UK Prime Minister List 2026: Andy Burnham became the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on 20 July 2026. He took over from Keir Starmer, who held the post from 2024 to 2026. Since Robert Walpole became the first Prime Minister in 1721, the office has seen 81 terms in total.
This article gives the complete UK Prime Minister list from 1721 to 2026 with names, terms in office and party details. It also explains how to check the official list on the UK government website.
UK Prime Minister List 2026
Robert Walpole is the first Prime Minister of the UK and also the longest-serving one. He stayed in office for close to 21 years. The role of the Prime Minister is to head the British Cabinet and lead the government under the monarchy. The Prime Minister picks government members and keeps an eye on civil services and government agencies.
The UK government has 120 ministers in total. This includes the Prime Minister, 22 cabinet ministers and 97 other ministers in the House of Commons. There are 23 ministerial departments and more than 300 agencies and public bodies working under the UK government.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| List Name | UK Prime Minister List |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| First Prime Minister | Robert Walpole (1721 to 1742) |
| Current Prime Minister | Andy Burnham (since 20 July 2026) |
| Previous Prime Minister | Keir Starmer (2024 to 2026) |
| Total Terms | 81 |
| Official Website | gov.uk |
Complete UK Prime Minister List from 1721 to 2026
The table below lists all UK Prime Ministers from 1721 to 2026 in chronological order. It covers the Kingdom of Great Britain, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the modern United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
| S.No | Prime Minister Name | Term of Office (Tenure) | Party |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Robert Walpole | 1721 to 1742 | Whig |
| 2 | Spencer Compton | 1742 to 1743 | Whig |
| 3 | Henry Pelham | 1743 to 1754 | Whig |
| 4 | Thomas Pelham-Holles | 1754 to 1756 (1st time) | Whig |
| 5 | William Cavendish | 1756 to 1757 | Whig |
| 6 | Thomas Pelham-Holles | 1757 to 1762 (2nd time) | Whig |
| 7 | John Stuart | 1762 to 1763 | Tory |
| 8 | George Grenville | 1763 to 1765 | Whig |
| 9 | Charles Watson Wentworth | 1765 to 1766 (1st time) | Whig |
| 10 | William Pitt, the Elder | 1766 to 1768 | Whig |
| 11 | Augustus Henry Fitzroy | 1768 to 1770 | Whig |
| 12 | Frederick North | 1770 to 1782 | Tory |
| 13 | Charles Watson Wentworth | 1782 (2nd time) | Whig |
| 14 | William Petty-Fitzmaurice | 1782 to 1783 | Whig |
| 15 | William Henry Cavendish-Bentinck | 1783 (1st time) | Whig |
| 16 | William Pitt, the Younger | 1783 to 1801 (1st time) | Tory |
| 17 | Henry Addington | 1801 to 1804 | Tory |
| 18 | William Pitt, the Younger | 1804 to 1806 (2nd time) | Tory |
| 19 | William Wyndham Grenville | 1806 to 1807 | Whig |
| 20 | William Henry Cavendish-Bentinck | 1807 to 1809 (2nd time) | Tory |
| 21 | Spencer Perceval | 1809 to 1812 | Tory |
| 22 | Robert Banks Jenkinson | 1812 to 1827 | Tory |
| 23 | George Canning | 1827 | Tory |
| 24 | Frederick John Robinson | 1827 to 1828 | Tory |
| 25 | Arthur Wellesley | 1828 to 1830 (1st time) | Tory |
| 26 | Charles Grey | 1830 to 1834 | Whig |
| 27 | William Lamb | 1834 (1st time) | Whig |
| 28 | Arthur Wellesley | 1834 (2nd time) | Tory |
| 29 | Robert Peel | 1834 to 1835 (1st time) | Conservative |
| 30 | William Lamb | 1835 to 1841 (2nd time) | Whig |
| 31 | Robert Peel | 1841 to 1846 (2nd time) | Conservative |
| 32 | John Russell | 1846 to 1852 (1st time) | Whig |
| 33 | Edward Geoffrey Stanley | 1852 (1st time) | Conservative |
| 34 | George Hamilton-Gordon | 1852 to 1855 | Peelite |
| 35 | Henry John Temple | 1855 to 1858 (1st time) | Whig |
| 36 | Edward Geoffrey Stanley | 1858 to 1859 (2nd time) | Conservative |
| 37 | Henry John Temple | 1859 to 1865 (2nd time) | Liberal |
| 38 | John Russell | 1865 to 1866 (2nd time) | Liberal |
| 39 | Edward Geoffrey Stanley | 1866 to 1868 (3rd time) | Conservative |
| 40 | Benjamin Disraeli | 1868 (1st time) | Conservative |
| 41 | William Ewart Gladstone | 1868 to 1874 (1st time) | Liberal |
| 42 | Benjamin Disraeli | 1874 to 1880 (2nd time) | Conservative |
| 43 | William Ewart Gladstone | 1880 to 1885 (2nd time) | Liberal |
| 44 | Robert Gascoyne Cecil | 1885 to 1886 (1st time) | Conservative |
| 45 | William Ewart Gladstone | 1886 (3rd time) | Liberal |
| 46 | Robert Gascoyne Cecil | 1886 to 1892 (2nd time) | Conservative |
| 47 | William Ewart Gladstone | 1892 to 1894 (4th time) | Liberal |
| 48 | Archibald Philip Primrose | 1894 to 1895 | Liberal |
| 49 | Robert Gascoyne Cecil | 1895 to 1902 (3rd time) | Conservative |
| 50 | Arthur James Balfour | 1902 to 1905 | Conservative |
| 51 | Henry Campbell-Bannerman | 1905 to 1908 | Liberal |
| 52 | H.H. Asquith | 1908 to 1916 | Liberal |
| 53 | David Lloyd George | 1916 to 1922 | Liberal |
| 54 | Bonar Law | 1922 to 1923 | Conservative |
| 55 | Stanley Baldwin | 1923 to 1924 (1st time) | Conservative |
| 56 | Ramsay Macdonald | 1924 (1st time) | Labour |
| 57 | Stanley Baldwin | 1924 to 1929 (2nd time) | Conservative |
| 58 | Ramsay Macdonald | 1929 to 1935 (2nd time) | National Labour |
| 59 | Stanley Baldwin | 1935 to 1937 (3rd time) | Conservative |
| 60 | Neville Chamberlain | 1937 to 1940 | Conservative |
| 61 | Winston Churchill | 1940 to 1945 (1st time) | Conservative |
| 62 | Clement Attlee | 1945 to 1951 | Labour |
| 63 | Winston Churchill | 1951 to 1955 (2nd time) | Conservative |
| 64 | Anthony Eden | 1955 to 1957 | Conservative |
| 65 | Harold Macmillan | 1957 to 1963 | Conservative |
| 66 | Alec Douglas-Home | 1963 to 1964 | Conservative |
| 67 | Harold Wilson | 1964 to 1970 (1st time) | Labour |
| 68 | Edward Heath | 1970 to 1974 | Conservative |
| 69 | Harold Wilson | 1974 to 1976 (2nd time) | Labour |
| 70 | James Callaghan | 1976 to 1979 | Labour |
| 71 | Margaret Thatcher | 1979 to 1990 | Conservative |
| 72 | John Major | 1990 to 1997 | Conservative |
| 73 | Tony Blair | 1997 to 2007 | Labour |
| 74 | Gordon Brown | 2007 to 2010 | Labour |
| 75 | David Cameron | 2010 to 2016 | Conservative |
| 76 | Theresa May | 2016 to 2019 | Conservative |
| 77 | Boris Johnson | 2019 to 2022 | Conservative |
| 78 | Liz Truss | September 2022 to October 2022 | Conservative |
| 79 | Rishi Sunak | 2022 to 2024 | Conservative |
| 80 | Keir Starmer | 2024 to 2026 | Labour |
| 81 | Andy Burnham | 2026 to Incumbent | Labour |
How to Check UK Prime Minister List Online
The UK government keeps an official record of all past Prime Ministers on its website. You can check the full list with exact dates and party names in a few simple steps.
STEP 1 - Open the official UK government website at gov.uk in your browser.
STEP 2 - Go to the Past Prime Ministers page under the government history section at gov.uk past prime ministers.
STEP 3 - The page shows the list split into 21st century, 20th century, and 18th and 19th centuries.
STEP 4 - Click on any Prime Minister's name to see their full profile, term dates and party details.
Key Facts About UK Prime Ministers
A few records and firsts stand out in the long history of the office. These points are often asked in exams and general knowledge quizzes.
- Robert Walpole was the first Prime Minister of the UK and also the longest-serving one, holding office from 1721 to 1742.
- Margaret Thatcher was the first female Prime Minister of the UK. She served from 1979 to 1990.
- Winston Churchill led the UK during World War II and served two separate terms, from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955.
- Liz Truss had the shortest tenure. She was in office for only about 49 days in 2022.
- Andy Burnham is the current Prime Minister of the UK. He took charge on 20 July 2026.
Download UK Prime Minister List PDF
You can download a chronological list of Prime Ministers along with details of leadership changes between elections from the official UK government website. The page also carries short profiles of each Prime Minister.
For more information, visit the official website: www.gov.uk
Who was the First and Longest-serving UK Prime Minister?
Who was the UK Prime Minister during World War II?
Who was the first female UK Prime Minister?
Who is the Current UK Prime Minister in 2026?
Also check the US Presidents List for details about American Presidents and Vice Presidents along with their terms of service.
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