Had Prince Albert not died prematurely, thus tipping his wife into a life of
frumpy widow’s weeds, Queen Victoria might have become quite the fashion
diva. Virtually imprisoned through her childhood, when freedom – and the
throne – came, at the age of 18, the young Victoria (as feisty Emily Blunt
will, I trust, demonstrate in The Young Victoria) threw herself into
retail therapy. At only 4ft 11in, the Queen soon discovered the benefits of
good tailoring, especially the equestrian kind, and her ivory lace wedding
dress set the pace for all subsequent brides. Not bad for a woman whose
first stylist was Lord Melbourne, who in his spare time toiled as the
country’s prime minister. Now that’s versatility.
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