Fascist Fables: The Mitford Sisters' Sanitisation with Guy Walters

In this fiery episode of History Rage, host Paul Bavill welcomes back historian, journalist, and author Guy Walters to rage against the sanitized veneration of the Mitford Sisters. These interwar aristocrats have often been glamorized in books, media, and society, but beneath their glittering façade lies a much darker reality.

Fascist Fables:

• Unity Mitford's Obsession with Hitler: Unity stalked Adolf Hitler, met him over 130 times, and became one of his closest British confidantes. Her diaries, recently unearthed and published, reveal her disturbing Nazi sympathies and personal infatuation with the Führer.
• Diana Mitford's Glamour and Extremism: Diana married Oswald Mosley, leader of the British Union of Fascists, in Joseph Goebbels' living room, with Hitler himself in attendance. Despite her aristocratic charm, Diana remained an unrepentant fascist even decades after the war.

The Mitford Dynamic:

• The Extreme Spectrum: With parents steeped in fascist ideology, the Mitford siblings included fascists like Diana and Unity, alongside Jessica Mitford, an avowed communist. Guy explores how political extremism permeated the family’s psyche.
• Romanticisation in Media: From syrupy books to glossy TV dramas, the Mitfords are too often depicted as glamorous, eccentric aristocrats, overshadowing their political extremism and disturbing sympathies.

Guy’s Call to Action:

• Stop the Mitford glorification. Shift your fascination to figures like the women of the SOE—glamorous, courageous, and committed to fighting tyranny, not enabling it.

Join Guy Walters as he dismantles the myths surrounding the Mitford Sisters and rages against the misplaced admiration for these controversial figures.

📝 For more on this topic, follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @guywalters.

Relevant Links:

Guy’s Book Berlin Games: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/10120/9780719567742

Diana Mitford on Desert Island Discs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IPuTSdgeYs

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