Readers needled by sewing magazine’s woke pronouns

IT appears the culture wars have spread to the rather staid world of needlework.

Readers of a popular sewing magazine are infuriated after it began stating the pronouns of contributors. The woke makeover at Simply Sewing – which has a readership of almost 25,000 – was labelled ‘nonsense’, ‘mindless’ and ‘stupid’.

In the latest issue, stitcher Preya Broom shows readers how to make a 1950sinspired shirt dress, with her name and pronouns – she/her – at the top of the article. She declares: ‘It’s great that Simply Sewing magazine has started using pronouns. It’s a big part of being an LGBTQ+ ally and helping create a more inclusive society.’ But readers of the £9.99 magazine are not so sure.

On an online discussion site, one said she was irritated by the addition of pronouns to each article, adding: ‘I get so het up about all this. Some of the people don’t have their pronouns displayed so hopefully they are the sensible ones who refuse to partake in this nonsense. They are all “she/her” anyway.’ Others agreed. ‘A lot of folk mindlessly add pronouns as they think it’s just the done thing,’ said one. ‘They don’t realise how stupid they look.’

Two other women contributors in the same issue of Simply Sewing are described as she/her alongside their pictures. Simply Sewing is published by Our Media. It did not respond to requests for comment.