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sparklywaistcoat · 4 years

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I find the online version of the 1967 TV Times interview with Diana Rigg unreadable online, so I’m reproducing it here for anyone else who has difficulty with accessibility due to the web page’s design.

The Girl Behind Emma Peel, TV Times, 12/10/1967 (reprinted here from http://deadline.theavengers.tv/tvt1067a.htm)

...the two worlds of actress Rigg... above, as Emma Peel of THE AVENGERS; a series seen in 40 countries; men feast their eyes on her while muttering endearments in 22 languages. Right, Diana as she is to herself...

Diana Rigg has returned to Shakespearean acting - she is the female lead in a film version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream".

As far as she was concerned, it was the most wonderful thing that had happened to her in years.

She had been Emma Peel's alter ego so long she had to get away - - or else.

"I had become paranoid," she assured me, "with an underlying urge to pack and run. It is a curious thing. People who have never been subjected to it can never really understand what it means.

"I can only describe it as a sense of panic that seizes you when you are Diana to yourself and you are walking down the street. An instant later, you are somebody else to a lot of people who behave as if you belong to them.

"If you are quite a private person, which I am, this seems an intrusion on my privacy. I just have to run.

"Mind you," she adds, with an apologetic smile, "I am not ungrateful. I will be the last to minimise what television has done for me. It is a phenomenon, a miracle medium, that can accomplish in six months what takes years on the stage. Suddenly, you are famous. Suddenly, everybody knows you.

"The point is, though, that you are not yourself. Only the other person you portray in the series. That person is, of necessity, imposed by television, one-dimensional. You ask yourself - - is it worth it?

It should be. In the three years that Diana Rigg has spent in THE AVENGERS she has been catapulted into a position of bargaining power.

Hollywood producers have offered £100,000 to work in one film. It seem they would go higher, if that is what she wants. But she has turned them down.

"So far I have not been offered anything I want," she says. "I don't want a long-term contract. As an actress I will work where and for whom I want, if the script is exciting enough.

"If a script is good and they have a director I can trust, then I will do it."

Really it is a matter of time. The big, international film-makers are confident they will have lassoed this high-spirited long-legged English girl long before Emma Peel loses her hold on the masses - if she ever does.

THE AVENGERS is eagerly watched each week in 40 countries, and Emma Peel (Mrs.) is the series' irrepressible whimsical Amazon of the jet set. Men feast their eyes on her while muttering endearments in 22 languages, and their women try to emulate her - - but they never will, of course.

Consumption of champagne the world over has been increasing ever since John Steed and Emma Peel began toasting each other in bubbly stuff, from the television tube.

"Avengerwear" - - Emma's fancy "cat" suits and things - - is reaching the shelves and racks of department stores all over the world.

"Emma Peel's" international fan mail, still growing by leaps and bounds, promises to assume astronomical figures before the winter is out.

Diana never touches this mail and has enlisted mother, in Leeds, to head the Emma Peel fan mail operation.

Says Diana: "We have this room at home, measuring 20ft. by 15ft., and it is full of letters. More are delivered each day - all addressed to me.

"I am supposed to answer them. But I can't, and that worries me deeply. I get persecuted by the mere thought that there's an obligation which I am not willing to fulfil.

"That is where mother comes in. She reads, and she answers. And I feel ashamed. But I can't help it.

"People have made up their minds to identify me with a fantasy of theirs on television. In their minds they want to have a relationship with me based on fantasy which can take any form.

"I have heard from my mother that there have been letters from children saying: "You look like my dead mother and so I write to you." I think that is terrifying."

The story of Diana Rigg is, in a way, the story of two women - the real one and the imaginary one. They are identical twins.

The conflict within this beautiful and intelligent young woman, who is just a little older than 29, reminds me of the case of Sean Connery, alias James Bond.

In Connery's case, though, there was resentment. Connery, the man, gradually developing such a passionate hatred for the image he had created that he refused to continue as Bond even at a million dollars a throw.

He made his last two Bond films under protest. Bond made him a multi-millionaire, but you cannot escape the feeling that he would settle for half this amount if his identity remained - that of himself and not that of the slick, women-loving, superb and deadly Secret Agent 007.

Emma Peel has some of the same qualities as 007, well-screened and suppressed, to fit into a family-watching hour on television.

The innuendo, contained in the name has been a source of Rigg's unconcealed unhappiness.

Asked what innuendo, she blushes and confides in a conspiratorial whisper: "Believe it or not, Emma Peel is a phonetical transposition of "M Appeal", the M in this case standing for Men. In other words, "Men Appeal." Isn't it a scream? Sorry that I blush."

She adds wistfully: "I wanted to be Lady Peel, not for any grandiose reasons, but simply because it seemed to get some rather good comments over on the English aristocracy. Of course they wouldn't do it."

"They" being the producers who have been running the show like a tightly-run ship.

Not unlike Sean Connery after "Goldfinger", Diana Rigg said goodbye to THE AVENGERS on the last day of a contractual stay at an ITV studio in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, last August 31st.

"They" were highly hopeful that she would be back, if not immediately, then later.

The production schedule could be stretched to accommodate her, she was reminded. A new regime was taking command of the series, and this, it was felt, would offer Diana an incentive.

She was not sure. But on the last day of the last batch at the close of shooting at 5.20pm she produced a bottle of champagne to toast her co-star and co-workers.

They had become a closely-knit family, and she would miss them if she were not to come back.

"I am devoted to Patrick," she says, referring to co-star Patrick Macnee, who plays John Steed. "I'm frightened of minimising him by talking about him, because it always sounds so glib, but he's an extremely generous and gentle and marvellous man."

They are comrades-in-arms on television. Off screen they are the best of friends, but that is all. Macnee married a second time during the series. Again to quote her, she is "totally committed" to another man.

Diana is simply devoted to a number of other people on the series, including her stand-in, Diana Enright, and her double, stunt-woman, Cyd Child, who resembles her so much that all three directors of the series have dared to have Cyd perform her stunts in full-face and semi-close-up.

Viewers have yet to write to complain that the girl hurling herself through the air at an adversary is not Diana Rigg.

And then, there's Diana's studio chauffeur, John Taylor, who is also her "Man Friday".

"I wouldn't know what to do without him," she says. A confidante, he also does her shopping while she is working, and has the ability to always be there when needed.

Diana didn't join the series under duress. She was tested for the role, as were others after John Steed's leading lady Cathy Gale (actress Honor Blackman) left the series - - ironically for a Bond flick, "Goldfinger".

Why did a promising young Shakespearean actress offer her services to a television series Shakespearean actors have looked down on with patronising dismay? To quote the lovely Diana: "I did it because I had left the Royal Shakespeare Company knowing that if I renewed my contract and stayed on for three or four years, I would have progressed and played good parts, but I was yearning for additional scope.

"To accomplish this I would have to plunge into the deep end, and nothing seemed deeper than this. I was right. Nothing is deeper."

Before dawn in a delightfully feminine bedroom the phone jangles. The young woman sleepily answers. Then struggles out of bed, just like a scene from THE AVENGERS.

But the call was from the telephone service Diana Rigg instructed to wake her. It is still only 6.30 a.m. She gropes through the house, takes her luke-warm bath, drinks a glass of lemon juice. Into the street by 6.50 a.m. - without a touch of make-up. "I've got no vanity at that time of the morning."

North London's suburb of St. John's Wood is still fast asleep and there's no one to catch sight of Diana Rigg below her perfectly-groomed best. Except John Taylor, her chauffeur. He arrives a few minutes earlier, but his instructions are to wait .... about two lines are incoherent here...

"I'm never late," she shudders, "comatose that I still am, and I hate that sound of the bell - at this ghastly hour."

Off to the studios in Borehamwood, Herts. She reads the morning paper on the way.

"It isn't my paper," she says, "It's John'. I don't like it but it's the only paper there, so I read it. Every morning." Apparently it had never occurred to her to ask John to bring her a paper. And so... another day in the life of Emma Peel.

This has been her routine since she became a television star. Diana moved to this house, a lot more compatible with her status, from an old mews cottage she has lived in for five years. Not that she was so concerned with status symbols. Diana Rigg couldn't care less about such things.

She simply fell in love with the old house in St. John's Wood. And her accountant approved of the move.

At her new address previously lived the artist Augustus John; and once Dame Laura Knight.

There, Diana Rigg now lives in the style and comfort of her private world revolving around a specially designed kitchen and window boxes sprouting home-grown herbs.

The house is out of bounds. Except close friends. Not that she is a recluse. She feels that her life is her "own ruddy business". But when in the mood, she will readily explain that she is every jealous of preserving her own privacy.

She insists on leading a life she considers right for her; not concerned with what she defines as "other people's social consciousness. I like to do because I wish to, not because I ought to."

Diana was born in Doncaster, in Yorkshire, on July 20th, 1938. She had spent the early part of her life at Jodhpur in Rajputna. Her family was in the Indian Government Service. Later, she was sent home to school at Great Missenden in Bucks. Eventually, her parents returned to Yorkshire to settle in Leeds, where they now live.

There, Diana finished her education at Fulneck Girls' School, enrolled at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (The RADA) and two years later graduated to an acting career. Was she withdrawn as a child? "No, I don't think so. I had the ability to withdraw and I still have it. But above all I always has a strong sense of personal identity.

"One thing that I never did was dream. I was always very practical. I grew interested in the theatre when I was small but not because it offered me an entrance to a world of fantasy, but because it gave me a chance to assert myself. And I loved its freedom. I thought of it as a challenge."

Diana reflects: "I can still remember the first time I met an audience on these terms. I was an understudy at Stratford-on-Avon, when I was called on to replace the principal in 'Alls Well That Ends Well'. Her name was Priscilla Morgan.

"They gave me maybe an hour's rehearsal. By a coincidence my parents were out front that night. I didn't tell them that I was going on, so that when I came out and started shaking, they thought I was just walking on. Then they realised, and sort of clutched each other in absolute fear.

"My fear was of a different kind. I was simply not sufficiently prepared and so I was annoyed with myself. Still, the audience was very kind as it always is when an understudy takes over and doesn't want to make a complete mess of the play, and I was led forward and allowed to take a solo bow.

"I played it for about a week, I guess. And it was about the end of the week only that I began to enjoy it."

Then Diana was 20 years old and earning £7 10 shillings a week. "To make ends meet, I was living on faggots, scraps of meat put inside intestines you still get at the butchers in the provinces. Poor people's food. They cost fourpence each.

"Four times a week, my dinner would consist of two faggots and maybe some potatoes and another vegetable, and fruit. And you know what? I was very healthy. And very happy."

Diana had an old second-hand bicycle for transport around Stratford. "And not only did I make the £7 10s stretch, but I could never do without perfume. I guess I was so very young and this particular perfume was very heavy and musky and made me feel extremely sensual ... I never changed my perfume in all these years!"

Her faggot-eating period came to an end when she moved to London to appear in the London productions of the Royal Shakespeare Company.

The bicycle went. Now she drives a green Mini. She lived in the mews cottage, all this still modestly. No more faggots, but all the perfume that she felt was required, by a young actress, not too bad-looking.

She took a small bottle when she travelled to the United States, appearing in 'King Lear' and 'The Comedy of Errors' on alternate nights.

The company also toured the Continent, as far as Moscow. From her experience on this tour comes Diana's boundless admiration for actor Paul Scofield.

"He's been my ideal since I first saw him on the stage. I was working with him in 'King Lear' when I became aware of his sense of identity, a strong totally compromising identity."

She says: "The beauty of it is that here is a man who has just won an Oscar in an Oscar-winning film and Hollywood is after him. What does he do? He's gone back to Stratford. Obviously, he doesn't care for the money. And he's right. Of course, it's your beliefs that matter.

"In a way I followed his example when I agreed to film "A Midsummer Night's Dream". Peter Brook was doing it and I believe in him and I grew up with him, so I had to answer his call. Professionally speaking, I am part of his troupe.

"Even though I think I'm too bad for the part. The pay? Obviously a pittance by comparison with what I'm making, but then, money is so transitory ... I will not forget that I could, when forced to, live on £7 and 10 Shillings.

Tourists at Athens airport could swear that the young woman killing time in the long drab waiting room by stopping at souvenir counters to inspect, for the umpteenth time, the pseudo-Grecian vases for sale was... Emma Peel.

She wore her auburn hair loose, letting it flow to her shoulders in the manner of the star of THE AVENGERS. And her mini-skirt revealed a pair of very feminine, familiar and beautiful legs.

"It was not easy to say I was not Mrs. Peel," Diana Rigg recalls, "because I dislike lies. But I would have had to explain why and what I was doing there, and it was a long story."

Actually, she was changing planes, going from London to a little-known place in Western Greece.

Eventually a shaky little plane which flies up into the mountains over some breathtakingly lovely countryside delivered her there, to make the trip worth her while.

Two days later, she took the same route back to London and Borehamwood, Herts., to resume where Emma Peel had left off.

It was an unconventional way to spend two days off the series. "I go to the craziest places for the weekend," she said, dismissing all attempts to explain herself.

In the case of the Greek place, a British film unit was there shooting "Oedipus, The King", and lots of friends were there.

One weekend last winter she flew to Zurich, rented a car at the airport and set out, a map in her lap, for Klosters, the Swiss ski resort.

"I drove through the night, with the craziest Swiss drivers whizzing past me over the ice-covered road," she said. "It twisted its way through the mountains, and I just hung on the wheel and prayed. I could have turned back, but I didn't. Too proud."

Until this experience, she had never motored on the Continent before, much less had snow-covered mountains by herself.

All of which seems to indicate that, not unlike Emma Peel, Diana Rigg is a rather unusual person.

It was she - and not Emma Peel - who helped to launch the mini-skirt, in an attempt to be different.

"The designer and the other men were horrified," she said, chuckling at memories of production executives looking aghast at the abbreviated skirt she was wearing and which she wanted Emma to wear.

"They pulled their hair ... said you can't do that, it's impossible ... I argued that one must look forward and not back and by wearing these brief skirts, one was looking forward.

"In fact, one was creating fashion very avant-garde, rather than remaining at the tail end of last year's styles. And it turned out that I couldn't have been more right."

Not that she has profited financially from the so-called "Avenger-wear" that mirrors her ideas. After all, she's an actress!

Nor does she care to identify with an image. "I never wear the clothes in the series outside," she said.

"But there's a style there that I think is common to both of us, and I have no intention of changing my appearance after Emma Peel is no more. After all, it was I who affected her."

She has no intention either of abandoning the mini-skirt, which, as far as she is concerned, was from the beginning Diana Rigg expressing herself.

Where the tastes of Emma Peel and Diana Rigg meet is champagne. Emma loves it, Diana loves it. And, for the record, she loved it before she became Emma Peel.

"I'm always very well stocked," she said, "but I never drink it at the studio.

"The stuff Patrick Macnee and I drink on camera is bubbly lemonade, very harmless. I don't touch the stuff then. You mustn't when you work. At home, well, that's another story ..."

Diana's secret passion is to cook, and to have friends come to her house in London's St. John's Wood to enjoy her meals, without much ceremony, exquisitely prepared with the help of her home-grown herbs.

"I'm not joking," she proudly expounded on the subject of her herbs. "They are all mine, and they all grow in window boxes outside my kitchen. Every window has its own herbs.

"Left to right, I have sage, thyme, marjoram, rosemary, which is very beautiful, chervil, and two kinds of mint, sorrel and my bay trees.

"Bay tree leaves are marvellous for fish ... true mine are more like baby trees. And basil, and fennel, and chives. And that's it. Except that they all live and prosper, outside my kitchen windows in London." The secret passion of Diana Rigg ...

"I had always wanted to grow my own herbs," she said. "This was my obsession. So I got the address of a herb farm 95 miles out of town, and one morning I went there.

"A little old lady took me around and she muttered under her breath and said they would never grow in the London smoke. I said I'd like to try anyway. So, she shook her head and gave me what I wanted.

"They came in little pots, as I brought them back to London they were all looking sad and sick.

"So I put them in larger pots and stuck them in my window boxes and every day I watered them out of a jug. And the miracle came to pass."

Diana Rigg has become enriched as an actress in the years at Stratford-on-Avon; on tours and the three years that she has played Emma Peel in THE AVENGERS.

She tells about the director she met at a party who told her he had a marvellous script for her. She had it sent over.

"Well, if I wasn't the girl who comes tearing through the door with a gun in one hand and a flame-thrower in the other," she reported in mock despair, "I was the sexy siren sneaking through the door in Veronica Lake style. I lost my temper, for the first time.

"I sent them a message saying that I couldn't do it."

#diana rigg #tv times #emma peel #the avengers

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officialthiamlibrary · 5 years

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Hello! Hello! Hope everyone is having a glorious weekend thus far. With enthusiasm, we are finally introducing you to another spectacular creator, pettigrace. The author of buy and sell gravity, its sequel free fallin’ in the jungle lights, and other fantastic works across 5 fandoms! Why don’t we just dive in?

Omg, Yas! Hi. It took us a while to get here, but we finally made it haha. Why don’t you start by telling us about yourself? The twist, the word count has to be either equal to or less than the number of letters in your two favorite Teen Wolf episode names.

Motel California and The Divine Move are the only episodes I remember by name, so I guess they must be my favourites. (15 + 13 = 28)

My name is Yas, I am an aroace being from Germany and I absolutely fucking hate time travel. I work as a journalist sometimes and I love writing.

Oh wow, a journalist! I love meeting people who’ve made a living out of their writing! What’s a typical day like as a journalist?

Mind you, I am not your typical journalist. I may look like Clark Kent most of the time, but I don’t do the stuff he does (that extends also to the superheroing, sadly) - I work for the youth page of my local newspaper, which means I get to write a few articles about/aimed at children a few times a month. I usually go for reviews of media (as in books and tv shows most of the time but movies, games and all that jazz, too!) but every once in a while I get to do something bigger as well. That means (typically) interviewing people in sports clubs, writing about my personal experience about a topic or doing surveys about things. It’s not much, but my name is in the paper pretty much every week.

I’m trying not to be super impressed and failing, but that’s honestly phenomenal! Obviously, you’re a huge fan or movies, books, and tv shows. Did that influence your name, pettigrace?

It refers to Peter Pettigrew from Harry Potter! (But Yas, you go, isn’t that the guy who doomed James and Lily Potter? To which I say: He also killed Cedric Diggory! And faked his own death! And gave Voldemort back his body!) No, hear me out. I don’t love the guy. Hell, I hate Peter Pettigrew as much as we all do. But he’s an important character in the world of HP and doesn’t get the recognition for it. He’s the unsung villain of the story. Is he a good villain? Heck no, he’s probably one of the worst. He doesn’t even have his own agenda! Still, he symbolizes something that’s important to me when I look at characters: The way they develop. How they used to be in certain situations. General character development. We don’t talk enough about the secret talents and thoughts of him.

Also, ace. Because like many characters, I headcanon Peter Pettigrew as asexual. Thank you.

And, how did you find your way to the Thiam fandom?

Here’s the funny thing: I think that I only started shipping them as much as I do now while I already wrote fic for them. I don’t know, I saw the appeal because I love those ships with awful banter and the enemies-to-lovers trope, so the arguments Theo and Liam kept having right from the beginning practically screamed at me to ship them – even if it didn’t fully hit me yet and I hated Theo during season 5 (which is to say, I loved him as a villain. He has always been a great character, just not a good person.). I’ve read a couple of fics for them at the end of last year and then decided to write my own and both of those actions made me realize how well they fit together and helped me learn to appreciate them both in their own ways.

Gasp, How can anyone hate Theo?! Though, I might be a tad bias lol. I think a lot of people would agree with you about how well they fit together. Since you’ve only had time to grow in your appreciation for their relationship, why don’t we try a little game?

Let’s pretend this was a Stranger Than Fiction situation and you could predict any aspect of their lives with your writing. How would you set up the follow scenarios:

a. Their first postseason 6 interaction:

Okay, I’m a sucker for canon so let’s stay with that. I think that after the hospital scene, after Theo’s taken Gabe’s pain and the battle is won, it would not be Liam who approaches Theo to talk about. In my head, it would be Mason – he’s the one who realizes the significance of this, he’s the one who told him he doesn’t care enough to take someone’s pain (I think Liam doesn’t know about that in canon? If I remember wrong, let’s just pretend he doesn’t know.).

So I don’t know, maybe Theo leaves the hospital while everyone’s celebrating, completely overwhelmed and also feeling wrong there – he’s not part of this friend group and now that the battle is over, they don’t have any use for him any more, right? So he slips out; only to be followed by Mason. And we know Mason.

He’s clever and determined and he doesn’t back down from confronting someone. He doesn’t like Theo, he’s said as much, but now he’s seeing progress in him. He knows what an aide Theo has been for Liam, both in the fights and with his anger. He addresses all of this and Theo reacts like we all expect that he would: dismissive and sarcastic. Mason doesn’t buy into it for a single second, but he doesn’t try to make Theo stay when he says he needs to leave. I feel like it would actually be good for him to leave for a while because boy, does he need a time-out. Let’s be real. It’s clear that Theo isn’t as much of Liam’s responsibility any more. Liam doesn’t keep him close and he can leave and Liam wouldn’t feel like he needs to watch him. Theo’s come back from hell and then he’s had to fight battle after battle. He’s not friends with any of them and there’s no reason for him to stay around. So, he leaves, and Mason lets him leave, both because he gets it and he doesn’t really care if Theo is around or not.

Now Liam. I feel like even at that point in canon, Liam doesn’t really see Theo as a person. He knows him as a villain and as an ally but never just as Theo, and even with the almost-kiss between them (because that’s what the elevator scene has been, goddammit. There’s an attraction between them and it’s only been increased by the adrenaline, but especially Liam doesn’t really realize that he cares about Theo), he doesn’t even notice at first that Theo is gone. He’s too full of ecstasy and when he’s reunited with the rest of the pack, that only becomes more. It takes him a few days, maybe even weeks until he truly notices that Theo is gone. It’s not that he just forgets about him – Theo’s been present enough in the past few months, especially to him – so the remainder of him helping clings to Liam’s mind. He doesn’t ask anyone about Theo, though. It’s not like anyone really cares, he thinks. And he knows Mason’s dislike for the chimera, so bringing it up to him wouldn’t be fruitful either.

Of course, Theo comes back. Beacon Hills is his home and he just feels this draw back to it and (that much he can admit to himself) to Liam. He’s also the only one whose phone number he has so after much thinking – and Theo’s logical, so he doesn’t try to convince himself to ignore it – he calls Liam. It’s awkward because Theo had just disappeared like that (which Liam would call him out for) and maybe that leads to a fight between them; one that ends with Liam admitting he’s needed Theo around because he’s felt so restless and he’s not stupid, he knows that’s what it feels like to lose your anchor. Theo grows silent at that, not sure what to answer, and Liam almost hangs up because he’s too embarrassed by that confession and hell, they’re not even friends. He practically admitted to be in love with him, which is not even the case. They’re not in love yet, that’s for sure. But then, suddenly, Theo just says, “I’m coming home,” and that’s a promise.

The call would end shortly after that, with awkwardness hanging in the air, but Liam’s excited and content at the prospect of Theo coming back. And Theo, completely beside himself, sets off towards Beacon at once.

I have the image in mind (and heck if I knew if that works time zone-wise but maybe Theo’s still in the same) that the next day when Liam comes out of school, he finds Theo chilling in the parking lot, leaning against his truck like that’s his usual spot. Liam, not sure whether it’s appropriate to hug him or whatever but shit, is he happy to see him, jogs up to him and beams, saying, “You came.” And Theo, the little shit that he is, just rolls his eyes and clicks his tongue and goes, “Yeah. You’re paying lunch.” And then they climb into the car and ride off into the sunset.

(God I can’t believe this became almost two pages of basically just relationship study, I’m so sorry!!)

Never apologize for passion! What about a Thiam Double Date with any other ship from the show?

Well, Morey is obviously a given. Seriously, once Thiam started dating, Liam would definitely make the two of them see how much Theo has changed – I have no doubt it would become somewhat awkward, with Mason outright having stated that he despises Theo and Theo having worked with the people who killed Corey… Still, I think they’d go out for a movie or something or maybe just happen to be all at the Geyers’ home at the same time and maybe they would bond over video games or something.

I could also see that after some time, Theo would make up with Melissa. If he stays in Beacon Hills, he might end up being the one who brings her lunch – a weak attempt at making up for all the things he did to her and her family, but it’s the best they can do. After a while, Melissa would probably inquire him about what has happened and try to make him deal with the guilt; at the same time, she could see he’s different now, so then she insists that Scott and Stiles see it, too. So, she’s the one who’d set them all up. Probably a giant dinner or something at her house where she invites Thiam, Scalia and Stydia. And maybe she has Papa Argent over, too. It would be awfully tense, especially with Stiles’ and Malia’s hatred for Theo and maybe it ends in a disaster, who knows? But maybe Melissa mentions a fun story from when they were kids and Lydia, though she isn’t completely at ease either, would remember something she saw the guys do in elementary school (remember, she was there, too, even if they weren’t friends) – and then they would forget themselves and explain how they came up with the idea of stealing a toilet seat or something. They’d just chat about how things have been and then suddenly there’s a silent where they all swallow and remember that it can’t be like that anymore, can it? But there’s a promise: If they all can remember and laugh about it, and if Theo’s truly changed, then maybe there’s hope.

Finally, one conflict they’d have as an official couple:

Liam’s anger, without a doubt. I don’t think Theo can be as patient as fics make him out to be. He probably doesn’t know how to actually react to one of Liam’s outbursts and the way he talked to him during 6B wouldn’t always help. If Liam lashed out at him, Theo would probably let him – that’s another topic between them, the way Theo will accept anything as a sort of punishment for what he’s done. Liam would be overwhelmed by guilt and Theo would try to talk him out of it, say it’s okay and it’s not like he didn’t deserve it. And then Liam would tell him that no, he doesn’t. Theo’s already paid for his sins and he’s learnt to do better and anyway Liam isn’t his judge. It’s a vicious cycle because they’d argue and then Liam would get angry again and maybe then he’d just walk away and punch a tree, but the problem stands. I just made myself sad :(

If you could magically write any Thiam story with your mind, what story would you craft?

I have a few stories in mind that I want to write, especially for Thiam, but there’s one I keep putting off because it would require me to rewatch some of season 5 and basically all of season 6. I just don’t have the time or spoons for that at this point. If I had, though… Oh dear, hold on to your seats.

It’s told from Mason’s point of view, believe it or not. Either while or after he’s been possessed by the Beast, he’s developed powers of his own: He can suddenly see some kind of aura around people. It’s kind of a count for karma, with bad people having really dark colours while good ones have bright colours – later, though, he finds out that was aren’t general ratings but how the people view themselves. So, the last glimpse Mason gets of Theo is before he goes to hell.

His aura is really bright except for a few specks here and there. When he comes back from hell, it’s the darkest Mason’s ever seen.

Basically, the story would be about character growth and the way people see themselves. For example, both Stiles and Liam have darker auras than you’d expect them to have, because they’re good people, right? It wouldn’t surprise you after the nogitsune and Donovan that Stiles doesn’t think that of himself but Liam? It gives both the reader and Mason new insights into the characters of Teen Wolf.

The fic stays close to canon as it plays out, only that with Mason being the narrator, you get to see more of the puppy pack, of course. The way both Liam’s and Theo’s auras change as they interact with each other and Theo truly betters himself until in the end… Well, that’s it, right? Does the end stay lie in canon, too? Would Mason do something about the way his best friend feels better about himself when he’s around Theo? Who knows, definitely not me yet.

I’m excited to jump into your writing! First, if you could describe your creative process as a living entity, what would it look like? Wear? Listen? How does it handle conflict?

Hm, they‘re always around, though usually pretty chill in the background. Like, you turn around and they’re there but it’s not like they’re really annoyingly present, if that makes sense? I’m always working on something in the back of my head, and a lot of time it becomes more pregnant, so from time to time this person would be more active. And maybe they would be annoying from time to time, like when an idea doesn’t let me sleep or occupies my thoughts at all times, though that’s become a rarer happenstance lately. They’d be dressed pretty casually, maybe just a hoodie and sweatpants or something – my writing isn’t anything extravagant, and neither is the process of it for me. Actually, I don’t think they’d be a person, to be honest. I literally just described my cat.

ALOL, well, looks like we’ve discovered one of your writing influences haha! Do you and your cat have any Writing Kryptonites?

Oh, probably action. Which is especially sad in regard to Teen Wolf because you can come up with such amazing fight scenes in this fandom! But I’m struggling with writing motion, actually. No idea if it’s just that my vocabulary is limited in that area, being non-native to English and all, or if I generally suck at it, but it always feels so wrong to me. I write from a single person’s perspective, usually, so I’m limited to what they see and how they move and even then, it doesn’t feel swift enough. I’m working on that, though – there was a time when my writing basically only consisted of dialogue, and that became much better during the past years.

That’s amazing! What are some ways that you try to better your writing? Besides, well...writing haha. Have you done any type of skill building that you thought worked for you?

Most of it has definitely come just from continuing writing, to be honest. I’ve only once told myself to actively focus on something (it was really early in the beginning of my writing where I tried to get more skilled in describing people - the way they look and move, stuff like that). Otherwise, it’s basically just that. In writing class ,there were a few things you could try out, such as focussing on different emotions while writing or something.

Things that do the trick for me, usually, are PoV switches (meaning one chapter from A’s perspective, the next from B’s, stuff like that) and waiting to write something specific until I’m in the same mood as well. So if a character’s particularly sad in one scene, I’ll leave that for a time where I am sad as well. It works well for me because I don’t write chronologically anyways.

And is there one trope or scene that always ends up in whatever you’re writing?

Well, I barely write anything that doesn’t include an asexual character. Also, there’s always some meta-ish reference to canon in AUs and, weirdly enough, I always have characters either watch or talk about Star Wars. That even happened before I watched the movies myself!

In case of Teen Wolf, there’s always the act of redemption for Theo. I feel that it’s an essential part of both him and Thiam as a relationship – the way Theo grows as a person and becomes better. I’m a sucker for parallels to canon, so that’s always a topic in one way or another. Of course, Theo doesn’t kill someone in every AU, but he deals with something that holds him back, makes him kind of a bad person, every time.

And then, I always come back to his friendship with Scott and Stiles, especially the latter. I’d have loved to see more of that in canon, maybe in stories or flashbacks or something. You’ve always had Scott and Stiles as practically one entity up to season 5 and suddenly Theo comes along, and you’re supposed to believe they used to be three? And nothing was ever mentioned? Of course, the writers only came up with that plotline for season 5, it makes sense they didn’t have anyone discuss Theo before. Still, it feels like something is missing there to make you truly believe it and I love to reflect on that, play with it. Stiles’ stance towards Theo draws me in a lot – how come he doesn’t trust him right away? Was something happening between them? How would it have been if Theo never left? I love to dig into that.

Mental illness is also a big thing for me. We have canon evidence for mental illness, even if they’re never named. They all must have PTSD. Stiles shows extreme signs of ADHD. Lydia is practically a survivor of sexual abuse. Multiple characters have attempted suicide. Liam is canonically diagnosed with IED. It would be ignorant not to refer to any of that while writing. Lots of fics I’ve read mention the struggles, depict them greatly, but only a few talked about handling them, about recovery. It’s about time we make progress in that department.

Hmm very true. And not a thought, as a perpetual fluff writer, that I’ve considered until now. You deal with quite a bit of mental issues within your main story, Buy and Sell Gravity. Before we chat about it in depth, can you give us a quick synopsis?

Buy and sell gravity starts with one of Liam’s outbursts of anger. In his social studies class, Monroe has talks badly about adoptive/step-parents and Liam started arguing with her until said he sent him out. So, then he goes and slashes her tires in classic Liam-style. Theo, who has only moved back to Beacon Hills recently and is surrounded by awful rumours, but nothing specified, catches him and decides to take care of it. He saves Liam’s ass and in return he demands that Liam pays for his food during lunch. But then they actually become friends and Liam learns more and more about Theo.

And did anything inspire you to create the premise?

The idea just came me at random – I just had that image in mind of Thiam making a deal. It’s classic romcom stuff, right? And I had thought it would just turn into a lengthy oneshot at most but now it’s the longest thing I have ever written. It’s crazy.

The story is told from Liam’s perspective. Do you think the story would unfold differently had we’d experienced it from Theo’s POV?

I’m actually writing a sequel at the moment, which is from Theo’s perspective. There’s references to buy and sell gravity, of course, so you actually do get part from Theo’s point of view! In general, though, had you seen it all from his point of view, the slow burn would have felt even longer, I imagine. The sound of the fic would have been darker, because that’s Theo’s mindset for the most of it, and there wouldn’t have been so many questions. Theo doesn’t really wonder about anything in this fic, he reflects and draws his own (mostly correct) assumptions. I feel like it would have sounded pretty monotone – it made sense to only pick up his PoV in the sequel and if you’ve read buy and sell gravity, you might be able to tell why. He’s opening up more towards the ending and a more pleasant person to be around to.

I’ve noticed most of your stories turn into longer fics. Have any tricks for keeping yourself motivated to write those longer plots? (Clearly, this is purely self-indulgent here haha. It’s a near miracle if I stick through a long, complex plot!)

I usually only start posting multichaptered fics once they’re already finished. This way you can motivate yourself by going “Well, if you don’t finish it then you won’t post it, nobody will see it and you worked for nothing.” That method works well for me because I love recognition for my works, even if a lot of them are for obscure pairings.

In case of buy and sell gravity, I’ve already started posting while working on it, however. I’ve felt stuck because it’s been my first fic for Teen Wolf, so I was very unsure about whether I hit the characters correctly, if it felt believable; stuff like that. I needed feedback from more than one person and since I’ve never really been in the fandom, going ahead and posting it was my only option. I wanted to know whether it was worth continuing working on it. the feedback was amazing and the fact that a few people came back for every new chapter was a wonderful motivator. Oh, and it certainly doesn’t harm when you have someone literally show up on your doorstep and demand you write a new chapter.

Your first Teen Wolf fit?! Impressive!! Is Teen Wolf now your ultimate favorite fandom to write? (*Wink Wink*) Or, do you have another favorite fandom/ship to write for?

The Arrowverse is generally my favourite fandom. I love all the shows and the way it consists of multiple worlds give you so many things to take away from! You can write any AU, you can write for abandoned timelines or worlds, crossover between the shows and ship practically anything. You can go all out, have doppelgängers appear (like one evil and one good version of the same person, stuff like that). There are no limits. Writing for it is fun because you can draw from so many shows and even include the original comics, if you want. Right now I’m (and have been for the past one and a half years) working on a Groupchat AU set in the Arrowverse where everyone is a member of the LGBTQIA+ community and even that doesn’t seem too out of character.

As to a ship, I probably enjoy Simon Lewis/Raphael Santiago from Shadowhunters the most. Writing for them is almost easy because I can relate to both so much. Depending on which mood you’re in, you can write Simon’s optimistic and reference-heavy rambling or maybe you write the angst that constantly underlines Raphael’s thoughts. I can always find a way to write for them because they’re so different and yet fit together so well.

Yoooo, we could honestly strike up a whole subconvo dedicated to Simon x Raphael lmao. Since we’re supposed to be all about Thiam around here, I’ll restrain myself and simply agree about your opinions on Saphael. (I’ll miss them, sad face)

Being a writer of many fandoms then, what’s your ultimate Teen Wolf crossover with any other show or movie universe? What character would you see interact?

God! I’m a sucker for crossovers with DC! There’s a few I read where Stiles is always the person in question (whether he’s a member of the Batfamily or the brother of The Flash, I’ve read both of those cases, haha). I love the connection of the Teen Wolf world with DC Comics. I wrote a retelling of a Flash episode with Thiam in the focus and someone else wrote a Under the Red Hood AU which still keeps me in awe. (And also, it’s too funny how much the casts overlap, the double identities practically overlap – suddenly Liam is Superboy, Derek is Superman, Allison is a mafia daughter, Jackson as Red Arrow… It’s great.)

Otherwise, what I haven’t seen yet: Twilight. I’ve (re-)discovered my love for it last year and honestly? Let those mix up! Washington and California are both on the West Coast!! I have no idea about how far exactly but let them meet! Let Emmett Cullen beat up Peter Hale! Have Edward and Derek suffer together through their depression and Scott and Jasper try to comfort everyone. Lydia and Alice? Nobody’s dying on their watch. Let Rosalie and Malia kick ass together and Melissa and Carlisle swap hospital stories! Stiles and Bella hanging out together, being sarcastic little shits and also way too much into all this stuff. Hell, I’m gonna write this myself if I have to! (Otherwise I accept fic recs. Thank you.)

Before we wind down, what’s the best advice you’ve ever gotten? Any advice you feel compelled to share?

I used to be really bad at discussing plot ideas with people – I dunno if it was an irrational fear of them running off with what I thought of, but it’s been there. I’ve been in a creative writing class about two years ago and there I was basically forced to do it. It helped somewhat with the progress of my story and being around people who like to do the same thing as you is always a great motivator.

I don’t listen to those conventional writing tips, like what atmosphere you’re supposed to have around you and how to depicts things. Writing is a personal experience and you can do it in a way you seem fit. Not everyone feels at ease in the same environment, so just write when you feel like it. Forcing yourself to do it doesn’t help anyone – except you can only work under stress, of course! See? There’s that individuality again, ruining my own writing tips.

Ahahaha, advice giving is a definite catch-22. Thank you for hanging out with us!! What’s next for you in the world? Both creatively and lively?

I’ve started an apprenticeship to become a bookseller this month! It’s a huge change compared with the life of a student that I had before, but after finishing my Bachelor‘s degree last December, it’s what I needed. Sadly it means that I don’t have as much time to write as I’d like, but I’m doing my best to squeeze in some of that. For Teen Wolf I‘m meaning to wrap up free fallin‘ in the jungle lights finally - otherwise, there’s a few WIPs in the Arrowverse and (uncharacteristic for me) MCU lurking on the back of my brain.

Anything else you’d like to share, in general. The floor is all yours!

I’m not really in the Thiam fandom, I think (really, the number of people I actually chatted with outside of ao3 comments can be counted on one hand), but here’s a massive shoutout to everyone! To the people who write, the people who read, the people who leave long comments, the artists, the meta-people, the ones with the headcanons. The people here from the officialthiamlibrary! You make writing a better experience and your opinions and reflections upon the show and characters help me become better at understanding them. Thank you all for being so lovely and just… into it. You’re all amazing!

And Behind the Screens presents Yasmin to you! Naturally, the conversation doesn’t have to stop here. Meet them at these places:

Main Tumblr: @joanthangroff

Inbox/Ask: joanthangroff ask

AO3: Pettigrace

Twitter: LI4MDUNBAR

Thank you for letting us get to know more about you! And thank you all for reading and requesting her. As always, if you have a Thiam Creator that you fan over, send us their names. Likewise, if you as the creator, would like to be a part of the Behind the Screens series, give us a shout too! We’d love to get to know you, as well.

@joanthangroff

#thiam #teenwolf #behind the screens #mod: minna #officialthiamlibrary

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violetemerald · 8 years

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For the shipping one, 30, 26, and 10. :)

Lol this is some reverse order kinda thing... I see what you’re doing...

OK. http://luvtheheaven.tumblr.com/post/157356117182/40-questions-meme-for-shippers

30. Name a couple of fandoms in which you have no ships.

Well then we have to define “fandom” and “having a ship” so I can know just how to answer. Southland is a show I adored and had no ships in, from what I can remember, but while I watched it loyally and adored it I didn’t feel like it was a fandom I was engaging with. White Collar is a show where I support multiple canon romances somewhat but don’t feel major shipping feelings? Some people would say if you like Elizabeth/Peter’s marriage you ship them but idk if everyone would. I did support Neal/Alex probably the most of his canon romances and could rank each of Neal’s romances, and I felt a lot of feelings about Neal&Peter and vidded them in a platonic way and read “Gen” fics about them and stuff but like, to me that’s not shipping, when it’s not rooting for them to be anything other than the platonic loving bond that is basically already canon... I also don’t ship but really love the idea of Mozzie&Neal actually being the real committed queerplatonic partners throughout the show’s run... I could talk on that some more.

Ok fandoms in which I have no ships... thinking harder... A Series of Unfortunate Events, Heroes probably could count in this category, Criminal Minds when you squint right? Because ultimately I support all the ships in a platonic way? I don’t think BBC Sherlock counts here, because I do basically feel like I ship Johnlock even though it’s queerplatonic in my mind. I don’t know. But I don’t ship anyone in any romantic way on Sherlock either. Oh The Fosters is a huge one for me in this category, I really try to like the ships more sometimes so I can be more in the fandom but its hard, I adore the show and the characters and the family relationships and yet I have like no shipping feelings. I might’ve shipped Wyatt/Callie fairly hard but it was probably in large part because they’re just better than the main alternative ship who I consider a rare NOTP... like idk I can rank some ships as better than others but I don’t really have ships when it comes to The Fosters. Breaking Bad I have no ships. And then there are shows like Arrow or DC’s Legends of Tomorrow or The 100 where I mainly have completely AU ships and/or my only ship was killed off, so for long stretches I kinda feel like I don’t really ship on those shows.

Harry Potter is definitely a fandom where I have no ships, so I lean toward canon ones.

26. Have you noticed a pattern in your shipping? Is there a romantic dynamic you’re more drawn to?

I’ve noticed a few patterns I think. My ships don’t all just follow the same single pattern, I have too many varied ships for that, but yeah I’ve thought about these things.

First of all there’s the cerebral/friendship leads to romance/it’s not explicitly about sexual attraction or aesthetic attraction at all ships, the kind of really chaste, slow burn, easy to fall for ships that you can explain why they are good together in terms of like, detailed explanations of which ways they complement each other, how they both are good for each other, etc. Ships that have been appealing to me as an asexual person since long before I even knew I was ace or that asexuality itself was an option. Maybe the guy clearly finds the girl beautiful but he doesn’t actually talk about wanting to date her or kiss her, doesn’t claim he’s in love until after he knows her well, he just wants to talk to her at first or something, and usually in these ships the girl is oblivious that dating could be on the horizon, or she’s completely focused on something else like an important mission, she’s in another relationship, that kind of thing while all this slow development of a friendship and slowly falling in love happens.

I’ve noticed for the vast majority of my favorite ships, I care deeply about both characters, both are main characters or you get to know a lot about both of them, you see them on their own outside of the ship, it makes the ship easier to root for and fuller and I fall harder faster if I’ve become completely invested in both characters in and of themselves.

There’s, on television and film fandoms, some degree of chemistry or how they act around each other that MATTERS. If whenever they kiss or have a sexual scene they pause for breath with enormous, uncontrollable grins on their faces, that can go a long way. If they are cute with shy smirks and they touch each other in ways that seem intimate and probably not platonic, if the way eye contact happens or something just makes me believe they really want to be together, that goes such a long way. I don’t think ships have to have eye contact, I’ve shipped blind characters like Auggie/Annie on Covert Affairs and it’s just, everything in the way Auggie expresses emotion does it just as well of course... But like... idk there can be a big component of do I believe that the characters feel truly happier in each other’s presence, etc. And usually the difference between like shipping levels of happier in each other’s presence vs platonic they’re better as friends level of happier is about the like, kind of happiness, is it too giddy or is it steady and safe? Is it connected to anything sexual or close to kissing or is it mostly connected to things that could be platonic?

There’s not a clear formula really but I think all of this is part of it, for me.

10. Do you ship any characters that have never met?

Tommy & Sara on Arrow, maybe, not super hard but I like the idea of what their interaction might be? I certainly ship Tommy with her sister Laurel, but Sara and Laurel have had the same taste in men before... (*cough*Oliver*cough*) and with Sara “dying” (or so he thought) before season 1, and then Tommy dying in the season 1 finale, and then Sara returning in season 2, we never got a chance to see what it could’ve been like. I’d like to see how Tommy handled Sara being bisexual. I assume Tommy has met her in my headcanon, before the gambit, and they have potential to still meet because of Sara being on DC’s Legends of Tomorrow and traveling through time on a regular basis. But this is one ship I’ve thought a fair amount about and kind of “ship” despite them never having met. To be fair my main motivation for this particular shipping combination is just that Tommy was my favorite character and they killed him off. And then Sara entered the show and became my new favorite character. I like it when my favorite characters interact? XD

Kara (Supergirl) and Iris from The Flash have now met but barely, and I started shipping them when they hadn’t. This femslash ship is a pretty huge one for me on my mind for the past like, over a year... I really like the idea of them for a lot of reasons, especially since Iris is a reporter and so is James (albeit a photojournalist in this case), and Kara was canonically hugely crushing on James, meanwhile Iris canonically was captivated and supporting The Flash before she knew he was Barry, and eventually does love Barry, and Kara is also a superhero with a similar personality to Barry? And idk I just really love the idea of exploring them as a femslash ship.

Chloe (Smallville)/Peter (Heroes) was a ship that a few people besides me actually had. They got better and better as more seasons of each show aired. Total crazy crossover, characters never met, but Chloe loves the Superman/Clark Kent personality that Peter Petrelli in so many ways has, and Peter is an empath and would be so caring to the emotional Chloe, and the actors had good chemistry together in the show canceled after 8 episodes back in the year 2000, Opposite Sex: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzjFTLGCJMs

So like I’ve actually made 2 Peter/Chloe fanvideos... let me know if anyone wants to see them lol.

In Harry Potter I kinda ship some weird combinations if I think on the hard enough, with so many characters and even generations there are some characters who have never met that might be fun to ship but no, I don’t really ship them hard or anything.

I think that’s probably it? I don’t really ship too many characters who have never met...

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gyrlversion · 6 years

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Toni & Guy guru leaves behind £163million to wife and three children

Few can boast a career that leads to professional encounters with everyone from Gregory Peck to the Rolling Stones.

Even fewer have the commercial genius of Toni Mascolo, the hair-dressing entrepreneur whose stylistic creations included Dusty Springfield’s signature ‘beehive’ and whose business acumen led him to co-found the Toni & Guy empire, which now has 475 salons worldwide.

For I can disclose that Mascolo, who was 75 when he died, bequeathed a staggering £163 million — testimony to his genius with spreadsheets and willingness to embrace business innovation as much as to his dexterity with a pair of scissors.

Mascolo, who was 75 when he died, bequeathed a staggering £163 million. The will states that the entire amount is to be held in trust for the benefit of his widow, Pauline (together), and their three children, daughter Sasha and sons Christian and Pierre

The will, drawn up three months before his death in December 2017, and only just published, records that the entire amount is to be held in trust for the benefit of his widow, Pauline, and their three children, daughter Sasha and sons Christian and Pierre.

Remarkably, this does not represent the sum total of Mascolo’s worldly goods.

The will emphasises that his property and wealth in his native Italy are excluded from its provisions.

Mascolo’s managed to realise his most vivid dreams while growing up in modest circumstances near Naples before moving to South London when Toni was 14

All of this was beyond Mascolo’s most vivid dreams while growing up in modest circumstances near Naples — a fact noted in the subtitle to his memoir: The Rags To Riches Story Of Toni & Guy.

At his mother’s suggestion, the family moved to South London when Toni was 14 and still known by his baptismal name, Guiseppe.

Despite speaking no English on arrival, within five years he was living and working in the West End, returning to his parents’ home when his mother died aged just 45, leaving his father heartbroken and unable to work.

The following year, Toni and his brother Gaetano — renaming himself ‘Guy’ — rented a room in a run-down part of South London, promising customers ‘Florentine elegance and Roman flair’.

They never looked back, pioneering unisex salons and Japanese ‘samurai scissors’, and launching their own styling products.

They were helped by Pauline, one of their former assistants, whom Toni married in 1970, and later by Sasha and Christian.

Why Idris’s stag do was strictly for his eyes only

Frequently tipped to be the next James Bond, Luther star Idris Elba knows how to keep a secret.

The actor reveals he recently went on his stag do but is determined to keep the details under wraps.

‘It was one to remember but a very low-key affair, ’ he told me at the National Film Awards at Porchester Hall in London, where he took home the best director and best drama gongs for Yardie.

Luther star Idris Elba (pictured with U.S.-born fiancee Sabrina Dhowre) revealed his stag do was ‘one to remember but a very low-key affair’

Given he was at the bash with his U.S.-born fiancee Sabrina Dhowre, who wore a £1,595 ‘Vincent’ Roland Mouret dress, his reticence was understandable. Model Dhowre, 30, had her hen do earlier this month at the five-star Amangiri resort in Utah.

Elba, 46, wore a top to the do bearing the slogan ‘Don’t Stab Your Future’, a design from his new clothing brand 2HR Set.

‘There was knife crime when I was teenager and I’m not a teenager any more and we still haven’t found a solution,’ he lamented.

Spencer the jester acts the dummy

Pippa Middleton’s brother-in-law, Spencer Matthews, might have gone teetotal and become a family man, but the former Made in Chelsea lothario hasn’t lost his sense of fun.

The Old Etonian, 30, whose financier brother, James, is married to the Duchess of Cambridge’s sister, attended the launch party of Octavia Hix’s latest collection at Chelsea boutique Baar and Bass with his wife, Irish model Vogue Williams, 33, this week.

Pippa Middleton’s brother-in-law, Spencer Matthews (with his wife, Irish model Vogue Williams) attended the launch party of Octavia Hix’s latest collection and impulsively reached for a pink wig from the shop’s mannequin

He surprised guests when he impulsively reached for a pink wig from the shop’s mannequin to place on his own head for ten minutes. ‘Do you think it suits me?’ he asked Vogue, the mother of his six-month-old son, Theodore. ‘Yeah, it looks great!’ she chortled.

Carla Bruni really is pushing the boat out

Is singer-songwriter Carla Bruni’s career all at sea?

The former First Lady of France is now trying to make waves by agreeing to be the ‘godmother’ of a cruise ship called World Explorer.

Singer-songwriter Carla Bruni, pictured at a fashion bash in Qatar this week, has agreed to be the ‘godmother’ of a cruise ship called World Explorer

Carla, 51, who has several gold and platinum albums to her name, will perform songs from her latest album and crack a bottle of bubbly across the bow during its launch next week.

Carla, pictured at a fashion bash in Qatar this week, was chosen, according to the skipper of Mystic Cruises Mario Ferreira, because she embodies the ‘sophistication and elegance of European design that we put to the ship’s development.’ Which I think is a compliment…

Yes, it is love actually for bride MP

Her Cornish accent — as rich, it is said, ‘as clotted cream’ — is regularly heard in the House of Commons.

But tomorrow, Sheryll Murray, Tory MP for South-East Cornwall, will intone across a more intimate part of the Palace of Westminster – the Crypt Chapel, where she will marry Bob Davidson, manager of her Commons office.

On Saturday, Sheryll Murray, Tory MP for South-East Cornwall, will marry Bob Davidson, manager of her Commons office

There will be a trace of poignancy in what promises to be a joyous occasion: Murray, 63, lost her first husband, Neil, a fisherman, in a tragic accident at sea.

Their two children will be among 100 guests who will enjoy a buffet lunch. One of the chosen hymns seems especially apt amid the current parliamentary mayhem.

‘It’s Lord Of All Hopefulness,’ Davidson, 48, tells me.

Before Marie-Chantal, Crown Princess of Greece, left England with her family to move to New York, she hosted a lavish party at their Gloucestershire home that had it all — European royalty, fashion royalty and, for those dispossessed of a kingdom, fake thrones to sit on.

Now, a year on, the fashion designer admits she’s pining for England again. ‘A year ago we moved back to New York, as the older kids are at university there,’ she says.

‘I miss the gentleness and cosiness of London, the structure and British quirkiness — in New York everyone is on a mission to rule the world.’

Hugh Bonneville reveals he was nearly dropped from the Oscar–winning film Iris, about writer Iris Murdoch’s relationship with her husband John Bayley.

‘The American producers didn’t want to cast me. They wanted to cast someone who was very well-known, who shall remain nameless . . . Jonny Lee Miller,’ says Bonneville.

‘And the director Richard Eyre, bless him, stuck to his guns and said: “I don’t think that’s going to work to because Jonny’s busy and also he doesn’t look anything like Jim Broadbent” — who’d already been cast as the older John Bayley. So I was very lucky to get the part.’

Hugh Dancy exacted revenge on a theatregoer whose phone went off while he was performing on stage.

During his curtain call the Stoke on Trent-born actor, who will be starring in the final series of TV drama Homeland alongside his wife Claire Danes, was appealing for money for the charity Broadway Cares/ Equity Fights Aids and loudly proclaimed: ‘You sir, I hope, have very deep pockets!’ Touche.

Raunchy Fifty Shades Of Grey author E.L. James has expressed disapproval at TV presenter Lorraine Kelly’s admission that she never takes her bra off — even to sleep.

Responding to the news online, James posted a picture captioned: ‘It’s a no from me’.

Surely James, whose series of erotic novels has inspired its own line of lingerie, should be in favour of bras in bed?

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