Fashion

A real Peaky Blinder mug-shot

In pictures: what did the real Peaky Blinders look like?

A 1954 illustration of a woman wearing nylons. Lightweight, easy to conceal and fiercely sought after, stockings were a favourite with smugglers. (Photo by Bridgeman)

Nylon pirates: the postwar craze for cut-price stockings

Bearded Victorian man. (Photo by Getty Images)

A brief history of beards

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A series of images depicting Victorian women wearing crinolines, c1860. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Stitching the fashions of the 19th century: who dressed the 19th-century elite?

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A brief history of camouflage

Photo of a couple holding up a fan

Q&A What signals were used in fan language?

19th-century men in traditional dress, Marken Island, Netherlands.

General ancient history

Q&A When were trousers first worn?

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Sexy shoes: 5 things our footwear has said about us through history

A vintage postcard featuring a fashionable young woman published in London during the First World War, c1914. (Photo by Popperfoto/Getty Images)

First World War

15 things you didn’t know about fashion in the First World War

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Revealed: the secrets of the Tudor cross-dressers

The then Princess Alexandra pictured here in 1884 wearing the high-necked, feminised version of the male suit that became associated with her. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Who’s the best-dressed Briton in history?

‘Portrait of a Lady’ by Netherlandish painter Rogier van der Weyden, c1460. From the collection of the National Gallery, London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Art Media/Print Collector/Getty Images)

Medieval underwear: bras, pants and lingerie in the Middle Ages

An aquatint shows barbers at work, with varying degrees of success. (Wellcome Collection)

At the edge of reason: shaving and razors in 18th-century Britain