1. 2000: Mumsnet is born
The site was founded by Justine Roberts after a disastrous family holiday with her then one-year-old twin daughters. She realised that the internet would be a great place to tap into the wisdom of other parents who’d been there and done that - not just about family travel, but about everything else parenting-related too.
2. 2006: David Cameron takes part in the first political webchat
Then Leader of the Opposition David Cameron became the first politician to participate in a Mumsnet webchat, kicking off what's now seen as a right of passage for high-profile politicians.
3. 2006: Gina Ford sues Mumsnet
Babycare guru Gina Ford launched legal action against Mumsnet after some users criticised her parenting methods, with one claiming she "straps babies to rockets and launches them into Southern Lebanon." Her actions sparked a campaign to reform the libel laws on the internet to make them fit for the digital age.
4. 2009: One million users
Mumsnet reached one million users for the first time, proving its staying power and growing influence in the online world.
5. 2010: The ‘Mumsnet Election’ and Biscuitgate
The General Election is dubbed 'The Mumsnet Election' as politicians compete for Mumsnetters’ votes. During the campaign, Prime Minister Gordon Brown described Mumsnet as “a national institution”, but questions were asked at PMQs about ‘Biscuitgate’ as Brown fails to name his favourite biscuit in a Mumsnet webchat.
6. 2010: Fighting sexist advertising
Mumsnet successfully challenged a £1.25m billboard campaign that declared, in one of a series of deliberately provocative statements intended to demonstrate the power of outdoor advertising, that "career women make bad mothers." The poster was replaced with one that said "Sexist advertising is bad for business."
7. 2011: EastEnders script rewritten
An EastEnders cot death storyline is cut short after Mumsnet users complain about the unrealistic portrayal of a bereaved mother who stole another baby. Mumsnet users then collaborated with the producers to rewrite the script.
8. 2012: ‘We Believe You’ campaign
Mumsnet launches the ’We Believe You’ campaign, which sets out to challenge myths surrounding rape and sexual violence, advocating for survivors and raising awareness on a national scale.
9. 2013: Libel law reform
The Defamation Act, including new processes around online publishers, was enacted following years of pressure from Mumsnet and other members of the Libel Reform Campaign.
10. 2013: The ‘penis beaker’ incident
A thread about a user’s husband keeping a beaker of water next to the bed for post-coital washing goes viral, repeatedly crashing the website and becoming the stuff of internet legend.
11. 2013: Woman’s Hour Power List
Mumsnet’s founders were listed at number seven on the BBC Radio 4 Woman’s Hour Power List of the 100 most powerful women in the UK.
12. 2014: Hillary Clinton takes questions
The former US Secretary of State answered Mumsnet users' questions.
13. 2015: Better Miscarriage Care Campaign draws Labour manifesto commitment
Mumsnet’s long running campaign for Better Miscarriage Care sees the Labour Party include a commitment to improving care in its 2015 General Election manifesto.
14. 2015: Meryl Streep’s Mumsnet webchat
Hollywood royalty Meryl Streep joined Mumsnet for a webchat.
15. 2015: Andy Burnham’s “chips and gravy” answer
Labour politician Andy Burnham responds to the infamous favourite biscuit question with “chips and gravy” - just in case anyone was doubting his northern credentials.
16. 2015: Mumsnet’s 15th birthday
Mumsnet celebrates its 15th birthday - at the party, Boris Johnson gives a speech in which he claims credit for its launch.
17. 2015: “The most popular independent web brand in the UK”
Techworld declared Mumsnet “arguably the most popular independent web brand ever set up in the UK.”
18. 2017: Theresa May’s Budget announcements
The Prime Minister exclusively pre-announced two Budget measures - support for returnships and survivors of domestic violence - on Mumsnet.
19. 2018: Mumsnet royalty
Royal sources reveal that Kate Middleton has a secret Mumsnet account and uses the site for parenting advice.
20. 2021: The Swearometer
The Mumsnet Swearometer - covered in the Economist - shows how frustration peaked onsite during the pandemic with the announcement of school closures.
21. 2022: Boris Johnson’s viral interview
Mumsnet’s Q&A with then Prime Minister Boris Johnson goes viral as Justine asks “why should we believe anything you say when it's been proven that you’re a habitual liar?” The interview garnered hundreds of thousands of views and more than three million interactions on Twitter (now X), as well as generating huge amounts of print and broadcast coverage.
22. 2023: MumsGPT
Mumsnet launches MumsGPT, an open-ended question tool which provides answers based on real conversations between genuine users, rapidly uncovering and summarising what parents are thinking on everything from brands to politicians.
23. 2023: Daisy May Cooper’s Mumsnet-inspired show
Daisy May Cooper names her show ‘Am I Being Unreasonable?’ after the Mumsnet forum of the same name, and says the support she found onsite got her through her divorce.
24. 2024: Mumsnet takes OpenAI to court
Mumsnet launches the first UK legal action against OpenAI for scraping its content without permission.
25. 2025: ‘Rage Against the Screen’ campaign
Mumsnet launches Rage Against the Screen - a new campaign designed to inform parents about the dangers of smartphones and social media, and empower them to take action to protect their children’s health.