#18 Who were the real Lady Whistledowns?
Did you know that before Nicola Coughlan was writing gossip about the Bridgertons there were real scandal sheets that published the tawdry gossip of elite society?
Jillian and Abby dive into the history of scandal sheets, the rise of celebrity gossip, and the political power of rumour through entertaining stories and scholarly insights.
Key Topics:
* The origins of gossip papers and scandal sheets in early modern Europe
* How gossip was used for political manipulation and social control in the 18th and 19th centuries
* The relationship between gossip, celebrity, and capitalism during the long 18th century
* The role of gossip in foundational moments of modern media and nation-building
* The rise and regulation of Victorian scandal sheets and the Victorian obsession with morality and sex
* Parallels between historical gossip culture and contemporary social media (Deux Moi, blind items)
* The fictional portrayal of gossip in Bridgerton and its historical roots in Queen Charlotte’s era
* The racial and gendered dimensions of gossip, and the construction of morality and race in historical and modern contexts
* The influence of political scandals, trials, and royal gossip on public perception and power dynamics
* The Kennedy family, Elizabeth I, and other figures whose private lives fueled public spectacle and political influence
* Black Tudors: The Untold Story [https://amazon.com/Black-Tudors]
* Deux Moi Instagram [https://instagram.com/deuxmoi]
* The Obscene Publications Act (1857) [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obscene_Publications_Act_1857]
* Sarah Bernhardt's Salon and celebrity gossip [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Bernhardt]
* Queen Charlotte’s Portrait and Heritage [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Charlotte]
* Kennedy Family History & Scandal [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy]
* The Worsley Scandal and Satirical Cartoons [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worsley_scandal]
Note: The episode references both real historical scandals and fantasy portrayals such as Bridgerton's Lady Whistledown. The nuanced history illustrates how gossip and scandal serve as powerful social and political tools through centuries.
* Clayton, Tim. “Satire and Scandal: Media in 18th-Century England”, English Heritage, https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/18th-century-satire-and-scandal/ [https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/18th-century-satire-and-scandal/]
* Gardner, Victoria. “Eighteenth-century newspapers and public opinion”, The Routledge Companion to British Media History ed. Martin Conboy and John Steel, 2014.
* Kinchin-Smith, Sam. “Lady Worsley’s Scandalous Story”, English Heritage, 2019, https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/blog/blog-posts/lady-worsley/ [https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/blog/blog-posts/lady-worsley/]
* Kinservik, Matthew. Sex, Scandal, and Celebrity in Late Eighteenth-Century England, Palgrave Macmillian, 2007.
* Mccoy, Lauren. “Waifs and Strays of Town Talk”, Victorian Review, John Hopkins University Press, Vol. 43, No. 2, 2017.
* Taylor, Elise. “Bridgerton: The Real-Life Lady Whistledowns of Regency-Era England”, Vogue, 2020, https://www.vogue.com/article/bridgerton-the-real-life-lady-whistledowns-of-regency-era-england [https://www.vogue.com/article/bridgerton-the-real-life-lady-whistledowns-of-regency-era-england]
* “‘The doubly-noble prisoner’: The trial of Elizabeth Chudleigh, countess of Bristol, or duchess of Kingston?”, History of Parliament, 2021, https://historyofparliament.com/2021/10/07/trial-of-elizabeth-chudleigh/ [https://historyofparliament.com/2021/10/07/trial-of-elizabeth-chudleigh/]
* Tillyard, Stella. “Celebrity in 18th-Century London”, History Today, Vol. 55, No. 6, 2005, https://www.historytoday.com/archive/celebrity-18th-century-london [https://www.historytoday.com/archive/celebrity-18th-century-london]
* Ross, Marlon. “Scandalous Reading: The Political Uses of Scandal in and around Regency Britain”, The Wordsworth Circle, Vol. 27, No. 2, 1996.
* Ryan, Yann. “Newsbook to Newspaper: Changing Format, Layout and Illustration in Seventeenth- and Eighteenth-century Periodical News”, The Edinburgh History of the British and Irish Press ed. Nicholas Brownlees, Edinburgh University Press, 2023.
* Wiener, Joel. “The nineteenth century and the emergence of a mass circulation press”, The Routledge Companion to British Media History ed. Martin Conboy and John Steel, 2014.
* Additional primary sources from Gale Online - Burney Newspapers Collection
This episode was researched by Rebecca Gadd and Leila Guedalla Gomm, the hosts are Abby Woodman and Jillian Ducker. The editors and producers are Abby Woodman and Caitlin Paul.
