#Baba Beaton

[corallapis]

Olga “Oggie” Lynn (1882-1961), born Lowenthal, was a singer and singing teacher, who, despite being somewhat older than most of the Bright Young Things, was a staple of their circle. She was “short,” “dumpy,” and “jolly,” and would often host tableuax vivants for charity or sing at parties with “a rather sweet, pure little voice” when she wasn't giving lessons. She “was inclined to get into situations with which she could not cope and was always being helped by her friends,” chief among them Oliver Messel.

For a time, she lived together with Gladys Cooper, Lady Idina Sackville, and Tallulah Bankhead. According to Chips Channon, she and Tallulah Bankhead were “the queens of London's wickedest world — la haute lesbie [coterie of smart lesbians].” Her girlfriend, Maud “the Admiral” Nelson (1904-1969), though “unable to type,” was secretary first to Napier, Lord Alington, and then Cecil Beaton. It is undoubtedly Maud Nelson to whom Anthony Powell refers when he describes the mixed make-up of the parties of the age:

At one end of the scale there'd be quite smart people, Diana Cooperish sort of figures and so on. At the other there'd always be a lot of these girls who were sort of living on the margin — you know, they'd do a little modeling; at the same time they were not quite tarts but they were being half kept. And then it would tail off into the queer, almost criminal world — lesbians dressed as admirals, that sort of thing. (emphasis mine, qtd. in Taylor, Bright Young People)

As a Christmas present, in 1933, Baba and Cecil Beaton gifted Olga Lynn a scrapbook filled with signed photographs of their friends, giving us a glimpse of her social circle. It included Lady Idina Sackville; Violet, Duchess of Rutland; Gertrude Lawrence; Lady Diana Cooper; Napier, Lord Alington; Sir Michael Duff; Audrey Pleydell-Bouverie; and Viola Tree.

[radianttruthsii]

Baba (Barbara) Beaton, May 1927, sister of & photo taken by Cecil Beaton

[gacougnol]

Cecil Beaton

Nancy and Baba Beaton, 1924

[milksockets]

baba and anna may wong in the best of beaton - cecil beaton (1968)

[thecrenellations]

"How many souls on this earth call you Francis?"

In 60 years of the Lymond Chronicles, I'd bet that many others have compiled this exact thing, but here is a list of who calls Lymond by his first name! Marthe draws our attention to the question near the end of Pawn in Frankincense, but it's clear throughout the series how deliberately Dunnett chooses what to call the characters in narration and dialogue - the choice can reflect who Francis Crawford (for example) is to others as well as to himself, at any moment. I love it, and Meaningful Naming is a feature of most of my favorite stories.

Characters are listed with the book in which they first call him Francis in dialogue. Italics indicate they call him that when he isn't present. If they directly Francis him later, they’ve been added to the list for that book, too.

I've also noted to whom he's just Francis in the narration - it's always someone who thinks of him like that, and it always makes me feel a lot.

If you notice something I left out, or if you know where to find similar analysis, let me know! Let us all be scholars of Francis.

Lists below! Plus some thoughts and quantitative stuff. (many, many spoilers)

The Game of Kings

Sybilla Semple (see, I have to decide what to call all of these characters, too!)

Margaret Lennox

Christian Stewart (to Sybilla, and I'm sure she called him Francis in their childhood)

Richard Crawford 

Francis in narration from the POV of: Richard

Queens’ Play

Tom Erskine

Jenny Fleming

Margaret Erskine

Martine

Oonagh O’Dwyer

Phelim O’LiamRoe

George Douglas

Francis in narration from the POV of: Richard, Margaret Erskine

The Disorderly Knights

Will Scott

Kate Somerville 

Graham Reid Malett

Adam Blacklock

Janet Beaton

Jerott Blyth (I'm also sure Jerott called him Francis in the old days, but he doesn't return to it until the scene with Evangelista Donati at Midculter)

Francis in narration from the POV of: Richard, Tom, Kate, Sybilla

Pawn in Frankincense

Jerott Blyth

Dame de Doubtance 

Marthe

Francis in narration from the POV of: Jerott

The Ringed Castle

Alec Guthrie

the Abbess/Sybilla's sister

Francis in narration from the POV of: Richard

Checkmate

Philippa Somerville

Marguerite de St. Andre

Catherine d’Albon (to Philippa)

Nicholas Applegarth (also to Philippa)

Danny Hislop

Fergie Hoddim

Piero Strozzi

Francis in narration from the POV of: Jerott, Philippa, Richard, Sybilla, Adam

Observations

Aaaaah!

Richard's monopoly on the narration Francises in the first two books kills me, I love it. The first, of course, is "God, Francis had screamed."

As a reader, I started calling him Francis, sometimes, somewhere in the middle of Queen's Play and stopped overthinking it by the beginning of the next book.

I didn't count, but I'd bet that Jerott says and thinks it the most. He's there more than probable runners-up Gabriel (shut up, Gabriel) and Richard (ily Richard) are, and Philippa goes on her own ... journey before thinking of him that way and allowing herself to think of him that way.

Adam is unique for making the list in his first book, specifically not calling Lymond Francis in The Ringed Castle, and then putting himself back on the list through address and narration in Checkmate. But that's The Ringed Castle for you 😬. And their entire relationship - there's a chapter or so in which Adam's narration calls him de Sevigny.

Who even calls him Francis in RC? Just Alec, Richard, and Margaret, I think. ("Do you call her Slata or Baba?" Thank you, Philippa.)

I would teach myself tarocco and play for at least a few hours to learn when Will started calling him Francis. Also the Erskines! They're all so genuinely close in the years after Game of Kings.

Notable Absences

Güzel - well, that feels meaningful. They were together for years. If she did, we didn't see, and I would also believe that she didn't.

Archie - will he ever? Who can say. Either way, he's the best. Also, see here.

Mariotta - I bet she does, after the first book, we just haven't been there.

Fergie, probably?

Piero Strozzi - Francesco? My petit François? I don't remember any Francises, though!

Ivan (and others?) - I'm not counting Frangike, either

Robin Stewart - I mean, I'm sure he would have if he'd known his boyfriend's real name before ... all of that went down.

Diccon Chancellor - probably not? I'd also put this down to the Ringed Castle state of mind. As meaningful as their friendship was, it makes sense for the book to continue to distance the reader, at the very least, in that way.

Does Francis call himself Francis?

No.

He doesn't, really! He's never that from his own point of view, but we do see him sign a few letters with his first name. These are to:

Kate (Pawn in Frankincense)

Catherine d'Albon (Checkmate)

Philippa (Checkmate)

All of this is not to say that “Francis” represents who he truly is; it certainly shows intimacy and usually vulnerability, but I feel that Lymond and Francis Crawford can be just as definitive when deployed, and that Lymond has a certain neutrality. There's also something really interesting that happens when the characters are stripped of names and become just "he" or "she," from their own perspective or others.

And then we get things like "Mistress Philippa's decorative husband," which really deserve their own list.

"How many souls on this earth call you Francis? Three? Or perhaps four?"

18 of the 25 Francis-ers on my list are living at the end of the series, and when Marthe, who is not one of them, asks that question at the end of PiF, it's 12 (out of 18 total).

18 out of 25 is a 72% survival rate! Great!

2 of the 18 are pretty awful (Margaret Lennox and the Abbess)

4 of the 18 live in France, which he's currently exiled from

1 of the 18 lives in Ireland, but I think they should still hang out!

2 of the 18 may be departing for Malta, apparently

7 of the 18 are people he probably sees or keeps in touch with regularly, 9 if I count Janet Beaton and Margaret Erskine, because I like them and they're not very far away.

As much as I wish that many of the others hadn't died, I think he's doing pretty well.

[federer7]

Baba Beaton, 1927

Photo by Cecil Beaton

© The Cecil Beaton Studio Archive

[theroyalhistory]

Baba Beaton in her court presentation dress, photographed by her brother Cecil, 1938

[perfettamentechic]

Charles James

Charles James e i suoi abiti eclettici e irriverenti #charlesjames #hautecouture #fashion #moda #creatoredimoda #creatoredistile #storiadellamoda #gracekelly #gowndress #cloverleafballgown #perfettamentechic

Charles James è stato uno stilista britannico naturalizzato statunitense. Noto per i suoi abiti da ballo e l’estetica altamente strutturata. James è stato uno degli stilisti più influenti del XX secolo e continua a influenzare le nuove generazioni di designer. Ritenuto l’unico americano a lavorare secondo la tradizione dell’haute couture, egli modellò e creò personalmente ogni abito che portava…

[thinkingimages]

Madame Yevonde (1893-1975) portrait of Baba Beaton

[gingerbaci]

The debutantes in costume in a fantasy setting of balloon bubbles and cellophane; They are (left to right) Baba Beaton, Wanda Holden and Lady Bridget Poullett. Photographed by Cecil Beaton in 1928 and published in British Vogue, 1941 - via x

[saxifactumterritum]

Oh! I have decided to do Friday Recs. Every Friday I will recommend something! yay!

Film: Shiny Shrimps (2019) - apparently not very well liked, too stereotypical and maybe not great, but I am enjoying it (I'm halfway through). I am surprised it's 2019? It feels older. But it's so far good fun, easy to watch, I like the characters, watching them ride across countryside in open top bus with a rainbow flag flying behind like a tail is great. Also their swimming trunks are hilarious.

[plaintext: Film, Shiny Shrimps 2019, end plaintext].

Book: Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie. Not my recommendation, from my grandma and put here in the name of reminding myself to get it. Baba says that it took her two tries, at first it was not gripping her but then in a cafe someone told her she should really keep going, so she started again and once she got into it she said it's like nothing she had read before. It was such a good story and great writing and full of wonderful ideas.

[Plaintext: Book, Midnight's Children, end plaintext].

Podcast: Hi Nay, written, directed, produced, and created by Motzie Dapul and co-produced and co-created by Reg Geli. A supernatural horror story, episodic with a really gripping over-arching plot. Character driven, creepy, so warmly written and so well acted and produced, really great sound design. The story telling is so skilled. I just find it very welcoming and full of love. Link goes to the YouTube channel 'about' page, they are doing a halloween thing streaming all through October.

[Plaintext: Podcast, Hi Nay, end plaintext].

Gave my money to: a fundraiser to get wheelchairs and help for healthcare for two Jolliff and Azekel. They run Black Trans Foundation which funds therapy for Black Trans people in the UK, which I think is a good organisation.

[Plaintext: Gave my money to. End plaintext].

Would I really recommend it?: I am currently watching/reading Agatha Raisin (TV show is Acorn TV, books by MC Beaton), it's super light and absolutely fine and the TV show has a found-family vibe that I love. I am low key obsessed.

[Plaintext: Would I really recommend it? End plaintext].

That's it for this week from me, what have you all loved consuming though? tell me what you love so I can join in :)

See you next Friday!

[gacougnol]

Cecil Beaton

Portrait of his sisters, Nancy and Baba

1926

[milksockets]

'my sister, baba, 1922' in the best of beaton - cecil beaton (1968)

[costumeloverz71]

Wedding gown was worn by Miss Baba Beaton in November of 1934 designed by Charles James.

[thisobscuredesireforbeauty]

Cecil  Beaton: Nancy & Baba Beaton, 1929. Source

[vintage-every-day]

Baba Beaton by Cecil Beaton, 1927