Angela Kelly, the Queen’s dressmaker, began her career as a housekeeper for the British Ambassador to Germany, Sir Christopher Mallaby, in 1992. She has been designing clothing for The Queen since then, creating the canary yellow outfit she wore to Middleton and Prince William’s wedding and the tailored look she donned for the Olympic Opening Ceremony. Kelly initially created garments with designer Alison Pordum, uniting in 2002 to launch the label Kelly and Pordum.
Kelly revealed that months of preparation went into creating two identical dresses for the monarch’s starring role in the Olympic Opening Ceremony. By 2001, Kelly was also tasked with wearing-in Her Majesty’s shoes, as they shared the same shoes. The coronation gown, designed by British couturier Sir Norman Hartnell at the height of post-World War II austerity, is the centerpiece of an exhibition.
Hardy Amies, the Queen’s official dressmaker for 50 years, was best known for his attention to detail. Kelly’s inimitable style was developed over the decades by aides and designers, starting with Norman Hartnell, who created her wedding dress when she married Prince Philip. Designers like Hartnell, Amies, Ian Thomas, John Anderson, Stuart Parvin, and Angela Kelly each developed ingenious hacks to ensure that even during her time, the Queen’s wardrobe was elegant, timeless, and vibrant.
📹 Queen Elizabeth’s 19 Most Iconic Looks From 1932 to Now | Life in Looks | Vogue
In honor of the Platinum Jubilee, Vogue’s editor-at-large Hamish Bowles breaks down Queen Elizabeth’s history of royal looks.
Does the Queen put her own clothes on?
The Queen of the United Kingdom, with the assistance of her dresser Angela Kelly, is renowned for her bold and vibrant attire. She adheres to the belief that her appearance is a crucial aspect of her role, despite her proficiency in dressmaking and extensive experience.
Does the Queen choose her own clothes?
Former royal butler Paul Burrell explains that Queen Elizabeth II’s top floor was exclusively for storing her clothes, with outfits brought down to her in the morning. The dresser would bring down two outfits with material clipped to them, allowing her to remember whether it was silk, cotton, or wool. Once she selected an outfit, it would be brought downstairs for her, preventing her from seeing her entire wardrobe.
The closet was likely filled with a rainbow of garments, including handbags from her go-to designer, Launer. The Queen’s sartorial memory lane includes bright blue gowns during her meeting with JFK and bright pink gowns at banquets.
Who designs dresses for the Queen?
Angela Kelly, Queen Elizabeth II’s Personal Wardrobe Advisor, is responsible for maintaining, curating, and designing the Queen’s wardrobe. Kelly is a close confidant and friend to the Queen, having been involved in the design of Princess Beatrice’s unconventional royal wedding dress. Kelly is well-known to royal fans and is known for her work in the British Fashion Council. She is also a close confidant of the Queen and is often seen alongside Caroline Rush, chief executive of the British Fashion Council, and Anna Wintour.
Who helps the Queen get dressed?
Angela Kelly, the Queen’s most loyal aide for three decades, is also known as her hairdresser, dresser, and “best friend”. Kelly, a housekeeper for Christopher Mallaby, the then British ambassador to Germany, impressed the Queen by refusing to disclose the names of guests. After returning to Britain, she received a job offer as one of the Queen’s dressers, believing the Queen found her trustworthy during a meeting. Kelly began working for the British monarch soon after.
Where did the Queen get her outfits?
The Queen’s early years on the throne were characterized by court dressers Norman Hartnell and Hardy Amies, while her senior dresser Angela Kelly oversaw her wardrobe on key occasions like her Diamond Jubilee year, royal weddings, and Zoom engagements during lockdown. As the nation mourns the Queen’s loss, it’s worth revisiting her best style moments over the years, such as her stunning satin gown and fur jacket at the London Palladium.
Who was the Queen’s favourite designer?
Elizabeth II embraced the latest trends but avoided committing to them, relying on custom looks from trusted dressmakers like Sir Norman Hartnell. Hartnell was known for his “sense of theatre” and extravagant fabrics, and he designed for the monarch for over 40 years. Elizabeth sent sketches and samples to him, and he complimented the seamstresses. In 1947, Elizabeth wore an ivory duchesse satin gown embroidered with 10, 000 seed pearls for her wedding to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Hartnell was also trusted to create her Coronation gown in gilded splendor in 1953.
Who picks the queens clothes?
Queen Elizabeth II’s outfits have been designed and produced in-house for 24 years by a team of around 10 people, led by personal dresser Angela Kelly. Each item is bespoke, and the Queen attended over 300 engagements a year before the pandemic. The Queen’s style is unique to the public, and Hartnell and Amies have made her more individual. Angela Kelly has been clever in capturing her style and making it sparkle. Every aspect of her appearance is meticulously planned.
Who designed the Queen’s clothing?
Norman Hartnell, a renowned designer, is known for dressing Queen Elizabeth II during her time at Balmoral. One of his most iconic wardrobe items was the Barbour jacket, an English brand founded in 1894. The Queen and the Royal family loved Barbour’s wax jackets, which were initially made from leftover sails and coated with fish oil, causing an unpleasant smell. However, when the jackets were adopted, the smell disappeared. The brand has been awarded three Royal warrants, with the first being awarded by His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh in 1974.
What designer brand does the Queen wear?
Royal Warrants are prestigious awards bestowed by the Queen to prestigious fashion houses, such as Burberry, Hunter, and Launer. Burberry was first awarded its Royal Warrant by the Queen in 1955, and is often seen wearing her waterproof trench. Hunter, a well-known brand in Glastonbury, has been supplying Wellington boots to the Royal Family since the 70s and has two Royal Warrants. The Queen wears an unbranded black pair of Hunter boots, while Princess Diana famously wore green Hunter Originals for a photo with Prince Charles.
The Duchess of Cambridge and Princess Charlotte are fans of Hunter’s boots. The Launer handbag, founded in the 1940s, has been the Queen’s bag of choice for decades, accompanying her on state visits and sitting on the front row of London Fashion Week in 2018. Fou
nded in the 1940s, Launer is the second-best non-concession handbag seller in Selfridges and has remained true to its roots and British heritage.
Who was the Queens clothing designer?
Mary Angela Kelly, a British fashion designer, dressmaker, and milliner, served as the Personal Assistant and Senior Dresser to Queen Elizabeth II from 1993 until her death in 2022. Kelly was responsible for the Queen’s clothes, jewelry, and insignia, researching royal visits venues and the significance of colors. She also announced in 2019 that the Queen would only wear faux-furs. Kelly was born in Liverpool and began working for the Queen after an interview at Windsor Castle in 1994.
Who is Camilla’s Favourite designer?
Queen Camilla was attired in a pastel pink ensemble by her preferred designer, Fiona Clare, for a royal engagement in France. The use of cookies by Yahoo, a member of the Yahoo family of companies, serves several purposes. Primarily, cookies are employed to facilitate the delivery of services, to authenticate users, to implement security measures, to prevent spam and abuse, and to gauge user engagement on the company’s websites and applications.
📹 fashion in The Queen’s Gambit (an analysis)
Also, thanks for 100k ❤️ PODCAST Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3wvGhhd3yGEJhak11myA5N Apple Podcasts: …
I’ve gotten a lot of comments about the diversity point I made. In my opinion, for a show created in 2020, there should be more inclusion of POC. Cleo was apparently not in the original book, but they added her in. Townes wasn’t gay in the book either, apparently. These are all things they rewrote for the script, so it would also be possible to add POC without changing the essence of the story. Even making Jolene a stronger character who shows up earlier rather than just as a “token Black best friend/savior” would be an improvement. Also, the best method for writing diverse characters without “tokenizing” them for brownie points is actually hiring POC writers! I received some comments saying that a 1960s period piece doesn’t need diversity, even though the 1960s was the height of the Civil Rights Movement. Even referencing these political events would’ve been more ideal than pretending they didn’t exist, because in reality – these events were REALLY significant and it’s actually unrealistic to NOT reference them. It’s like having a “period piece” set in 2016 where none of the characters mention the election. In addition, mainstream media has compromised historical accuracy numerous times. Do we really believe that women were wearing 21st century makeup and bathing regularly in the 16th century? Half the costumes used in period dramas are not even historically accurate. Why do we choose to draw the line at diversity when it comes to historical accuracy in movies/tv? But even as I say that, POC have existed for as long as White people have existed.
I can understand why the boys in the show keep coming back to her despite how cold she is. They idolize and romanticize her, it does not matter how shitty of a person she was to them. She was the most talented player of the game they were obsessed with. I understand your frustration with Jolene not being in other episodes because she was a very likeable character, however it makes sense for her to be absent. She was at the orphanage and the two of them were living separate lives. Only reason she came into town was because Shaible died and she was trying to get in contact with Beth. I think she gave her the money because of their past relationship, they were like sisters growing up, there is a level of trust in that.
If you know anything about chess, it’s also fitting that she progresses from a white “pawn” in the first scene with young Beth (where we see her standing in front of the car crash) where she’s wearing white shoes and socks and a washed out denim dress to the final scene as the white “queen”! It really represents her growth both personally and as a chess player, from the weakest, most restricted piece to the strongest, freest piece.
I love that you pointed out how they didn’t make Beth’s character fall down the “she’s not like other girls” trope. In an interview, Anya Taylor-Joy said she made it a point for Beth to be purposely feminine and stylish to kill the stereotype that a girl has to be either smart or fashionable. She can be both. And that’s what Anya wanted for Beth’s character.
i also love how you can tell she has these muses whose fashion she tries to emulate, like the highschool girls, then the pants that look very audrey hepburn, then she’s perusal that venus music article on tv and does her makeup like the singer. it all makes sense too since she’s a teenager and in her early 20s in the show which is when everyone would be experimenting with fashion and style anyways
The costume designer, Gabriele Binder really outdid herself with the outfits in the show. Yeah, Beth served looks but the other characters did too.. take a look at Benny’s outfits for instance, he dressed like a pirate for tournaments but in the scenes where he was in NYC with (and without) Beth, his outfits served. This show did something I wished more shows did… the outfits made sense.
I think Jolene giving money to Beth makes so much sense. She was always reading about Beth, she was following every match of her, even though they werent talking. She said, as a kid she used her ice cream money to buy chess magazines with Beth on the cover. She loved Beth, she saw her as her family. Jolene knew the importance of that Moscow match, and she believed in her
As a Russian viewer, I really liked the representation of the USSR in the show, this is probably the most positive representation in a foreign cinematography that I have seen. In the show, they have great respect for the Soviet school of chess and the Soviet people are shown as the most loving this game in the world, which is very relatable, since we admire and love our chess players since childhood. Moscow, speech, people, food – it was all nice to see it not in a stereotyped way, but the series also did not cover our dark history and added such moments as the KGB. Overall, I really liked this aspect of the show. Also wanted to thank you for the article! I really couldn’t wait to see it, so i was tried to watch the show as fast as I could ❤️
I think it’s realistic how all the guys revolved around her. She is beautiful, talented and mysterious, what is there not to be attracted to? And men put up with a lot than you’d expect from an attractive girl. Also she is the IT girl in the chess community and is very impressive at what she does, which may be tempting them to stick around to see her journey.
I i disagree about the comment of her friends “randomly” giving her support. I think they understand that she is a prodigy. They also come together to fight against the Russians in chess which is by far the most competitive form of competition. If your are obsessed with chess the way it is expressed in the series as well as in real life, I think I that these events that you find random or doesn’t really make logical sense, i view them quite natural and real.
This show was so good in developing character trough wardrobe because it got to take it’s time! It wasn’t just orphan girl one day, circle-skirt high school teenager the next. It got to take some baby steps, to let Beth slowly find her style. Note how the first dress she buys for her winning money is still a pinafore style, but a more grown version than the one’s she’s been stuck with, and her short bob gets to grow and become more of an adult haircut trough the decade.
i feel like the absence of jolene in most of the series is actually accurate? because jolene was in the orphanage till 18 years old and by that time beth was already a really great chess player so she always was on some championships in different cities and countries etc we literally haven’t seen at her house till her mother died
I loved how they portrait Mexico, Mexican architecture, parks and Mexican characters, I point this out because you’re talking about lack of diversity, but as a Mexican viewer, this representation was very beautiful and respectful. I think it’s the first time I see my country portrayed that beautiful in American or foreign cinematography.
The way she looks like a chess queen at the end and won her title by playing the queen’s gambit in the tournament was mind blowing! But yes her clothes looks like chess patterns. In the series, she says to the journalist how safe she feels in a 64 square board and that chess can also be beautiful not just competitive.
She was like the SUN. What you didn’t get is that all of them had something in common and that is their love for chess! She was the best of them and was challenging the best player in the world. If you play any sport you would understand that if someone you played against was able to get that far even if you hate him you’ll come to like him when you see him reaching the goal. It’s basically like if you are really smart in class even if you are rude, you’ll still see people coming to ask you questions and such. Talent brings people.
3:19 Cmon, you took the “you’re my guardian angel” clip completely out of context. Jolene then claps back as to why she isn’t just some “guardian angel” and they were once friends that only had each other in their childhoods. I agree Jolene should have had much more of a presence in the show but I thought that following scene was her character standing up for herself against that POC-saving-grace trope and it was 100% her decision to give Beth the money because of the genuine connection they shared in the past.
I think it was in ep 6 that a reporter asked Beth her response to being accused of being too glamorous to be taken as a serious chess player, and she responds “I think it’s much easier playing chess without the burden of an Adam’s apple.” Like Beth knows that a comment like that is amusing to the men in the room but is clear enough to let them know she doesn’t care about the accusations. Beth knows she’s glamorous, and to top it off she’s a woman, which makes her an easy target for reporters and for people to look down on her. I love how she hates how papers emphasize that she’s a woman more over anything else, but doesn’t reject that she’s a woman in order to be taken more seriously. I love how her style progresses and I could literally imagine young girls of her time looking at her photos, reading about how accomplished and brilliant she is, and seeing this stylish icon and have that stick with them for the rest of their lives.
I love this website but I wish you were more…..broad minded? I’ve noticed when you tend to summarize the show/ piece of media you tend to only think about it from a specific perspective and judge characters or situations in a very single-minded way. This also shows in the way you edit in certain scenes to fit your bias.
Is anybody gonna mention the fact that Beth kept her mom’s iconic pastel pink and blue (quilt) coat after she died??? She literally hugged the coat, laying in bed in a moment of frustration and later she WEARS IT in FRONT of the mom’s husband when he came over with a lawer at her house to discuss to whom the property belongs. SHE INTENTIONALLY DID IT TO TEASE THE HUSBAND for his aloofness for the mom’s death. I found that brilliant.
I disagree with the surrounding of characters around Beth. I looked at metaphor and symbolism in this and my interpretation sees it as a ensemble of chess pieces. Towards the end, especially that scene where they talk to her on her final match, Beth is the Queen, Townes is the King, Benny & Harry are Bishop, the other on the call (forgot their names) are pawns or rooks and we could see her mother and Jolene as such as well (maybe lost early in the game). I don’t know much about chess, so this is as far as my interpretation goes, but some pieces must be a bit selfish in the way they move while others are their for support and defense, no? Anyways I also wanted to take the time and say I look forward to your analysis since I too also adore critiquing movies and shows by their visuals and fashion. I loved your analysis on the pill and pale green dress, I was trying for the longest time to decipher it and didn’t event think of that. I loved the styling of the chess pieces as well! The use of colour has been another that I pointed out such as black and white being obvious, but also beige and off whites. I’ve been trying to further understand her use of certain colours such as yellow and green especially in Mexico City, but have nothing yet. Again, always look forward to you stuff! Keep is up! @cupcakeandtea
I must say, your level of analysis and depth regarding fashion and costume analysis is absolutely remarkable. I did pick up on certain clues while perusal the show (the permanently muted, often black-and-white reminiscent of chess colour story and palette, the transition throughout the years, the pant wearing, the striking visual difference between her and ‘the other girls’ etc) but I would’ve NEVER picked up on the green dress resembling the pills thing, not even the final look where she resembles a white queen chess piece – it’s amazing how you manage to pick certain subtleties that might have went unnoticed for most. You’re such a delight to watch, such an entertaining and informative YT website. Truly a gem. Thank you so much, Mina.
Loved Jolene and unfortunately the book did her much dirtier. Early in the novel, Jolene sexually assaults Beth and their friendship carries on as it does in the film (don’t get me started on how the only Black character is immediately vilified with this arc). That may illustrate as to why she pays Beth’s way to Russia – some sort of guilt. Overall I’m happy that Beth was free from sexual abuse in the film adaptation. When perusal period films, I’m often bracing myself for some sort of assault (especially young women in male dominated circles) and I’m happy the movie was free from this.
I’d like to point out something I found rather interesting. We see a flashback to when Beth’s mother, Alice was embroidering Beth’s name on her dress, she tells her something along the lines of, “so that you don’t ever lose your identity.” (i don’t think she says the word identity though). when she gets to the orphanage, the head mistress burns the dress. thought that was quite interesting.
Did anyone notice that through her Russia games she was wearing predominantly black and dark greens at the beginning with the exception to the black and white dress of her first game? Including the most beautiful deep green velvet when she plays her hero. Then after her call with the boys in NY she wears a pale grey dress that we haven’t previously seen. Then after winning is all in white. As Mina said in the article, she has reached her final form of queen but I think the intermediary grey dress shows that the transformation really begins before she wins but when she has the support of her friends and has confidence.
Actually Beth was alone a lot, the ones that gravitated to her was just here and there but the movie showed her with them because it be boring otherwise. About your Jolene question, I responded to someone else that had similar question, my reply: I think she got over addictions a lot by letting people that cared and loved her back into her life and the fact that those people reached out to her. Don’t under estimate the power of a good conscience, Jolene mentioned how jealous she was about being jealous that she got adopted, they were best buds growing up at the orphanage and I think she lent her the money because of her conscience and her love of her like a sister.( also I think she had faith for good reasons that she would pay her back and she might need a favor sometime.) That was closest thing each other had to each other, that is they were like sisters, family. Another thing that helped her was her first love that turned out being gay came to Russia and helped her mental health with the renewing their friendship albeit platonic. Also the friendship of the ones in the State’s helping her with that phone call. Then the moment during the tournament she saw the game on the ceiling but this time with out the drugs was the topper that she did not need the drugs Also loved Jolene’s lines like when she said she was going to be a radical and “f-ck um if they can’t take a joke”. Thanks enjoyed your perspective..
I think the people who gravitate to her are the ones that are either fascinated by her or have seen her weaknesses. The chess players were all interested in her because of her skill and determination and then got to know her. Jolene knew about her drug addiction. Most people, like in school, didn’t like her.
The problem with the representation is that it wouldn’t have made sense. As many people explained, the world of chess was white and male dominated. Some people argue there were other way to include poc, but I feel like they would all have harmed the narrative. Some people say: well Beth is a woman, if they can create a fictional woman who can be in the chess world, why not poc? But like, that’s the point. Beth is particular because she is a woman. If there were already women and poc in the chess world, there wouldn’t be anything special about Beth’s story. Some people say: Jolene should have been more prominently featured. I agree that Jolene was a dope character, and I wish we got to see more of her, I would watch an entire series about her tbh. BUT the queens gambit isn’t about Jolene. It’s about Beth’s journey. And I feel that Jolene’s absence was necessary for that journey. If she showed up earlier and gave Beth the support she needed, I think Beth wouldn’t have gone off the deep end like she did. Or maybe she would have pushed her away like her other friends, but regardless, the outcome would have been very different, so it would completely change the story. Same thing with people saying the civil rights movement was important in those years and should have been included. That’s not true, because clearly that’s not what the series’s about. Beth doesn’t have anything to do with the civil right movement, and shoehorning that theme into the show would just make it seems forced.
Just some perspective on the things you didn’t get (my opinion): 1) I feel like part of the reasons the guys get together is for the chess. It’s chess, an opportunity for an American woman to show the Russians who have historically dominated the sport who’s boss. I having been in that environment know how intense the culture and commitment is to the game, so it definitely impacts the guys’ willingness to join. 2) in the book, Beth is actually the one to hit up Jolene she is a lot more recurring vs appearing randomly in the show 🙂
Opinion alert: I think the show is accurate of human connection in those days . I didn’t even question the “loyalty” of her “friends” because I didn’t think it was 100% about her. The meaning of their help went deeper then just helping her win at chess. They connected on a deeper level because of the chess playing and their mutual goals as well as, they are vicariously living they her. Not everything is about the main character in my opinion. 🙂 love you and your reviews please never stop 💕
I disagree with Beth’s friends “randomly” supporting her. In my eyes, the writers strategically placed the reappearance of the characters. Benny does his own thing, he isn’t trailing behind Beth. He just knew how important the Moscow competition was and probably felt the event was more important than an argument between themselves. Friends fight and forgive. As for Harry, he seems like a helpless romantic. He is overly enamored by Beth which is what constantly brings him back to her. He leaves, comes back, leaves, and comes back because of his lingering feelings. Kind of like trying to get over an ex. The only character that I felt somewhat randomly returned was Jolene. However, giving her money didn’t seem random to me. She had been following Beth through the magazines, been her only friend at the orphanage, and been supportive. I feel she recognized the importance of the Moscow chess match and just wanted to help out, as a good friend would. Besides, I feel Beth would do the same for Jolene if the roles were reversed. Also, there is a time when Beth is at her worst and she is smoking and drinking alone at home constantly and there’s no one there. Even Harry leaves her at her worst. Similarly to real life, we sometimes don’t have anyone to help us to confront our demons. However, her friends ultimately reconcile with her to help her for her biggest chess match because they believe in her and understand how grand scaled this match is. I don’t feel the characters return conveniently for Beth and when they do, there is usually a reason (such as helping her win the Moscow match, infatuation and etc).
One detail that I noticed is that she was wearing a headscarf with feather motive and Benny wears a hat with a little feather on the side. Don’t know what symbolism that is, but to me it shows that they are definitely soulmates perhaps not romantically but they are very alike, the whole winner attitude, ambition, free spirit etc
I actually really enjoyed how all of the characters kind of revolved around Beth. I think narratively, this was the goal the writers were trying to achieve, to make it like it was from Beth’s pov. Beth’s character is referred to as somewhat as a self-destructive genius, which they did phenomenally. She viewed her chess self and her achievements disconnected from her self and personal relationships. In my opinion, this was a great way to write this type of show.
I think the reason people keep coming to her is because she had kind of an addicting personality and it shows with every person she meets they feel like naturally attracted to her somehow and believe me I’ve met people who are just full of shit but keep attracting people it’s really impressive and frustrating
Gentle reminder guys, Anya Taylor-Joy is Latina, but she labels herself as a white Latina and refuses to go for roles where the character is labelled as Latina because she doesn’t want to take that role away from a POC. So the show does have a diversity problem, but they discreetly put a Latina as the main character and I love it
I loved Anya Taylor-Joy’s acting choices. She brought Beth to life with this spiky, brittle brilliance. I read her as autistic coded in a surprisingly believable way. And while everyone around her gave her a bit too much forgiveness, Taylor-Joy was so magnetic that I could believe that nobody exactly liked her, but that they were fascinated by her (and that in the end when they all came together, it was because her win would be an American win and she was their best bet). I got frustrated with the fact that she had room-filling chemistry with Chloe– and it ended up going nowhere. Her disinterest during sex with men before their first meeting compounded that situation. I get that a 60s woman who woke up to find another woman in her bed would feel some kind of way about it, but I wish the show had addressed what happened, not swept it under the carpet and never mentioned it again. The diversity problem was real too. I read too many old white boomer reviewers saying how they were so relieved to watch something that “didn’t have a PC agenda”, and you know you’re doing something wrong when you make that audience comfortable.
Beth’s chess friends rally around her because they are in awe of her chess abilities and worship her for that. As orphans Jolene and Beth have a special relationship that is way deeper than a normal friendship, that’s why Jolene came to Beth’s aid without hesitation. Your understanding of Beth’s White Queen outfit at the end and her adoration by the chess men of Soviet Russia was spot on.
I have to disagree about the friends and relationships. Of course the guys gravitate to her, she is smart and beautiful, but they see her flaws and don’t pursue relationships with her. To me, it was clear that she wanted Harry to live with her and she wanted love and closeness with him but he didn’t (after they had sex). He was trying to look out for her because he could tell she had a substance issue, but he was still not romantically interested anymore, just very concerned about someone he cared for. Similarly with Benny. I liked this aspect of the show, because it showed us, and Beth, that she isn’t perfect, despite being smart, beautiful, and talented (which most people want and strive for). At the end, I liked how her friends banned together to help her, it showed that they really cared for her, which is what she needed all her life. It was an interesting contrast to how the Russian had all the help from the best players in the world. I am disappointed that we didn’t see more of Joanna. She was my favorite character! The entire show, I was thinking, “omg did she send Mr. Sheibel the $10, omg why doesn’t she find Joanna???” but looking back, I see how someone like Beth would isolate herself. Having a traumatic childhood, loss of her mothers, etc. It was a realistic view of how people with issues or trauma can isolate themselves even though they care for other people. The fact that she never went back to see Mr. Sheibel BROKE MY HEART! But it was clear that she cared about him even back when she was a child and put her hand on his shoulder for the picture.
I just wanted to say that second wave feminism was about so so SO much more than optics! It represented a complete shift from focusing on women’s disempowerment on just ability to vote to interrogating how social institutions (e.g. heterosexual relationships, the family, workplace) inherently subordinated women. It was also responsible for the instigation of legalising abortion and contraception and SO much else. Sorry I don’t want this to sound condescending at all – gender studies were a huge part of my politics degree so I’m get super enthusiastic about anything to do w this period hahaha. I just found ur website a couple of days ago and your vids are so informative and interesting!! (and ur fashion is incredible hahah)
Food for thought, I think there were a lot of reasons that the characters gravitated to Beth even though she was a hard character to love. You can see in the movie that in the “chess world” players gravitate to good players. Good players almost had like groupies. So I believe that people surrounded her because of that but also because as Harry’s character mentions there was a great chess player that reminded him of Beth and ultimately died of substance abuse. I think to an extent Beth was an ass but a lot of the good chess players were ass holes. So even though Beth was awful to her friends I think they empathized with her struggle of substance abuse and respected her for the good player she was and for her love of chess.
In the books, Beth isn’t so cold-hearted as she is portrayed. She actually did form some friendships.. So it would make sense when others rally around her on her journey to Moscow – unlike in the show, where it made no sense that all these people who Beth has scorned and been rude to in the past all of a sudden want to help her. Benny and Beth actually form a friendship over the span of their careers, and bond over the fact that they can’t relate to people romantically or socially. They do have a romantic dynamic, but agree they are too messed up to actually be with each other. I didn’t like how the show threw them together, and Beth left him with no explanation. Also, in the book, Jolene doesn’t seek Beth out. In fact, Beth seeks Jolene out as she’s spiraling with her addiction because she feels she’s the only person who would understand as she has seen her addiction developing in its early stages. Other than those plot holes, the show was phenomenal and the costume design was genius! I loved your analysis <3
Really enjoyed the article, there’s just one part I disagree with. You were talking about how it doesn’t make sense that everyone in Beth’s life revolve around her even though she doesn’t put a whole lot of effort into maintaining her relationships. People like Beth have a natural gift in attracting others, despite their gaucheness and apparent emotional detachment. By this I don’t just mean their talent, but their inner drive. Like Beltik said, “I realize I just don’t love chess that much; I don’t have what you have.” (Recited this from memory so not verbatim, but the gist is there.) Beth possesses an extremely rare and precious quality, an unmatchable passion for what she does and a strong drive that keeps her going no matter the obstacles. In the end, it’s this quality that draws people to her. Selfishness is the other side of concentrated passion. There are millions of hyper-self-centered people out there but very few have what Beth got and to me it outweighs all her flaws.
Ohhh I was hoping that you would do an analysis on it! I think the makeup change to a psychedelic/graphic 60’s mod makeup where she completely loses herself and her mind and becomes someone else, is also really interesting. It’s like she transformed into a doll/puppet. I loved the little details and especially the last scene/her white queen outfit
I think actually think the lack of diversity and how everyone keeps circling Beth makes sense. Queen’s Gambit is Beth’s story told from Beth’s perspective. Beth was isolated for a significant portion of her childhood and finds it extremely difficult to socialize and relate to others – her age peers and those older/younger. She’s suspicious of others and since she doesn’t care for others much aside from their immediate benefit to her (ex. her relationship with Alma at the start, her childhood friendship with Jolene, her relationship with Harry), she assumes others react the same. It’s subtly insinuated that when Jolene bitterly tells Beth when she’s adopted that she’s going to stay at the orphanage till she ages out because she’s too old and too Black that Jolene cuts all ties with her (no letters, no phone calls) because she’s petty and not going to go anywhere in life because what’s life really going to be like for a penniless Black orphan girl? Jolene is completely put out of Beth’s mind so we never see or hear of her again. BUT the turning point is in the last episode. While Beth’s life is spiraling out of control and it seems like everyone is constantly abandoning her or letting her down (her mother, her father, Mr. Wheatley, Harry, Benny, etc) Jolene pops up to tell her Mr. Shaibel’s died. THIS is the point where the narrative starts to open up and really drive home what a narrow worldview and self-centred perspective Beth, and us as the audience have had up until this point.
She’s basically the historical equivalent of a modern day gamer girl that’s both beautiful and brilliant. At the end she’s representing the entire continental US against the soviets, it makes perfect sense that the men (whose entire lives revolve around the game that she’s the best in the world at) gravitate towards her and support her. Her win is in a way, their win.
I love that you pointed out how they did a great job with her wardrobe transformation over time. I feel like a lot of times characters’ fashion evolution in movies/TV shows happens through the cliche makeover scene where it’s an instant transformation, but that’s not realistic to how most people actually dress in real life. They did a great job of conveying her character development subtly over the years.
Dude, people don’t realize how practical skirts really are. I literally only own one pair of pants, and I don’t have a single pair of jeans. I actually think the gendering of pants a skirts is way more sexist to men. Women were at least allowed to wear pants under some circumstances as far back as the Victorian era. But even today, skirts and dresses aren’t mainstream for men. Totally not fair.
I love what you said about her clothing style resembling a chess board, especially since her very first garnment was a dress with her name on it and her mother saying “So you will always remember who you are”, as if she does the chess-like clothing to remind herself she’s (the queen of) chess. Also, we see what you do wearing “the pills” as eye-shadow!!! <3
tbh i dont think it had a HUGE diversity problem. The cast was very small: literally just Beth, Jolene, Mr. Shaibel, her adopted parents, some men who play chess (3 sides?) You can put her adopted parents off the table first. As for the other chess players… I’m thinking it wouldn’t make a ton of sense when chess was a white man thing ?? You mentioned in your pinned comment that they “made towns gay” so they could’ve changed it. But there’s not much unrealistic about that. Gay ppl existed in all corners of society, they were just closeted. But to change the demographic of chess in the 1960s would’ve stuck out like a sore thumb. And the historical inaccuracy about the dresses is NOT the same as making race historically inaccurate. Everyone would notice the latter. No one except ppl who know about fashion would notice that the outfits in Queen’s Gambit don’t match the time. I guess after some thought they could’ve made Mr. Shaibel not white… That’s probably the most realistic take, and what they could get away with changing. But like 1 character change isn’t that big of a deal imo.
Great article! I really liked it. It made me want to watch the Queen’s Gambit myself. You gave a real depth of analysis to the fashion in the show and how it related in the story, which gave something different than just “are these costumes period accurate”, so that was a nice change of pace. (Those are not bad articles, it was just nice seeing some shake-up of the same old structure of these types of articles.)
Mad Men will always be my fave show concerning the fashion evolution from the 60s, going from the prim and proper 50s holdovers from Betty Draper, The Marilyn looks of Joan and the schoolgirl sweet looks of Peggy, to the MOD looks of Megan, the Woman in charge looks of 70s Peggy, and the Elizabeth Taylor looks of 70s Joan, also the Betty Ford looks of Mid-Late 60s Betty. Honorable mention goes to Sally with her late 60s Cool teen looks! Sorry, I just love the looks of Mad Men so much!
beth is the best in her field, confident, and very pretty. i think it’s totally realistic that they gravitate towards her. it’s pretty common for people to be attracted towards successful people, especially those that carry themselves with a ton of confidence + have the beauty. to a bunch of chess players they probably hella admire and idolize her, and want her to succeed (also no american has won what she had a shot at in ages, so that’s likely part of why they feel strongly enough to help her)
i did see some people saying that in her match against Georgi (the Russian kid who asks her about drive in movie theaters) that she takes his love of fancy actresses against him by dressing similar to Elizabeth Taylor at the 1961 Oscars, and that possibly she kept walking away and twirling impatiently to emphasize this fact and make him lose focus!
I think the strategic and meticulous way she approaches being fashion-forward (showing her finding/choosing clothing and shopping for herself) aligns with her character in a way that simultaneously makes chess out to be a game of strategy and beauty as it equates her interest in the two. I think it’s a really nice way to dodge the ‘not like other girls’-ness that you mention, as it’s not dodging it in a way that interrupts the overall theming of her character.
One more thing that I love about how the show is tied together in the end, is how for her final match with Borgov her opening chess move is called The Queen’s Gambit. Never in her other chess games did she use that opening, but she uses it in the final game ever and wins. Not only is the show called that, but also the chess move, and it also comes back to her as being the queen of chess, I think it was really thoughtful.
It’s ridiculous to comment on the diversity problem with a 2020 brain and expectations since these are 50s 60s and it was maybe close to what it really was? She was adopted by that family and was surrounded by people who are mostly white and similar to them. When she goes to world wide tours there are other nationalities… also there are Russians but probably you meant lack of Asians or Latinos? I am half asian half eastern european btw. This comment irritated me even though I was excited about the clothes review so had to get this out of my system.
I loved that show soooo much! The outfits are just fantastic! I low key want all those dresses. Also as a massive geek )working in a male dominated industry) who is also fashionable (you know I did study costume design) that moment when the journalists ask her “Aren’t you too fashionable to be a serious chest player” resonated with me on a personal level in a huge way.
I didn’t notice the lack of diversity at all because it wasn’t the focus of the story and wasn’t trying to be. Sometimes I see shows that exaggerate diversity despite the time period. What comes to mind is the show Ratched– the doctor is Filipino, and there are black workers and patients who are barely discriminated against. I love that show, but that detail took me out of the story because in 1947, there would not be black people treated casually or given jobs in a prominently white hospital. Yes, it is 2020, but the show is 1950s/60s. And especially when Beth is growing up, she wouldn’t be seeing POC, specifically black people, because of segregation. The asylum is almost entirely white, her school is white, and the town she lives in is most likely a suburban white town. Jolene was underdeveloped, but that’s not the fault of a white cast.
i didnt know what it was about me seeing her as a real person until you said. shes not a not like other girls girl, she’s a regular girl who has hobbies not associated with her gender and ones that are. shes relatable, because they didnt write her as a woman (the hollywood view of a woman), they wrote her as a person.
Beth is interesting, confident, and alluring. I think it makes sense that people flock to her, plus she’s the main character. Jolene and her grew up together, they went through shit together. Friends like that don’t decrease in fondness over the years, so it makes sense that Jolene helped her the way she did, and it’s not like she randomly showed up, she came to Beth because of the death of mr shaibel. After the “guardian angel” comment, Jolene goes on to say that she isn’t, that she has her own goals and life separate from Beth, which completely gets rid of that “token black friend” argument.
OMG YAYY FINALLY A article ON HER FASHION, I watched the show last week on saturday and fell in love but at that time there wasn’t many articles about the show and I found none about her fashion which stood out to me. I also fell in love with her character and found the wardrobe fascinating and interesting! Thank you for this!!!!
This article left me screaming internally for the accuracies you point out about the relationship between culture and fashion. So many fashion historians neglect this, misunderstand it, or purposefully appeal to recontextualizations even if they are not true. It’s such a relief to see content on the subject that shows care towards the understanding that a shift in the zeitgeist can be extreme and radical but also not immediate.
I love how she didn’t lose her femininity when she entered a male dominated field. I feel like that’s commonly shown in film too (not all the time of course). Like you can’t be both girly and smart, or you can’t be both athletic and feminine. It was nice to see this show do something different, and use fashion as a tool.
Amazing critique! ticked all the boxes. Especially your bit about the secondary characters not being very realistic. Now that I know it was a novel from an earlier decade… the kitschy-ness of the plotline makes sense. The costume design is way more authentic than most neflix originals so it made the show more tolerable compared to almost everything netflix puts out these days.
Everyone mentioning the diversity being “true to the era” I believe doesn’t quite get the point. Why do white stories get to be fun dramas and coming of age stories set in the regency era and the 1960s, and not mention racial issues of the time, but poc stories can’t? That’s why bridgerton is so popular, it’s a breath of fresh air seeing poc in historical settings without reducing them to slaves or being discriminated against. As Mina mentioned in her comment, why do these fictional stories have to be 100% accurate when it comes to race? We should be questioning this more.
I really loved this show! Anya is one of my favorite Latina actresses! She is so talented and love everything that she’s in. After perusal this show I also wanted to get a lot of vintage 60s pieces, I also enjoyed the relationship with Alma, for some reason I thought Alma would take advantage of Beth’s money, but I loved how it was just a supportive mother/daughter relationship 🥰
I love how they used the fashion silently to show change, its just passing information, it adds so much to the characters and depth of the story. How Alma is much older fashioned and quite cheap when it comes to Beth’s first outfit even though they seem to live in a pretty luxury home. This is how shows and film should be, but most get it wrong.. Like the newest Little Women, a film about poor women who should have hand me downs and ill fitting clothing, but no, everyone has perfectly tailored-currently in fashion clothing.
While the Queen’s Gambit is a great story, it has a plethora of issues that are clearly the consequences of a male-centric production. Let’s go through them, shall we? 1. Beth is extremely over-sexualized during moments of her addiction and alcoholism. The way it’s framed frankly makes me uncomfortable, because they treat her vulnerability as moments sexually available, when she a) can’t consent and b) is clearly struggling, so why would they give us crotch shots when she’s on an alcohol binge? 2. The male characters get over their sexism remarkably fast and are given an opportunity for redemption, while the female characters aren’t. Her high school mean girl becomes an alcohol addict, her orphanage leader breaks a leg and is reduced to a pathetically delusional woman, Cleo (absolutely loathe the foreign, seductive French girl archetype) is a toxic “seductress”, etc… Why do all the men get the benefit of the doubt when the women are treated as disposable? They did comment on the lack of outlets for women at the time, but they failed to actually focus on any female characters aside from Beth and her mother (maybe Jolene). 3. Beth repeatedly engages in huge age gap relationships, even while underage, and the story treats this like it’s totally normal and these men are the “good ones” who don’t use the power imbalance against Beth. Or rather, she is more powerful/empowered, even though these men usually come to her in vulnerable points of her life, where she doesn’t have clear or healthy judgement.
I don’t think it’s weird those characters gravitated around her. She appears to perhaps has Asperger’s. So you’re saying just because someone isn’t “normal” and conventionally friendly she doesn’t deserve people helping her ??? I don’t think she TRIED to hurt anyone’s feelings. People with that personality type have a hard time with other people’s emotions but people still have love for them despite this. I also think it has value that she needed other people’s help to win the championship and I don’t think she needed to be a brown noser to deserve that help . damn you’re shallow but i mean you’re in fashion so….
The geometric pieces she wears total up to 16 appearances. 12 and 14 are repeats however with only 16 and not 17 that’s the total number of pieces at 16 which is an outfit for each chess piece on the board for one color. 2 castles, 2 rooks, 2 knights, king, queen, and 8 pawns. Just found that interesting!
I thought the reverse white Savior note and the correction to a healthy approach of friendship and family was both very amusing and thoughtful. I can relate where I float in and out of ppl’s lives and vice versa through the years. A friend recently passed and it brought me and my highschool friend back together. So I find it believable. Not everyone is typical and I’m thankful for my atypical friends.
sorry I just had a correction at 9:57 ! Bra burning is a myth as this never actually happened, it was a created title to shame and belittle women during their fight for liberation. They were encouraged to bring bras as it represented how women were being placed into ideals of beauty by male dominated culture, but never dedicated a portion of protesting to burning bras!
Implying that second wave feminism was mainly about optics is unfair. It produced no-fault divorce, access to education and professional jobs, recognition of gender discrimination and sexual harassment, equal pay, access to reproductive rights, rights to property, the list goes on and on. Which adds up to a huge shift towards financial independence for women. Obviously that affected people differently across race, class, sexuality etc and those dynamics played out in the movement itself as well. Of course that change to how women saw themselves was reflected through fashion but it wasn’t mainly about fashion.
Oh, but according to some magazine (I forget which one), Queen’s Gambit must be SUPER diverse, because it’s led by a woman of colour! That woman being… Anya Taylor Joy. Confused? Well, apparently some USAmericans seem to think that every single Latin American is a person of colour. And Anya is Argentinian. A white Argentinian. Because there are many white people in Latin America. In case people forgot, it was colonised by EUROPEANS! The Spanish and the Portuguese are (mostly) white, and the ones in power at that time most certainly were (I’ve seen people call Spaniards people of colour, so excuse my over explanation). And just like in North America, it’s usually the white people in charge in Latin America too. So to see Americans acting like all Latin Americans are people of colour, that Anya is a person of colour, it just blows my mind.
I like seeing here white dress as symbol of cleaniless. She gradually was refusing alcohol more and more and stopped taking drugs. And achieved here goal. She wore a completely black outfit during the last tournament and she is clean as a soul now by wearing a white one. That’s how I see here white dress.
the only thing I didn’t like about the show was how they changed jolene’s re-entry or reappearance in Beth’s life. In the show, jolene just popped up for Shiabal’s funeral and went to check on Beth. In the book, Beth searched and called Jolene up. I liked all the other changes, but I wish they had kept this in because it would show that Beth wanted to get better and wanted help. With that, Jolene wouldn’t be considered “a savior best friend” but as a friend.
Beth might seem unlikeable at first but I’ve actually heard a lot of people relating to her character as being autistic coded! She’s a little standoffish socially, and while she opens up over time she still has very specific special interests (and even her drug use could be a means to cope with sensory issues, but that’s a lot more to get into). I’m on the spectrum as well and thought there were a lot of interesting parallels with her character
There’s a lot of discussion about diversity but I haven’t seen anyone say this so I would just like to say that personally I think including POC simply for the sake of trying to be more diverse, would be tokenising POC and using them as a prop. Shouldn’t inclusion be about including black writers and their stories, not just white writers putting in black characters to make it feel more ✨inclusive✨ I believe we can push forward more stories rather than changing the few we have Also imagine if they made all the chess tournaments 50/50 women and men for the same reasons? It would completely erase how womens experiences
i would be careful with the comment that second wave feminism was a lot about optics. not because it’s wrong per se but because “second wave feminism” is such a large, generic blanket term to describe a range of organizations and movements from the 60s and 70s (more or less). feminist groups during this time were also doing things like fighting to make marital rape a crime! trying to pass equal rights acts and protections against sexual harassment! im sure you know this but just like in our movements today where there are people organizing for prison abolition and other people just selling t shirts with BLM on them and talking about analyzing their privilege… movements are broad!