British Vogue: The biography of an icon Julie Summers
Event details
British Vogue has always been far more than just a fashion magazine. For more than a century it has defined the tastes and style of successive generations, playing a leading role in the continuing story of Britain's national identity, and covering the arts, politics, health, travel and much more in addition to the fashion pages. It is an institution and a character in its own right.
Join Julie Summers, author of British Vogue: The Biography of an Icon, for a beautifully illustrated talk as she examines the fascinating and glamorous history of the legendary magazine.
Founded in 1916, British Vogue has forged its own path from the very start. From the trauma and austerity of two world wars through to the freedom of the swinging ‘60s, the rise of the supermodel to the groundbreaking editorial direction of Edward Enninful: the magazine's chameleonic ability to move with the times has ensured its perennial status at the vanguard of British cool.
Julie’s talk includes exclusive images from the Vogue photographic collections and draws on previously unseen archives and behind-the-scenes interviews with Vogue insiders including stylist Grace Coddington, editor Alexandra Shulman and fashion editor Lucinda Chambers.
This is the story of a legend and the individuals who created (and curated) it, told against the backdrop of an extraordinary century of change, upheaval and beauty.
Why not make your afternoon extra special by coming along in your chicest outfit in true Vogue style?
Book sales
You can buy copies of many of our speakers’ books from Fox Lane Books, a local independent bookseller and Festival partner. In some cases, author signed bookplates are available too.
About the speaker
Julie Summers is the author of 14 works of non-fiction including Fashion on the Ration and Dressed for War, the biography of the wartime editor of Vogue. Born and brought up in the North West, she studied at Bristol University and the Courtauld Institute of Art. From 1984 she worked at the Royal Academy of Arts and the Henry Moore Foundation as a curator and became head of exhibitions at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford before becoming a full-time writer. Her new book is British Vogue: The Biography of an Icon (Orion, 2024).
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