The Lady, Christmas special 1940

Written By Dr Craig Horner.

It being the season of bah humbug, we’re celebrating with the Christmas 1940 edition of the Lady from our collection. This copy coincided with the height of the London blitz, and its full-colour cover illustration of well-to-do mother and child attending to their Christmas tree tried hard to offer a picture of a brighter future.

The Lady was a monthly, first appearing in 1885 and surviving until earlier this year amidst a familiar story of declining circulation and income. It was the go-to resource for the wealthy woman seeking her nannies and domestics and gave handy guidance on avoiding social faux pas. Features in this issue include ‘Dress hints from the stars’, and a double-page sketch by Fromenti called ‘Christmas Party’, giving guidance on what daughters and mothers should be wearing at ‘informal’ parties. Very prominent in this picture are two young ladies getting a stern once-over by two severe-looking older ladies (aunts?).

The only other colour page is the back cover, with photos of suggested embroidery patterns – I wonder if they just couldn’t attract an advertiser to use the space, times being so straitened. On the subject of ads, they are, of course, wonderful. We have wool, wigs, face cream, ‘hair food’, coats and cigarettes. Viyella offer ‘service shirt blouses’, ‘for women on duty’, available in khaki. Marshall and Snelgrove offer ‘look your best dresses, for danger zones and safe areas’, starting at 6½ guineas. ‘Well made, practical and inexpensive’ (inexpensive? Really?), you could hasten to your air-raid shelter knowing you weren’t letting your side down. Debenham and Freebody offer ‘acceptable suggestions for wartime’ – sensible and more modestly-priced gloves, handbags and the like. Kestos’s half-page ad for ‘brassières and girdles’ reassures readers that their garments continue to offer ‘control’ even if, it being wartime, they couldn’t offer them in silk for much longer.

We already have scattered copies of the Lady, about forty in all, from 1937 to 2008, usefully tracing the changes in values and opinion of the well-heeled woman and her entourage.

And finally, we thank all our volunteers, supporters and readers and wish you all the best for Christmas and the coming new year.

Dr Craig Horner.

Craig Horner was until recently senior lecturer in history at Manchester Metropolitan University, and is now retired. His research is in late-Victorian mobility, especially cycling and motoring.

He has written on early motoring, most recently The Emergence of Bicycling and Automobility in Britain published by Bloomsbury 2021 and edits Aspects of Motoring History for the Society of Automotive Historians in Britain.

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