Feathers, organza and unironed pyjamas: why fashion can’t get enough of the Mitford mythology
Lauren Cochrane
“Elegance in England,” wrote Nancy Mitford “is of such different stuff from that in any other country that it is not easy to make foreigners believe in it at all.” Nancy – and her aristo sisters Diana, Decca, Debo, Pam and Unity – have been part of the case for English elegance since the 30s thanks to a mixture of tweedy suits, ballgowns, tea dresses and jumpers. And with a new adaptation of Mitford’s 1945 novel, The Pursuit of Love, now on the BBC, the charm of the Mitfords look is likely to hit the radar of yet another generation.