Theatre and Dance Previews

Rosemary is a RADA trained actress, who won the coveted costume prize whilst there, and has always been interested in fashion history.

She gave up acting after having a large family, but when her husband became a vicar in his 40s, she decided that she needed to go out and bring in some extra income. So, armed with a carrycot under one arm and a suitcase of clothes under the other she started doing talks on the history of fashion.

In 1991 she wrote her first book, ‘Knickers: An Intimate Appraisal’ (1991), which was a huge success and became the gospel on everything from pantaloons and pantalettes to divided drawers and bloomers. Soon she realised that people wanted to see her knickers more and more, so she started concentrating on talking about those.

History

Then, a few years ago, theatrical agents picked up on one of her talks and decided to make it into a show - and the rest is history - the history of knickers in fact!

"It takes 75 minutes straight the way through" she explained.

"I don't wear the knickers but I do hold them up, and what I'm using [them] for is as a link if you like, weaving the social history of women's lives with quite a lot of laughs I hope! I go from the end of the 18th century right up to the present day."

The show starts at a time when women didn't wear any knickers at all because they were somehow seen as a bit lewd and aping men's style. It then takes you through the voluminous styles of Victorian times and the artificial materials of the 1920s when underwear began to be mass-produced right through the decades to the present time.

"I go right up to the thong" she explained. "Sometimes I think we're going back to where we started - with nothing!

"But I think people remember funny knickers" she added, "by the time we get up to the 1930s through to the 1960s, I could quite honestly shut up and show the knickers and people would fill in the gaps, they all know what's going to come out!

"It is nostalgia, it's history, history with a smile."

Originals

All the garments used in the show are originals, items which Rosemary has been collecting for a while.

"I've been collecting for some years and once the book was published I got more donations" she revealed.

"And still now! They used to arrive at the vicarage. John's retired now but they still find me - like stray cats! But you also get the stories.

"You get funny ones" she explained, "you get lots of slack elastic stories, having to step out of them in the high street or on the dance floor, all very funny things.

"Then you get romantic ones, gentlemen who do remember their wives wonderful wedding trouseaus of the 1930s when things were beautifully made. So there's a lot of humanity in knickers and in underclothes in general."

In all her years of talks, research and doing the show, Rosemary has discovered that a lot goes on under your clothes! So what's the most surprising thing she's found out? 

"One of the things that I've got to realise [over the years] is don't judge a book by its cover" she said.

"I've done ladies luncheon clubs where women have come up to me looking quite severe in their outside dress but they tell you they love to go out and indulge in beautiful sensuous underwear - and they tell you that! Whereas another woman who looks absolutely glam on top will just rush out and get herself something she can just chuck in the washing machine - so you never know!"

In general though, she's discovered that it's all about feeling secure.

"It's just that" she said, "it's the whole thing of feeling good and wanting to be confident.

"It's not just clothes [knickers that change], it changes the confidence of women and in the end that's what we're talking about."