Why it’s about time legendary fashion editor Isabella Blow got the biopic treatment
Isabella Blow may not be well-known outside of fashion circles, yet her impact on the industry has been substantial. She was the fashion editor who discovered the designers Alexander McQueen and Philip Treacy, as well as the models Sophie Dahl and Daphne Guinness. Stories of her eccentric behaviour – stripping off in the fashion cupboard and demanding her assistants wear lipstick – have become the stuff of magazine legend, and pop culture has often borrowed from her myth. Her unconventional style, including a well-known penchant for headwear, has inspired countless stars since, most notably Lady Gaga. So it’s about time she received the biopic treatment.
Deadline announced last week that the Academy Award-nominee Andrea Riseborough was to star as the fashion visionary in a new film titled, Queen of Fashion, directed by the British writer, director and producer Alex Marx, who has been developing the project for eight years. A film about Blow has been floated before, albeit tied to her relationship with McQueen. Titled The Ripper, it was announced as in-production in 2016, but has never come to fruition. At the time, Jack O’Connell was reportedly attached to play McQueen.
Born in London to an aristocratic family, Blow took on various odd jobs before landing a role as Anna Wintour’s assistant at American Vogue. While living in New York, she became friends with the artists Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat, who no doubt were attracted to her wit and energy, not to mention her enigmatic personal style. She was soon headhunted by the editor Michael Roberts, who brought her to work with him at Tatler, where she later became the fashion director. Known for championing young talent, she bought the entirety of Alexander McQueen’s 1992 graduate collection for £5,000, and dubbed Sophie Dahl, “a blow up doll with brains”.
Yet, despite her successes, Blow’s life was marred by poor mental health, perhaps prompted by the dual tragedies of her childhood: the death of her two-year-old brother, John, in the family’s swimming pool, and the separation of her parents when she was 14, with her mother shaking her hand before leaving the family home. Later in life, she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, for which she underwent electro-shock therapy, and she also battled with ovarian cancer, attempting to take her own life multiple times before she succeeded. Her death, when it came aged 48, had not been a surprise to those closest to her, but her departure was keenly felt. Six horses carried her Victorian-style funeral coffin, each with a plumage of black ostrich feathers, with a black galleon hat on top – the perfect way to celebrate the life of one of fashion’s greats.
While scant details have been announced regarding the plot, the producers have shared that the film will, “detail the ups and downs of Blow’s life, championing unknown and marginalised fashion figures like Alexander McQueen, Philip Treacy and Sophie Dahl, whom she catapulted to success while struggling with undiagnosed bipolar disorder.” Others on the cast so far include Emilia Clarke as Daphne Guinness, Fionn O’Shea as Philip Treacy, Richard E. Grant as Blow’s father Evelyn Delves Broughton, and Hayley Atwell as former Vogue editor Alexandra Schulman. The roles of Blow’s husband, Detmar, and Alexander McQueen, are yet to be cast. Multiple Oscar-winning costume designer Arianne Phillips will be working on the film’s fashion, ensuring it is in safe hands.
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