The Fashion and Hair of Downton Abbey

As “Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale”, the new feature film, opens worldwide, we see perhaps for the final time the elegant, glamorous, and always dramatic world of Lord and Lady Grantham and their family. We also have a chance to look back at the evolving fashion and hairstyles of Downton’s characters as they have evolved from the series debut set in 1912 up to this final film set in 1930. Joining The Gilded Gentleman table to trace this fashion history is listener favorite guest Dr. Elizabeth L. Block. Liz takes us from the high Edwardian style we saw with Violet, the Dowager Countess, to the body hugging, slinky styles of Coco Chanel we see on Lady Mary in this latest film. Furthermore, we explore the flapper look, the influence of war years on fashion and how the great cultural forces such as the Ballets Russes all influence the styles of the Crawley sisters — we even take a look downstairs and talk about how styles for domestic staff were shifting as well.