Margaret Thatcher Funeral: Mr Whippy Gets A Mention By The Bishop Of London

Margaret Thatcher has attracted a new burst of admiration from some quarters, after the Bishop of London made a reference to the late Prime Minister's reported invention of 'Mr Whippy.'

The light-hearted mention of Thatcher's legendary link to soft scoop ice cream, made by Rev Richard Chartres, lightened the mood of what was otherwise a sombre event. But can it be true? Did Thatcher give us more than the right-to-buy?

Margaret Roberts, as she was then known, initially trained as a chemist, and whilst she worked at the company that produced soft-scoop ice cream, but there remains a question mark over whether she was truly the Soft Serve Lady.

The New Yorker suggested J. Lyons & Company patented making softer ice cream by adding air into it more than a decade before the late PM joined the company.

Instead the myth of Thatcher as Mrs Whippy was originally served up as slander by the left, who used the technology of "adding air, lowering quality and raising profits" as a metaphor for her policies.

Either way, many said on Twitter they would go and buy a 99 at lunchtime in memory of the former PM.

Here are 11 other facts about Thatcher you may have forgotten.