She has readily admitted that she was delighted to be awarded the CBE, which was conferred on her by the late Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace. But fashion designer Katharine Hamnett, who had previously declared that she “aspired to be a duchess, with a castle,” has apparently grown tired of being a simple commander of the British Empire and has relegated her insignia to oblivion – or, worse, to one of his garbage cans.
Staging the kind of protest that has been his go-to activity since 1984, when he met Margaret Thatcher at a Downing Street reception wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with an anti-nuclear slogan, Hamnett has posted the latest on social media.
A video shows her walking down the stairs of her house, wearing a black T-shirt on which the words: “Disgusted to be British” are printed.
In case anyone is in doubt, Hamnett, a student at the £45,000-a-year Cheltenham Ladies College, says: “I hate being British because of our role in the genocide in Gaza.”
Then, lifting the lid of a black container with his left hand and holding the light red CBE ribbon in his right, he adds: ‘This is my CBE. He belongs in the dustbin, with Sunak and Starmer.
Katharine Hamnett apparently tired of being a simple commander of the British Empire and relegated her insignia to oblivion or, worse, to one of her trash cans.
A video clip shows her walking down the stairs of her house, dressed in a black T-shirt on which the words: “Disgusted to be British” are printed.
In 1984, he met Margaret Thatcher at a Downing Street reception wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with an anti-nuclear slogan.
With a deft gesture, the 76-year-old throws the ribbon (and the cross to which it is attached) into the trash.
Hamnett closes the lid and turns to the camera once more. “Go to this site,” he instructs his fans, directing them to a website that helps the uninitiated find out who his MP is. “Tell them you will never vote for them again unless they support a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.”
Finally, in a demonstration of the business instincts that drove her to immense business success, she says, “Go to this website and get the t-shirt.”
The designer is best known for her oversized slogan-printed T-shirts that were worn by pop bands such as Wham! and Queen. George Michael wore her white ‘Choose Life’ t-shirt in the pop video for Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.
Hamnett has been skillfully adapting to the metropolitan style for decades. “I had to tone down my accent a bit,” he recalled of his time at London art school in the 1960s, describing that time as “the first time the working class mixed with the upper class”.
In 2008, she declared herself “ashamed to be British” because the brother of then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown worked for the French electricity company EDF, which generated much of its power from nuclear power.
I wonder what his father’s advice would have been to Israel, who was struggling to free his hostages. He had been a prisoner of war of the Japanese.
Emma reveals the key to romance
How did former BBC news presenter Simon McCoy win the heart of Dynasty pin-up Emma Samms? He seems like he behaves like a gentleman.
“I don’t think good manners are out of fashion,” says Samms, 63.
How did former BBC news presenter Simon McCoy win the heart of Dynasty pin-up Emma Samms? Behaving like a gentleman, it seems
‘Saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ is a matter of respect for others. Some people breathe a lot when a door is opened for them. I don’t take it as a judgment on my ability: I like it.
“And the fact that my husband opens the car door for me and stands up when I leave or return to a formal dining table is just a total pleasure.”
DJ ‘DIDDY’ David Hamilton is just hitting his stride at 85 years old. But he doesn’t want to be recreated as an AI voice like his new Boom Radio colleague, the late Tommy Vance.
“I worry about AI because in the hands of the wrong people it could be a very dangerous weapon,” he tells me.
Instead, Hamilton is recording a series called Million Sellers about pop’s biggest hits. There will be plenty of those left in the can. Boom can execute them when I pop my clogs.
Prue’s touching tribute to her brother
Great British Bake Off star Dame Prue Leith pays a touching tribute to her late brother Jamie in her new ITV1 series by preparing one of his recipes for viewers this weekend.
Restaurateur Jamie Leith died last year and Dame Prue, 84, prepares the vegan dish, Jamie’s Red Dragon Pie, in the first episode of Prue Leith’s Cotswold Kitchen.
Great British Bake Off star Dame Prue Leith pays a touching tribute to her late brother Jamie in her new ITV1 series by preparing one of his recipes for viewers this weekend.
“I love how the taste and smell of food is a wonderful trigger of memories,” she says. ‘When I cook this dish, I definitely think of Jamie. I was very close to him. He was my younger brother and he cooked this dish for his children when they came home from school.
Cruz races with Mossie’s friends
THE OCCASION: Perfect Magazine and AMI Paris’s LFW party at Dovetale, Mayfair.
DOUBLE TAKE: Kate Moss’ friend Rosemary Ferguson, 49, doesn’t just party with her daughter, Elfie, 22; They even wear the same dress. Rosemary (left) chose JW Anderson’s black twisted mini, while model Elfie opted for the £550 silver version.
BECKS DRESS: David and Victoria Beckham’s youngest son, Cruz, who turned 19 yesterday, wore a striking lime green shirt with a striped suit.
DRIVING AMBITION: Heiress India Rose James, 32, would not have been able to escape quickly even if she had tried. “I can’t drive,” she tells me. ‘I’m taking lessons, but I’m worried about how I’ll do on the exam.
Elfie Reigate and Rosemary Ferguson attend the Perfect Magazine and AMI Paris LFW party
David and Victoria Beckham’s youngest son, Cruz, who turned 19 yesterday, wore a striking lime green shirt with a pinstripe suit.
As the Prince and Princess of Wales consider sending Prince George to Oundle, the £45,435-a-year Northamptonshire boarding school, they could consult the unlikely figure of Bruce Dickinson, frontman of heavy metal rockers Iron Maiden.
“If you can handle Oundle, you can handle life in Iron Maiden,” Dickinson says. But I’m not sure being in boarding school allows you to get along with people. People in boarding schools are not, how can I put it? – normal people.’
