I did enjoy reading today that the Speaker of the House of Commons has been criticised by his predecessor, Betty Boothroyd, for refusing to wear the traditional and to my eyes very silly wig and costume that so added to her dignity and stature (sic). She claims it's 'bad for parliament' and that people around the country, as well as other parliamentarians, have less respect for John Bercow as a result. What utter nonsense! It's about time this country divested itself, literally, of the absurd costumes and wardrobe horrors people in public life are often compelled to wear. Let's start with the comical horsehair wigs and academic gowns of judges and courtroom lawyers, proceed through every nook and cranny of the legal and parliamentary systems, unwrap people from the invented tradition that's so often claimed as an 'essential part of our cultural heritage', and end this sartorial nonsense once and for all. Tourists might be charmed by the flummery and regalia it but it has no place surely in a modern democracy? Oops! Silly me. We still have a hereditary monarchy, an unelected second chamber, the honours system. So not quite a democracy then, but good on John B. for at least doing something to make us look less ridiculous. If people want to dress up like extras in 'Trial by Jury' they should join their local Gilbert and Sullivan Society.
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