We chat to Kate Thompson about her new book

Over the months ahead, we’ll be looking at new releases by some of our favourite authors. This month, Kate Thompson tells us about her book “The Wedding Girls” . . .

Q Could you tell us about the plot of the book?

A “The Wedding Girls” is set in an East End photographic portrait studio in 1936, and depicts the glamour and vibrancy of big community weddings before World War II. My characters work for a big-hearted photographer who has set up a Wedding Club to enable brides from impoverished neighbourhoods to own their own wedding portrait. Back then, owning a beautiful portrait wasn’t just a badge of honour, it was a symbol of hope for a brighter future.

In researching it, I stumbled upon a lost world of innocence and pride. A time when divorce was never a seriously considered option, girls married for life and weddings were about love, community and family, not sugared almonds and selfies.

In the 1930s, glamorous weddings were a reaction to the Great War and that, combined with the emergence of Hollywood, meant brides were determined to sprinkle a dusting of romance and escapism over the most important day of their lives.

The characters’ stories play out against the rise of fascism and the brewing threat of war, culminating in the momentous Battle of Cable Street, which celebrated its 80th anniversary this year. It’s full of glamour, intrigue and surprise.

Q Who’s your favourite character in the book?

A Stella Smee. She is an assistant to Herbie, the owner of the photographic portrait studio. Stella’s nineteen and craving freedom and adventure. All around her she sees the world opening up through air and sea travel, and feels stifled by the closeknit community and time-slip

streets of Bethnal Green. Whilst all her friends and neighbours long for the security of marriage and to start a family, she wants more out of life. Then an unexpected event happens which forces her into the fight of her life and makes her entirely re-evaluate her life.

I like Stella because she’s brave enough to forge her own path in life away from what was considered respectable.

Q Who did you speak to for the research?

A I did masses of research for this one. I visited the archives of the Museum of London and Brighton Museum, looking at the most exquisite wedding dresses. I was struck by how tiny they were and the quality of the craftsmanship. I interviewed the curator of fashion and textiles at the V&A Museum and I journeyed my way around the East End, interviewing many women in their nineties for whom the memory of their wedding day still burns bright. The pride on their faces when they looked at their wedding portraits was intensely moving to see.

I also interviewed historians and other authors to get a sense of why fascism was on the rise in the Thirties, and the circumstances that led to the Battle of Cable Street. I even managed to find a handful of remarkable women, including ninety-nine-year-old Beattie Orwell, a Jewish lady who joined the anti-fascist party at the age of eighteen to protest against the British Union of Fascists.

Q Do you read your reviews on Amazon and the like?

A Always. It can be a bit bruising when someone writes something you don’t like, particularly when it’s something you’ve laboured long and hard over, but I don’t believe anyone writes a bad review just to be nasty – they are simply expressing a personal opinion and I think it’s important to learn from it. And if someone e-mails me to express an opinion about the book, good or bad, I always get back to say thank you. Writing can be a solitary job at times and it’s great to develop a relationship with your readers.

Join us again in our April 22 issue when we talk to Annie Murray about her book “The Doorstep Child”.