by Annie Vischer
We’ve got Downton fever again, with the recent release of the show’s fifth series on DVD (click here to buy), and don’t forget the Christmas special is fast approaching! We were lucky enough to talk to Alastair Bruce, the show’s historical advisor. We quizzed him on THAT haircut, 1920s fashions, and those little details that make Downton Abbey the sensation it is.
We’re obviously all talking about Lady Mary’s new hairdo at the moment, how revolutionary was it for a girl to cut her hair like that and why did such a striking change in hair styles come into fashion?
There were very few ways in which women expressed themselves in a period when there was a desperate desire to do exactly that. The first world war had resolutely impacted on a generation, they were recovering from the latent effects of that war, even in the early 1920s, and for women like Lady Mary, men of her generation, many of whom had been laid to rest on the western front, or at sea with the navy, or who had fallen out of the sky were lost and gone forever, so there was sort of a pressure on those who survived to live life for themselves and for those who were lost in that generation. There was the latent desire to rebel, and to be identified as spectacular and different, the only way a woman of some position in society could do that was really though her dress, how she appeared, if she had done it through her behaviour she would have been socially ostracised, she’d never have got away with the gamble of her future and reputation and Lady Mary’s already had a few close brushes, she’s slept with a man she barely knew, she also went and enjoyed herself in a hotel room with a man she’s not married to. This is normal for a young gal of the present generation but in her period this was a dangerous game. We know she’s dealing with the love and amore of Mr Blake and Mr Gillingham, and she likes a fight with other women too, she likes to compete, I think in her mind she’s not very clear with who she should go with, or be, but she feels confident with her new hair and takes the risk in it. For a woman, this is the wonderful way she can express herself. Her grandmother is quite horrified.
What sort of girl would you expect to decide to opt for that sort of hair do?
I think any hair do that is radically different from what is acceptable in that specific time is the choice of someone who has a lot of confidence to carry it off, or lacks the sufficient confidence but wants to take the danger of what doing something of outrageous might entail. In this case we have an aristocratic woman in a financially strong position. What matters is that she is the daughter of an Earl, this gave her all the grounding to take a risk. This is a woman of substance, choosing to do with her hair, that makes a massive statement of her confidence, her future, her rebirth.
What attracted you to working and continuing to work on a project such as Downton Abbey, and what is it about the times it is based in now that you think enchants audiences so much?
I was attracted to work for its writer, Julian, I have immense confidence in his productions and wanted to help him develop high standards in drama, I was also told my role would be central to the product, which they kept their word on. I think audiences are enchanted because it’s written very well, it’s entertaining, the large cast keep delivering and you’re kept on your toes. It reflects a period where every British person’s descendant has had this experience so it’s the past brought to life. We also love to watch drama when we know the result, we know DA won’t survive, we know the lifestyle we’re witnessing is coming to an end, we know society made up with all sorts of levels is also going to end as we live in a world that doesn’t do that anymore. That is what society wanted. I think people also see the period reassuring in a state nation community, now people live in their own houses and make their own money but don’t feel a part of anything. DA was a mutual benefit, and the fibre that kept everything together.
We see Lady Mary, who has always been a strong character, branching out and taking in the fashion shows of London, is this a time period that we see fashion branching out from tradition and becoming more creative?
I think fashion has always reflected tradition. Fashion is only the future to those who are designing it but it’s a reflection of a time, people tend to be utilitarian in dress. People used to use clothes to show they didn’t have to work. If you look at the court dress of the French court you can tell they didn’t have to work. With World War One not far behind, the women who could celebrate themselves, chose fashion, and to that extent, and because of travel, Paris fashion could travel to England, as well as American influences, so that brought a pressure of fashion, especially if you could afford fashion.
Are there any things that you have researched and perfected to be historically accurate for the show, that we might not even consider? Any phrases/colloquial sayings, or objects?
I don’t do the writing but the sayings used have been fact checked. I’m here to make sure people don’t say “okay”. For objects, the biggest struggle I had was getting the correct eiderdown on set. I always find dramas get beddings wrong.
What sorts of things can we thank the 1920s for today?
Jazz, if you like Jazz. If you have a hankering to revive the masculine look that women celebrated in this period, the loss of the bust, the shortening of the hair, all a grasp of a demonstration that life would be more practical for women, they would be more involved in the grist of life that was men’s preserve, they have just got the vote too, emancipation in every respect is still along long way away but you really get the sense that there’re is a desire to take responsibility as women did in the war with the ammunition industry to help the allies to bring Germany to negotiation. There is a great move of social change on the political front too so the 1920s still communicate to us how opportunity came forth when there was a time of so much social constraint, even in my generation, it was revolutionary for my sisters to travel on the train on their own. Nowadays we don’t think of that at all, I think 1920s kicked off that independence. Men always had that liberty but now we don’t give it a second thought for women too.
Season 5 of DOWNTON ABBEY is available now on Blu-Ray and DVD, courtesy of Universal Pictures (UK).