HERE COMES THE BRIDE
SO, HERE we are in dark and dreary November, and regardless of where exactly in the British Isles you reside, one thing is for sure life is far from normal right now.
In fact you can’t even see normal from where we are. If things carry on like this for much longer I might suggest we retire the word entirely.
Thankfully, something is coming next week to bring us a few hours (10ish to be exact) respite from all the doom and gloom.
Yes, November 15 sees season four of The Crown dropping on Netflix.
And it is arguably the most anticipated run of the royal drama yet because it will finally introduce us to the young Lady Diana Spencer, who would go on to become one of the most famous and most photographed women of the 20th century before dying tragically in a Paris car crash aged just 36.
If the early days of the first lockdown were characterised by the leopard print shirts, mullets and questionable ethics of Joe Exotic and his Tiger King pals, the next few weeks will be all about ‘shy Di’ and her so-called fairy tale marriage to Prince Charles, as well as the dawning of the Thatcher era.
Think of it as less big cats and more pussy bows.
From a style perspective we are in for a treat as we revisit the greatest hits of Princess Diana’s Eighties wardrobe and the iconic haircut that had scores of women reaching for the scissors.
Although as Emma Corrin, the unknown actress who has landed the role of a lifetime, pointed out recently, Diana was not always the style icon we remember her as.
There were more than a few fashion faux pas in those early years and 24-year-old Emma will be reminding us of a few, including a dubious pair of yellow dungarees.
Says Emma: “That second time she meets Charles when she’s in those yellow dungarees, I wanted to cry. I was like, are you joking? Awful. And those sweater vests.”
Bib and braces aside, there will be plenty of fashion high points to savour while you sit on the sofa in your sweatpants, plus lots of tears, tantrums and tiaras.
But the moment guaranteed to make you drop your banana bread will be the sight of Emma in the most famous wedding dress of all time.
Designed by David Emanuel and his then-wife Elizabeth, Princess Diana’s ivory silk taffeta and antique lace gown was the dress that launched a million copies and became as famous for how crumpled it looked following Di’s carriage ride, as it did for its voluminous silhouette.
Emmy-winning costume designer Amy Roberts was tasked with recreating it for The Crown, and has said they wanted to “capture the same spirit and style” of the original “without creating a replica”.
Using 95 metres of fabric and 100 metres of lace, it took three people four weeks to make and is an incredibly accurate take on the historic frock... right down to the creases.
If that’s not worth staying in for, I don’t know what is.