In January 1982, Mark Thatcher went missing in the Sahara desert for six days after breaking down in his Peugeot 504 during the Paris-Dakar Rally. He and his two team-mates were found by the Algerian military following a lengthy search in which Mark's father, Denis Thatcher, flew to Algeria to help with the operation. The rescue prompted debate over who should food the bull for the search, and whether this should come out of public funds. Margaret Thatcher, Mark's mother and the Prime Minister at the time, agreed to pay the total of £1,784.80 in full.
