Hot pots and hot flushes

There’s more to Betty Turpin than her tried and trusted hotpots – as we found in Coronation Street last night. Ageing temptress, Liz Macdonald revealed she’d chucked cab driver, Lloyd before he got the chance to trade her in for a younger model, ‘I’m having my menopause Betty,’ blubbed Liz, mourning the end of her fertility. ‘Hot flushes?’ replied Ma Turpin, not one to shy away when it comes to giving advice, ‘Wear layers. Then when you get warm, whip yer cardi off. And don’t worry about facial hair, when you go grey they’ll not notice it at all.’ And so, Betty’s wise words instantly put a nation of women-of-a-certain-age at ease.

Granny takes a trip

OK so I may not be the first to feature this but there's been a bit of a break in blogging. Nothing for a year and now twice in one day! But this is well worth waiting for...in fact it's the perfect fashion news story for That's Not My Age.

Twenty-something designer Fanny Karst believes that life begins at 70. And, in the spirit of reluctant pensioner, Ronnie Wood, the French-born designer behind the Old Ladies Rebellion label feels you’re never to old to rock ‘n’ roll. The niece of Jean Charles de Castalbajac trained at Central St Martin’s and now works for Savile Row tailors Chittleborough & Morgan. Inspired by her granny, young Miss Karst has come up with the ‘Old Ladies Rebellion’, a fabulous collection of digitally-printed jersey dresses and logo t-shirts bearing witty slogans such as 'Begin with the end’ and “Not at your age.' Figure flattering garments feature trompe l’oeil prints and clever cuts - but they don’t come cheap. At £500 a pop, the price might cause a rebellion of a different kind amongst some old ladies, but we love the age-defying concept, and don’t need a crystal ball to tell us what Kate Moss will be wearing in thirty years time!


PS Sorry Fanny, we swiped the image off your website!

Tough guys take a break

Harry Patch said, ‘ Give your leaders each a gun and let them fight it out themselves.’ But, we currently find our world leaders fighting it out on the front pages over who can impress most with their physical prowess.

After President Sarkozy over-exerted himself jogging around Versailles in an NYPD t-shirt and Barack Obama showed us he can’t throw a baseball, we are heartened this week by the official holiday snaps of Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin. Proving that he’s no lily-livered lightweight and can hunt, shoot, fish and swim butterfly like a real action hero – a leader of men who can look after himself and the rest of his country! This back-to-nature, action man- style proves hugely popular in Russia, it’s just a little hard for the rest of the world to fathom. Scary macho stuff – but at least he wasn’t wearing Speedos.

And, he may not have Obama’s natural sense of style but personally we don’t have a problem with Gordon Brown kicking back in a navy blazer and chinos. This type of classic menswear may not set the fashion pages alight but it works well on men of a certain age (and physique), and as we all know, try-hard is never a good look. So what if Brown looks a bit fuddy-duddy - we like to take our political leaders seriously.

Coming soon: the Cameron family go mad in Cornwall (before jetting off on a less well publicised long-haul trip), and Silvio Berlusconi takes a break in Ibiza with business woman, Katie Price.

Watch the video of Putin swimming in a cold Siberian lake.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1204250/Vladimir-Putin-takes-dip-climbs-tree-makes-basics-Siberia-vacation.html

Radiohead soldier on and Gilbert and George fly the flag

OK it’s been a while, That’s Not My Age is something of a slow blogger but all that’s about to change. I'm back in action, inspired by a couple of of age-related news items:

Respect to Radiohead for releasing Harry Patch (In Memory Of), the incredibly moving song about the 111 year-old last British survivor of the First World War who died on July 25 2009.

As Thom Yorke explains on the band’s website:

‘I had heard a very emotional interview with him (Patch) a few years ago on the Today program on Radio 4. The way he talked about war had a profound effect on me.’

‘It became the inspiration for a song that we happened to record a few weeks before his death. I very much hope the song does justice to his memory as the last survivor.’

‘It would be very easy for our generation to forget the true horror of war, without the likes of Harry to remind us.’

As Harry himself said, ‘Irrespective of the uniforms we wore, we were all victims.’

Download the song from Radiohead’s official website for £1. All proceeds from the track will be donated to the Royal British Legion.



Fly the flag
This week I am mostly loving Gilbert & George. The 68 year-old artists are back in the news with their ‘Jack Freak’ exhibition at the White Cube gallery. The duo have donned Pete Townsend-style Union Jack tailoring and created a fine collection of photographic artwork – my favourite is Jack Shit (but that might just be the title!). The be-suited old boys do all the digital work themselves, which impresses That’s Not My Age who can just about post a blog. But most of all I love their neat appearance. The matching suits, always a clean shirt, tie and shiny shoes – and the fact that they look more than a little like Eric and Ernie.

Jack Freak, White Cube, Mason’s Yard and Hoxton Square, London (020 7930 5373)

Icon or bygone?

Who we're loving and loathing this summer.....

Two good

1. Mary Portas
Congratulations to the BBC for giving us the fabulous Mary Portas. Credited with 'turning Harvey Nichols into the modern fashion powerhouse,' the 48-year old Mary, Queen of Shops is now queen of our hearts. Her unmissable shop makeover programme makes us laugh and cry - the Floyds of Chorlton episode had us blubbing like a freshly dumped Rhys Ifans. We love her blunt comments ('Are you buying horrible things or is someone else doing the buying?') and her supreme confidence, but most of all we love her style. The Guardian's Hadley Freeman called her 'an unexpected fashion goddess' and we concur. The Mary Quant bob, the over-sized sunglasses and statement jewellery are all perfect accessories for a modern day fashion legend. The cheeky tunic dress teamed with long opaque legs and a pair of amazing shoes, all make Portas the style icon du jour for the over forties, and earned her a place in Observer Woman's 'Cool Issue.' We have a grown-up lady crush.

Verdict: There's something about Mary

Tip: Don't call your shop Rumplestiltskin

Check out Polly Vernon's Observer Woman interview with Mary Portas:

http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/women/story/0,,2288570,00.html


2. Nick Cave
Thanks once more to the Beeb for coming up with Nick Cave Night. We think this should be an annual event - or an annual holiday for the over forties. Before the St Luke's gig, the musician/poet/genius admits that he's starting to feel his age, 'I can't even imagine how I could do a gig - just the physical energy involved,' and we know how he feels, but Cave goes on, 'As soon as I walk out on stage, there's something about the Bad Seeds that's energizing. Like a defibrillator to the soul!' Beautifully put - but on or off stage, this 50-year old rocker has still got it. OK, so the hair's receding and he's starting to look a bit Max Wall but we dig (Lazarus dig!) his dandy attire. The sharp tailored jacket and fitted shirt are perennial style classics, a neck full of pendants adds a rock 'n' roll touch, and his er, purple striped boot cut pants may be a little too Austin Powers for our liking, but according to the fashion experts, boot cut is back so Cave is rocking a fashion-forward look. The Antipodean sex god can still make grown-up ladies (and men) swoon. He struts, points, shakes his hips, and the audience go wild.

Verdict: We'd like to sail our ships around him

Tip: Over forties shouldn't dance at gigs, ever.


Two Bad

1. Paul Weller
This month's Q magazine sees Paul Weller teaming up with Duffy for a duet and it looks like they've been sharing the Born Blonde too. Described by Holy Moly as the 'the thin old sod with hair bleached off the pH scale,' we think it's time Surrey's answer to Rod Stewart found himself a decent hairdresser, or a proper mate to tell him what a tw*t he looks.The 50-year old modster's attempt to revitalise his image with a Gallagher-esque barnet has well and truly backfired. The offending haircut is more Russ Abbot's 'Jimmy' than rock god. The grumpy old mod once told Q magazine that if he lost his hair it would be awful - we're not so sure about that.

Verdict: Could the Red Wedge socialist be turning Tory? The Boris Johnson mop top is a bit of a giveaway

Tip: Never ask for an 'Adam Barlow' at the barbers

2. Sharleen Spiteri
Could someone please find Sharleen Spiteri a new stylist? The retro-sounding tunes are all right (if you like that sort of thing) but the Glaswegian's latest retro makeover is a big old no-no. The sixties-inspired image is fine on 24-year old Duffy but not on someone old enough to be her mum. The severe school marmish dress and demi-beehive put us in mind of Nerys Hughes in 'The District Nurse,' which is not a look most 40-year old women aspire to. Sharleen please, stick to the checked shirt and jeans combo, and observe the sensible words of Good Housekeeping magazine - never ever wear a look the second time round.

Verdict: Bring back Ashley Heath

Tip: Grown-ups shouldn't fight in public, even if the sparring partner is Paris Hilton

Photos:
Mary Portas from The Daily Mail
Nick Cave from www.nickcaveandthebadseeds.com
Paul Weller from www.paulweller.com
Sharleen Spiteri from last.fm