A Millinery Night Dream in Mayfair

Last week, I co-hosted a Summer Season Celebration pre-Ascot party with dress designer Amanda Wakeley at her new flagship store on Albemarle Street in Mayfair. We had a great turn out of fashion editors and friends that included Royal Academy artist Adam Dant, Aliah Forte, India Clark (a Tatler Most Eligible Babe), jeweller Victoria Tryon, Celia Weinstock, Leon and Yanna Max, writer Harry Mount and the glamorous actress Georgina Rylance who is my good friend and also the face of Laura Cathcart Millinery. Georgie and I are going to Ascot together on the opening Tuesday on June 17th.

Artist Adam Dant and Style Guru Peter York

Fashion Designers Aliai Forte and Leon Max

Claudia Walker and friend

Jewellery Designer Victoria Tryon and William Cash

Vivien Cathcart and model in Amanda Wakeley and Laura Cathcart Millinery

But the actress who stole the show in Amanda’s packed townhouse was actress and screenwriter Charlotte Radford who is appearing later this year in ‘The American Banker’ with Faye Dunaway and Darryl Hannah.

Charlotte Radford at a pre-Ascot Summer Celebration with Laura Cathcart Millinery and Amanda Wakeley.

So much did Charlotte like my hats on display that she bought four on the night that she is going to use for various scenes in an English romantic comedy about an American author in London called ‘Casual Encounter’ that she has co-written with English comedy writing legend Jeremy Lloyd, who was recently handed an OBE. ’As the writer of “Are You Being Served”, I know Jeremy loves a good hat display’ Charlotte told me. ‘We have a “Four Weddings” style wedding scene in the film set in an Anglo-Saxon church that is going to be filmed at the chapel at Stoke Park later this year Laura’s hats are chic and quintessentially English and I cant wait to wear several in the film’. Whilst I am thrilled that my hats are going to appear in a romantic comedy shot in England, I have a confession to make. My dream is to make hats for the costume period drama Downton Abbey. I’m a Downton fan and when I saw its creator Julian Fellowes the other day at a party I mentioned that I would love to make some Edwardian hats for the Downton cast. Especially Lady Mary’s American mother Lady Grantham - played by 52 year old Elizabeth McGovern - who people often say I look like ! Make up your own mind (photos of each of us below).

Elizabeth McGovern in Downton Abbey

Spot the difference

But aged just 29 (turning 30 on June 11th – gulp!) I am actually much closer in age to Michelle Dockery who is 32 and plays Lady Mary in Downton. If there is a big wedding for Lady Mary at the end of last series, I am now officially throwing my hat into the casting ring as the milliner to make the Mother of the Bride’s hat.