A Knight in a dress.

[STEVIE]

Once upon a very recent time this would have been unthinkable.
There is no way that he could be classed as transgendered but I am unsure that it is a sign of progress.
Debatable in oh so many ways, you decide.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/g ... 150f&ei=12

Steve.

[JeffB1959]

Not for nothing, but I wouldn’t have been caught dead wearing a dress so incredibly dowdy, not even a decent pair of heels to boot. I would’ve worn an evening dress or a full blown ball gown, complete with stilettos. Still, I admire Mr. Perry’s boldness for having worn what he did, he just could’ve done better when it came to his outfit.

[Barleymower]

Go out in public dressed the same and you won't get a knighthood.

[Coder]

Go out in public dressed the same and you won't get a knighthood.

Heck, if I were to go out in public dressed boringly with jeans/t-shirt, I wouldn't get a knighthood

This surprised me, but there may be cultural subtexts that I can't see from afar. As an outsider / US-person, it looks pretty shocking. But maybe his form of dress-wearing is tolerated because it aligns with some norms, or perhaps because he is an artist?

[rode_kater]

This surprised me, but there may be cultural subtexts that I can't see from afar. As an outsider / US-person, it looks pretty shocking. But maybe his form of dress-wearing is tolerated because it aligns with some norms, or perhaps because he is an artist?

I wouldn't call it shocking, how can clothing be shocking? It's just fabric made into a 3D form. If you type his name in google image search, you'll find this dress is much more demure than the stuff he usually wears. Frankly, I think most of what he wears looks bizarre, but hey, to each their own.

[Barleymower]

Go out in public dressed the same and you won't get a knighthood.

Heck, if I were to go out in public dressed boringly with jeans/t-shirt, I wouldn't get a knighthood

This surprised me, but there may be cultural subtexts that I can't see from afar. As an outsider / US-person, it looks pretty shocking. But maybe his form of dress-wearing is tolerated because it aligns with some norms, or perhaps because he is an artist?

Within British upper-class circles there are some traditions and associations which are not present in the rest of British society. It probably stems from public (like Eton College) schools and traditions like fagging.
Grayson Perry himself is from a working class background.

[Coder]

I wouldn't call it shocking, how can clothing be shocking? It's just fabric made into a 3D form. If you type his name in google image search, you'll find this dress is much more demure than the stuff he usually wears. Frankly, I think most of what he wears looks bizarre, but hey, to each their own.

I know who he is - I was referring to “shocking” in terms of him being in the presence of nobility dressed in a dress (regardless of how boring it is). This is going to sound horrible - but I’m coming from the US lens of nobility as seen on dreck like The Hallmark Channel or any number of tween movies I was “forced” to watch as a kid.

[STEVIE]

Still, I admire Mr. Perry’s boldness for having worn what he did, he just could’ve done better when it came to his outfit.

Go out in public dressed the same and you won't get a knighthood.

In terms of "look", I doubt that Sir G ever aimed for elegance or anything even approaching it in his wardrobe choices. Certainly that choice was bold to say the least and I do not doubt that for one moment that there are some members of the British establishment who were having apoplectic seizures at the sight of it.
I wonder if we shall see letters of indignant outrage in certain of their favourite publications.
In a period not so long ago, he could have been sent to prison for wearing that in public, never mind appearing in front of a Royal personage.
As stated, Grayson Perry is not from grand stock and to be fair the Knighthood has less to do with his frocks than his talent as a highly creative artist.
He has also been instrumental in bringing art out to the wider population, another thing that would have been quite unthinkable until recently.
Out and about dressed like that, he'd likely have got much the same reaction as anyone from here would.
Good, bad or indifferent, that is just how society is.
It probably took more balls to attend that ceremony like that than would be required to walk down Anytown High Street on a Saturday afternoon.
No this is pushing the boundaries but whether it aids the furthering of fashion freedom for men is moot.
Most likely to be seen as a harmless English eccentric interlude than making a lasting impression on Joe Public.
Steve.

[Barleymower]

Contrary Steve, I think it was not too hard for GP to wear the dress, it is expected of him after all.

I would say Grayson"s dress pushes MIS further back. The public would see his attire as bizarre bordering on the ridiculous. This notion then sets up the same feelings in the mind when any man dares venture out of the narrow band of dress chosen for him.

When you think about it anyone, man or woman in very flamboyant clothes borders on the ridulous. Maybe he will have a positive affect?

[rivegauche]

I am shocked that people on this site are shocked by Grayson's outfit. He has produced some outstanding documentaries and he is loved because he loves people and does not talk down to anyone. Almost everyone would be disappointed if he was not wearing a dress when they meet him. Though few of us would wear the sort of dress he usually wears, what I like is that he is having fun with his clothes - there are no gender or class issues here. In fact Grayson did a series of documentaries on class, and much the best of these was the one on the working class. I also dress in these clothes and as a woman for fun with no gender issues, and this is a box society does not really have - so the more of us there are the public eye the better. Nobody who is at all aware of him thinks Grayson is gay or trans, so that helps us.

There is no way anyone in the Royal family would be shocked by this. It seems they are surrounded by 'colourful' people. It is said that the Queen Mother used to make jokes about being the only queen allowed in her home when her servants were camping it up just a bit too much.

So leave Grayson alone - he is a national treasure.

[Coder]

Just for the record I’m not shocked or surprised by what he wore - I’m simply stating that, from a non-mis perspective, I’m sure a lot of people on this side of the pond would be shocked. I obviously don’t speak for all Americans, but British royalty is often treated as this magical, untouchable world of prim and proper behavior.

[rode_kater]

I was referring to “shocking” in terms of him being in the presence of nobility dressed in a dress (regardless of how boring it is).

Yeah, I think this is some of that crazy fascination Americans have with royalty. They're just people you know, some of their costumes would put our skirt-wearing to shame. It's not a nice life, everything you ever do is going to be food for the tabloids, while growing up you get given a bunch of expectations, whatever you actually want to do, forget that. If they started making a fuss about what people were wearing, they'd be out on one ear.

OTOH the American president actually does get treated like the royalty of old: driven around everywhere, parades, closing the airspace whenever they're flying around, people who swear allegiance to them, etc. Where we in Europe neutered all our royalty so they were harmless, the Americans gave all the powers of old kings to an elected position in a way that horrifies me: no person, elected or not, should have that much power.

[JohnH]

The bottom part of Grayson Perry's dress reminds me of a black trash bag filled with grass clippings. I wear dresses more often than trousers but there is NO WAY I would wear the dowdy dress that Perry wore.

John

[mishawakaskirt]

I'm sorry I d have to say no on that one.
Artist or not celebrity or not.
I don't think that outfit does MIS any over all good.
I could contemplate seeing some man wearing a kilt. But not an outfit like that.

I'm certain some saw that as a mockery to the knighthood even if It wasn't intended at all.
Over all I can't believe it helps the MIS cause.

Sorry

[moonshadow]

Not exactly what my mind conjures up when I think of the "knight in shining armour"...

Oh well, not my country, not my business. Guess I could state "not my circus, not my monkey".

Why not show up in this?

medieval-knight-in-armour-english-historical-re-enactment-england-BA9WKK.jpg

Ironically, that might be considered a "mockery".... oh how the times they do change...