horner is said to have expressed her support for the newly-appointed PM over the course of the Conservative Party leadership race.
In a new interview with The Independent, Mel C (aka Sporty Spice) acknowledged her bandmate’s original comments regarding Thatcher, who served as Prime Minister between 1975 and 1979. She was asked whether she agreed with Horner’s view that the ‘Iron Lady’ was the first Spice Girl.
“Abbbbbsolutely not!” she responded. “Geri, in the past, was very vocal about her support for Margaret Thatcher. I’m from Liverpool. It was a name that was not celebrated in that region.”
Mel C continued: “They were never the thoughts or feelings that I shared. People knowing me, from the things I do, are quite aware of what kind of person I am. I don’t think people think I’m a raging Tory!”
Sporty Spice went on to say that she was concerned about returning to Liverpool following the “slightly misguided” interview with The Spectator. “There have been a couple of times in my career when I’ve been nervous about going home,” she explained. “And that was one of them.”
Earlier this month, Melanie C opened up about being sexually assaulted before her first performance with the Spice Girls.
She also gave an update on a potential live return for the girl group during a recent appearance on BBC Radio 2.
Melanie C is currently at work on her ninth solo album, which will follow on from her self-titled 2020 record. Her new autobiography, Who I Am, came out on September 15.