Bright young things

This article is about young aristocrats of 1920s London. For other uses, see Bright young things (disambiguation).

Richard Plunket Greene, Olivia Plunket Greene, David Plunket Greene, Terence Greenidge, Elizabeth Frances Russell, and Evelyn Waugh.

The Bright Young Things, or Bright Young People,[1][2] was a term given by the tabloid press to a group of Bohemian young aristocrats and socialites in 1920s London.[3] They threw flamboyant fancy dress parties, went on elaborate treasure hunts through nighttime London, and some drank heavily or used illicit drugs — all of which was enthusiastically covered by journalists such as Charles Graves and Tom Driberg.[4]

They inspired a number of writers, including Nancy Mitford (Highland Fling), Anthony Powell (A Dance to the Music of Time), Henry Green (Party Going), Dorothy Sayers (Murder Must Advertise), and the poet John Betjeman. Evelyn Waugh's 1930 novel Vile Bodies, adapted as the 2003 film Bright Young Things, is a satirical look at this scene.[4] Cecil Beaton began his career in photography by documenting this set, of which he was a member.[5]

Prominent members of the group included:

  1. ^ Pauline Thomas. "1920s Flapper Fashion History. C20th Costume History for Women in the 1920s". fashion-era.com. Archived from the original on 10 August 2015. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
  2. ^ "14 – 1920s Entertainment 1920s Music 1920s Popular Entertainment Radio 1922 Sports Pink Flannel". englandattraction.com. Archived from the original on 13 August 2015. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
  3. ^ Philip Hoare, ‘Tennant, Stephen James Napier (1906–1987)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004
  4. ^ a b Rubin, Martin (10 January 2009). "Book Review of "Bright Young People" - WSJ.com". Online.wsj.com. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
  5. ^ "Cecil Beaton: in association with Sotheby's". Chris Beetles Galleries. 2009. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 2 April 2015.