00:58 That’s not Diana Mitford. That’s Lady Cynthia Curzon Mosley. Edit: But I really appreciate the kind lady who uploaded this! Big fan of Jessica Mitford. Thank you. ❤
It was a pleasure to listen to this truly intelligent and articulate lady. Her good humour, reflections and charm are indicative of what we don't seem to now have in society today. One seldom hears such well spoken and correct English either.
“Has it ever struck you that life is all memory, except for the one present moment that goes by you so quick you hardly catch it going?”― Tennessee Williams............
Thanks for that quote. Despite TW being a favourite author of mine, I had to look it up. Oddly enough it was written about the same time as I was having the same thought as a young teenager, although obviously not as eloquently expressed. I can even remember where I was & what I was doing when I thought it bc it's stuck with me. I didn't realise the 'The Milk Train....' was rewritten as 'Boom' Taylor/Burton film, which I enjoyed. I understand neither play or revised film were well received. Pity. Thanks again for the memory. I now need to watch the play & film again.
Funny how she mentioned the family home at Swinbrook, I'm currently working on the old Mitford house which is now under new ownership. You can't help wondering if only the walls could talk the tales they could tell..
Indeed. I am quite jealous of you, and were I in your position, I’d really take a good listen to those walls! The house was up for sale some years ago, and I was able to look at the pictures from the estate agent, which was fun, but nothing like being there yourself, of course.
amazing woman, what an inspiration. The way she mocks herself, her class, the ambitions and pretentions of her younger self is really refreshing and makes her look like a genuine person.
@@cheechalker8430 Why should they give up their inheritance? Only greed-driven people would even think that someone else might want to give up their inheritance.
Ruby Nibs isn’t that the whole point of socialism? Everyone is equal and everyone shares what they have? Wealth re-distribution? I don’t think anyone should give up their money under the guise of a system (socialism) that has never ever worked in the history of man. When these socialists start giving away their money then I will believe they believe what they are saying. It’s easy to be a socialist, as long as you don’t have to abide by any socialist principles.
@@cheechalker8430 What you are talking about is communism. Politics can be demonstrated with a line where most politically ideologies are placed from right to left, with the ends being the most extremes (communism left to fascism /or 100% capitalism right). Socialism is after communism on that line, and it's not about 100% equality and sharing. The main difference is that under communism, most property and economic resources are owned and controlled by the state (rather than individual citizens); under socialism, all citizens share equally in economic resources as allocated by a democratically-elected government. People, especially in the US, use the words communism and socialism as if it is the same thing, it is not.
@@tonywalsh5444 Haha. I wonder if people like JM comment about the way WE speak? I saw a clip once of someone saying that the Queen is a great mimic but I don't suppose we will ever see her on the stage. Blessings and peace
Curious. Can you explain all the attributes, described as *wonderful* and *amazing* from your point of view? If we wanted to emulate these fabulous qualities in our daughters, tell me how to begin?
We have few people like this nowadays. Compare this woman to the stupid actors and actresses of today, 2015. She is so articulate , speaks clearly , a joy to listen to.
She is a communist. It is great for her because she is in the aristocracy, so, likely to gain money with as a communist. She disgusts me that she lives in America. We don’t like communists
Extraordinary life. And though much of it seemed undue rebellion through it she produced quite a lot of legacy that educates. And I think this is what she was about showing the Western world what is so topsy turvy about it all. Indeed.
She was no "brighter" than Nancy or Diana. And the 'family name' needed no redeeming, then or now. She plus each of her siblings represented 1/7 of the 'family name' as passed on by them. Your opinion is an expression of your politics -- all political opinions are not the same.@@charlieclark983
Agreed, though one must have a least favorite and Jessica is mine; though there are endearing characteristics there was a pretty vicious side, too. @@louisetaylor3643
How did she manage all this without formal education? Eloquent, rational argument without waving her hands around, stays on topic and all with a gentle sense of humour. Wonderful interview of one of those Mitford sisters!
in the first 2 minutes of the program, the photo of oswald mosley and "diana" is mis-identified; the photo is of cynthia mosley, cimmie, oswald mosley's first wife, not diana mitford. suyen mosley
The oddest bit of the whole USA Communist story is: McCarthy was right, there were Reds under the Beds .. aka Sleeper Agents (and the CIA/ FBI, more or less, knew about it). Moreover, the British (upper crust and security services) didn't seem to mind too much if there were Post-War Communists milling around, so long as they were gentlemen and played the game; if they didn't play the game they were an embarrassment - and if they were not gentlemen, well, they weren't, therefore different rules applied. This is one of the few really interesting interviews on You Tube; so, many thanks for posting it (it is good to see it still hanging around in the ether).
I read "The Sisters" which was about the Mitford sisters. It was a fascinating read. Jessica became an avowed communist and her older sister Diana became a rabid fascist. I found it incredibly amazing considering that both these women were born into the highest echelons of British society and had wealth. How they formed these political leanings is beyond me.
Wow what an insightful interview - I like her forthright expression and how she relates her experiences. It seems to be a personality feature in people of her background, like the way she relates the attempted rape account for example. No post traumatic syndrome, no years of counselling needed to 'deal' with it; just 'brush it orff' and carry on!
The accent is definitely toned down when compared with her sister Diana.Good to see the great John Pilger who is still plying his trade during the Covid plandemic.
An extraordinary historical record! The Mitfords all seemed to be searching for something to give their life meaning, grasping at some very disparate straws. Funny that Jessica seemed to think she received 'almost love letters' from Reagan, asking for money at the end, when in reality, many people would have have gotten that same begging letter.
I think that is the common link between the Mitford sisters, all searching for something. Just read Jessica's first autobiography and just starting Debos. Their childhoods set them off on this quest for some meaning whatever the consequences.
Yes, I noticed that, Not only did her husband cheat on her with her sisters and possibly also with their mother - and anything else with a pulse - now she is not even allowed her own name in the beginning of this programme. Then again, the focus is on Jessica Mitford, so I let it slide ... (couldn't have done much about it anyway)
Simiformes How does an accent make you a decent person? For all you know she could be a stuck.up, self-centered bitch. The English class system is weird
@@teenherofilms No judgement is made about her decency or lack thereof. The original comment simply described how this is a perfect example of a British upper class accent of that generation. Frankly she and her accent are a pure joy to behold in this dreary age of ordinariness.
@@seerjc123 I know a lot of people who have upper class accents and they are far from a joy to behold. The UK class system is something beyond me, I live in Europe and we have nothing like that here.
Yeah, she certainly didn't know what communism did to ordinary people in many parts of the world. When you're privileged and rich you can dabble in all sorts of things with few consequences. It's always a comical irony when the rich are 'pro communist' without having ever experienced an all out communist system first hand.
That's right! A client told me her aunt was made to do forced hard labour in Communist Ukraine in the 1970s- road mending. No choice. Do it or be executed. Hard reality. I usually ask my fellow traditionalists/Conservatives "Why do all the people in the big houses in Holmfirth vote Labour?" . But he just said " I don't know. I don't understand it."
Read up on Jessica Mitford before letting a posh accent prejudice you against a highly intelligent journalist and a lifelong member of the communist party who came up against the HUAC
(as an American, a New Yorker) I'm going to do an experiment where I try and speak with an aristocratic British accent for an entire day and see what happens. today is 4/6/24, a Saturday... I'll do the experiment on Monday when I get to work and report back. If I forget - someone comment on my message so I get an alert! lol!
I am 69 years old. I have had close friends who were Holocaust survivors, and several who suffered under the Communist regimes in central Europe. At 69, I am still waiting for someone to explain to me how it is that the monstrosities of the Nazis are today seen for what they were, but the fully comparable sins and crimes of Marxism-Leninism are still -- STILL! -- minimized, or even made out to be some sort of faintly endearing ideological eccentricity, like the Flat Earth Society. That bedroom of Unity's and Jessica's, with the swastika facing the hammer and sickle, was a case of Evil greeting Evil; and all of Miss Mitford's undeniable charm and intelligence doesn't alter or mitigate that fact.
I'm Catholic, and agree with you. How could these sisters speak so lightly, and laugh, about being a part, and agreeing with the Nazi, and Marxist systems? This lady stricks me as someone who was aware of 'some' of the horrors of both systems, but continued to be an unashamed, unrepentant Marxist, despite the understatement, giggling, and stiff upper lip nonsensical acting.
It is funny how one listens to this lady differently because of her accent. Imagine her saying the same thing with, say, a scouse accent and how she'd come across then.
Decca always comes across as enormously self-satisfied in contrast with her sisters, even Debo, who was Duchess of Devonshire, seemed much more humble and more interested in others rather than herself. Decca speaks as if she's the heroine of her own story.
Debo is my favourite of the sisters, she's was a duchess that raised chickens and became a successful chatelaine. Nancy was witty but her wit had a mean-spiritedness to it. Diana is beautiful but at the same time, she is hard to read and her political leanings are hard to stomach. Pamela seemed like a static character amongst some very colourful sisters. Unity, well, she seemed to like to shock people and her attempted suicide was pitiable but really? The callousness she exhibited over getting her apartment in Germany when the tenants were forced to move out is just horrible. They were Jewish and all she said was, "I need to change these curtains. They are terrible." Then there is Decca who is witty but also very very caustic. She in many ways is the heroine of her own story but at the cost of warping her family into caricatures of themselves. The appeasement policy tore her family apart. Her parents separated and she never saw her father again despite him wanting to see her. When her sister Unity died, he hoped that he would see Decca come through the doors. How sad is that for a father?
@@absolutelyalice1754 I had no idea you knew the Mitford sisters so well. You were with Unity in Germany? You should write a book about it. Do add the part about )ews being moved out of Germany due to their being Communists who were, at the time, the enemy of Germany. Read rabble-rousers, too, but of course, you were there, so you know this. It's terribly important people learn what was really going on in Germany at that time, and telling the story through the eyes of your good friends, the Mitfords, would make for an amusing point of view.
That's John Pilger. He used to have a reputation as a great journalist; his book HEROES is a great read. Sadly these days he spouts all kind of tosh. See his wiki for the details.
Brezhnev Fanboy meets Last Surviving Stalinist. And Pilger is like a 1970s laugh track: Open-neck shirt with giant collar, helmet hair, pea-soup jacket. Where are the aviator glasses?
Flipswop I agree. But keep in mind her bitterness towards her family had everything to do with WWII. Her family largely supported Hitler for a long time, and the war took brother Tom, her husband Edmond Romilly (leaving her a widow with an infant), and caused her sister Unity (the closest to her growing up, they spoke a secret twin like language) to shoot herself in the head at the outset of war leaving her mentally challenged for life. Jessica had a hard time accepting her family’s role in defending the enemy and cause of so much loss. Her opposite political reaction was a response. Her parents separated over it all too- her father couldn’t stomach the pro-Germany stuff after losing his son and daughter.
Cheryl Lynne: Jessica Mitford was British - hence a British communist. The British Communist Party did not "mass murder" anyone. Nor did it advocate such a thing. Also, the mass murder by communists in other countries was only realised long after it happened. You may have had advanced notice of it, but few others did. Jessica mitford comes over as anything but a hypocrite.
@@roberthutchins4297The Moscow Show Trials were occurring in the late-30s, but it is true none of the Mitfords had read Eli Wiesel or Solzhenitsyn when they formed their convictions.
I am not particularly technically minded. Are you referring to the aspect ratio? I put the video up the way I found it, and it is old. Even if I could, I would not have changed it. Content over format, my friend!
@@hoonnu54 Sorry my english may not be very good. I just wanted anybody who read my comment and lives/lived in England to answer me this, because I am curious (although I don't even live in Europe): Jessica says "...there's a huge strain of anti-semitism that runs through that class in England..." I wanted to know if that is still accurate nowdays in England. Because by the way she says it, I understand there was anti-semitism on the Brittish aristocracy before and during WW2 but also during the time this interview was made. I really hope I made myself clear here :(
Kyk ´uk lu kuk nu nu nu u k uk u u ki u un un u un u no un lk kk know il iu iu ou uk u u ouuiuuˆ'´´î' n'´´´´´l' ´ô'´´ô'´´´´´´ô'´´l'´´´ô'´´´´l'l'ôö of ö😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮u😊uuuuuuuu😊uu😊😊😊uuuuuuuuiuu
I thought she might say she regretted her time living in the east end of London and losing her daughter to measles. I thought that was exactly what Pilger was alluding to when he asked that question!
00:58 That’s not Diana Mitford. That’s Lady Cynthia Curzon Mosley. Edit: But I really appreciate the kind lady who uploaded this! Big fan of Jessica Mitford. Thank you. ❤
It was a pleasure to listen to this truly intelligent and articulate lady. Her good humour, reflections and charm are indicative of what we don't seem to now have in society today. One seldom hears such well spoken and correct English either.
Oh, so her communist dribble appealed to you? Sad. Very sad.
@@jessicanelson9545, I think the expression is ‘drivvel’ not dribble. Quite a difference in meaning there.
@@karensinclair4189 I think you are” know it all “correcting me for someone else’s comment.
It comes from the ambience of the upper class which she so detested.
“Has it ever struck you that life is all memory, except for the one present moment that goes by you so quick you hardly catch it going?”― Tennessee Williams............
Thanks for that quote.
Despite TW being a favourite author of mine, I had to look it up.
Oddly enough it was written about the same time as I was having the same thought as a young teenager, although obviously not as eloquently expressed. I can even remember where I was & what I was doing when I thought it bc it's stuck with me.
I didn't realise the 'The Milk Train....' was rewritten as 'Boom' Taylor/Burton film, which I enjoyed. I understand neither play or revised film were well received.
Pity.
Thanks again for the memory.
I now need to watch the play & film again.
Funny how she mentioned the family home at Swinbrook, I'm currently working on the old Mitford house which is now under new ownership.
You can't help wondering if only the walls could talk the tales they could tell..
Indeed. I am quite jealous of you, and were I in your position, I’d really take a good listen to those walls! The house was up for sale some years ago, and I was able to look at the pictures from the estate agent, which was fun, but nothing like being there yourself, of course.
I often walk past Mill Cottage in Wycombe for that specific reason. Reading through their letter collection which is amazing.
amazing woman, what an inspiration. The way she mocks herself, her class, the ambitions and pretentions of her younger self is really refreshing and makes her look like a genuine person.
It’s easy to mock your class while not giving up your wealth
Nothing to stop her from rejecting her inheritance, yet none of them did
@@cheechalker8430 Why should they give up their inheritance? Only greed-driven people would even think that someone else might want to give up their inheritance.
Ruby Nibs isn’t that the whole point of socialism? Everyone is equal and everyone shares what they have?
Wealth re-distribution?
I don’t think anyone should give up their money under the guise of a system (socialism) that has never ever worked in the history of man.
When these socialists start giving away their money then I will believe they believe what they are saying.
It’s easy to be a socialist, as long as you don’t have to abide by any socialist principles.
@@Joeblogs999 they're conflating bereft spirit with the material
@@cheechalker8430 What you are talking about is communism. Politics can be demonstrated with a line where most politically ideologies are placed from right to left, with the ends being the most extremes (communism left to fascism /or 100% capitalism right). Socialism is after communism on that line, and it's not about 100% equality and sharing. The main difference is that under communism, most property and economic resources are owned and controlled by the state (rather than individual citizens); under socialism, all citizens share equally in economic resources as allocated by a democratically-elected government.
People, especially in the US, use the words communism and socialism as if it is the same thing, it is not.
what a wonderful interview with a wonderful woman. one of the amazing mitford sisters, what a family.
I could listen to her all day. My only concern is that people might think we all speak like that if we come from UK
@@georgealderson4424 don't worry george , i come from australia, so imagine how i feel.
@@tonywalsh5444 Haha. I wonder if people like JM comment about the way WE speak? I saw a clip once of someone saying that the Queen is a great mimic but I don't suppose we will ever see her on the stage. Blessings and peace
Curious. Can you explain all the attributes, described as *wonderful* and *amazing* from your point of view?
If we wanted to emulate these fabulous qualities in our daughters, tell me how to begin?
@@georgealderson4424 i
one of the fascinating mitford sisters. i wish she is still with us ...would have made a perfect PM for any western country.
We have few people like this nowadays. Compare this woman to the stupid actors and actresses of today, 2015.
She is so articulate , speaks clearly , a joy to listen to.
Other times, we need to go forward .
Ninian MacMillan-Keith Well said & 100% true.
She is a communist. It is great for her because she is in the aristocracy, so, likely to gain money with as a communist. She disgusts me that she lives in America. We don’t like communists
Amen
@@jessicanelson9545 its a free country lady
Fascinating woman! from a fascinating family. This was a delightful interview. Thank you for posting.
What a wonderful humorous woman. Great to watch. 😊
She's the best of the lot
Was able to see beyond her own class and privilege
She has a marvelously understated sense of humour.
I think it´s her most appealing trait, a very sharp and smart sense of humor, but a bit silly at times, I love it :)
The redeemer of the Mitford family.what a fascinating person and deprived of an education
Wonderful Decca, that cheeky glint in her eye...bore him UNstiff hahahahha Legend
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Extraordinary life. And though much of it seemed undue rebellion through it she produced quite a lot of legacy that educates. And I think this is what she was about showing the Western world what is so topsy turvy about it all. Indeed.
I love hearing this lady, so intelligent and formidable.
Jessica Mitford is so clever. Love her interview. 💖
Love J Mitford... Always have. Ever since reading American Way of Death twenty-odd years ago.
What inspiration ! full of humour enjoyed listening to her .
Of all the sisters, this one is the one that saved the family name.
She stretched the truth apparently in her book Hons and Rebels
Or didn't sully the family name like the Fascists. She was the brightest of the group.
She was no "brighter" than Nancy or Diana. And the 'family name' needed no redeeming, then or now. She plus each of her siblings represented 1/7 of the 'family name' as passed on by them. Your opinion is an expression of your politics -- all political opinions are not the same.@@charlieclark983
"C'est moi qui vous remercie" - it is me who thanks you, her last comment :) The Mitford who redeems all the others...;)
Was there ever such a family? Completely fascinating
Yes
Agreed, though one must have a least favorite and Jessica is mine; though there are endearing characteristics there was a pretty vicious side, too. @@louisetaylor3643
I'm completely fascinated by these women. I've read a couple books on them but I ALWAYS want more.
Great interviewer. He gives time for her to reply and really seems to listen to the answers. Thanks for uploading.
How did she manage all this without formal education? Eloquent, rational argument without waving her hands around, stays on topic and all with a gentle sense of humour. Wonderful interview of one of those Mitford sisters!
It’s so fascinating how each sister fell into the assigned roles. Jessica is the truth teller.
in the first 2 minutes of the program, the photo of oswald mosley and "diana" is mis-identified; the photo is of cynthia mosley, cimmie, oswald mosley's first wife, not diana mitford.
suyen mosley
The picture of Diana Mitford is not of Diana Mitford. That's actually Mosley's first wife Cynthia Curzon.
L. J. Liburd, yes, I know. I made a comment to that effect about 4 years ago. :-)
I thought someone else might have pointed it out!
The oddest bit of the whole USA Communist story is: McCarthy was right, there were Reds under the Beds .. aka Sleeper Agents (and the CIA/ FBI, more or less, knew about it). Moreover, the British (upper crust and security services) didn't seem to mind too much if there were Post-War Communists milling around, so long as they were gentlemen and played the game; if they didn't play the game they were an embarrassment - and if they were not gentlemen, well, they weren't, therefore different rules applied. This is one of the few really interesting interviews on You Tube; so, many thanks for posting it (it is good to see it still hanging around in the ether).
nonsense you mean the dolts in hollywood?
Wrong pic of Diana at the beginning, it's actually Cynthia Mosley
OMG, if I could be a tiny bit like her in any way, I would be satisfied.
I read "The Sisters" which was about the Mitford sisters. It was a fascinating read. Jessica became an avowed communist and her older sister Diana became a rabid fascist. I found it incredibly amazing considering that both these women were born into the highest echelons of British society and had wealth. How they formed these political leanings is beyond me.
...by being from their class and living through their times and by coming from a large family I suppose
They got it from their parents.
It was 'trendy' at the time to be either a fascist or communist. Not many people in the west realised where these ideas would lead.
Her book, Hons and Rebels, is a great read!
Wow what an insightful interview - I like her forthright expression and how she relates her experiences.
It seems to be a personality feature in people of her background, like the way she relates the attempted rape account for example. No post traumatic syndrome, no years of counselling needed to 'deal' with it; just 'brush it orff' and carry on!
Gosh so much of this is bang on relevant in 2003
Lol 2023.
Wish it was 2003!
love her...remarkable....really thought out of the box...this couldn't have endeared her to her family all the time, of course!
Regardless of their politics, all the Mitford girls were extremely interesting.
The accent is definitely toned down when compared with her sister Diana.Good to see the great John Pilger who is still plying his trade during the Covid plandemic.
Diana and Nancy overacted their accents. They were snobs.
@@charlieclark983 😇There's a difference, Charlie. You have my sympathies.
@@maxwellfan55 Huh?
What a star! great style and wit encased in a heart of gold!!!
I think they were a rather sad family who could not settle into moderate politics
Love her books. ('A Fine Old Conflict' is a real hoot.)
Fascinating…..fantastic interview
love jessica. her chat with Christopher Hitchens is wonderful
The best explanation of Margaret Thatcher
Jessica Mitford was a real woman of substance. Her book on death in America is amazing for its time, even for now.
An extraordinary historical record! The Mitfords all seemed to be searching for something to give their life meaning, grasping at some very disparate straws. Funny that Jessica seemed to think she received 'almost love letters' from Reagan, asking for money at the end, when in reality, many people would have have gotten that same begging letter.
I think that is the common link between the Mitford sisters, all searching for something. Just read Jessica's first autobiography and just starting Debos. Their childhoods set them off on this quest for some meaning whatever the consequences.
My favourite Mitford.
Good grief... what a wonderful lady!
Ronald Reagan for Govenor/ President? Rib-tickler of all time! It would be interesting to hear her opinion regarding global politics in 2018.
Orange man bad. Bidenomics work..that's what she'd say. Like the rest of them.
30 genders.
Trans kids.
Shed support it all. Master subverters.
Yes, I noticed that, Not only did her husband cheat on her with her sisters and possibly also with their mother - and anything else with a pulse - now she is not even allowed her own name in the beginning of this programme. Then again, the focus is on Jessica Mitford, so I let it slide ... (couldn't have done much about it anyway)
It's horrible but couldn't help but laugh when she talked about how she was trying to 'unstiff' a man who tried to rape her
Cc
A wonderful interview.
Perfect specimen of a top drawer accent.
Simiformes How does an accent make you a decent person? For all you know she could be a stuck.up, self-centered bitch. The English class system is weird
@@teenherofilms No judgement is made about her decency or lack thereof. The original comment simply described how this is a perfect example of a British upper class accent of that generation. Frankly she and her accent are a pure joy to behold in this dreary age of ordinariness.
@@seerjc123 I know a lot of people who have upper class accents and they are far from a joy to behold. The UK class system is something beyond me, I live in Europe and we have nothing like that here.
@@teenherofilms All of Europe has a class system; Europe was built on the class system. You just haven't figured it out.
Her sister Diana's accent is even more top drawer.
Wow Wow, If I die (or were able to travel in time) I would want to be Mitford Sister!!
This interview dates to 1983. Jessica who was smoking during this charming interview died 13 years later of lung cancer.
Well, if you want to have a long life, smoking a lot is not the best idea.
Why she not mentioned Deborah, the Duchess of Devonshire at that time
Deborah was the least ‘controversial’, if I can put it that way. I think that accounts for it. They were close though - they were sisters.
Loved watching the pursuit of love, interesting family.
Fascinating woman!
Yeah, she certainly didn't know what communism did to ordinary people in many parts of the world. When you're privileged and rich you can dabble in all sorts of things with few consequences. It's always a comical irony when the rich are 'pro communist' without having ever experienced an all out communist system first hand.
That's right! A client told me her aunt was made to do forced hard labour in Communist Ukraine in the 1970s- road mending. No choice. Do it or be executed. Hard reality.
I usually ask my fellow traditionalists/Conservatives "Why do all the people in the big houses in Holmfirth vote Labour?" . But he just said " I don't know. I don't understand it."
You must read more, comment. You’re not as rounded on Jessica Mitford as you think.
Read up on Jessica Mitford before letting a posh accent prejudice you against a highly intelligent journalist and a lifelong member of the communist party who came up against the HUAC
Communist dictatorships is not the same as democratic communism.
@@sallydarley9812 because they're not selfish idiots?
That's not Diana it's Cynthia, Mosley's first wiy.
(as an American, a New Yorker) I'm going to do an experiment where I try and speak with an aristocratic British accent for an entire day and see what happens. today is 4/6/24, a Saturday... I'll do the experiment on Monday when I get to work and report back. If I forget - someone comment on my message so I get an alert! lol!
Jewish involvement in revolutionary movements is so interesting. It's been going on for years but nobody ever tries to dig into why.
I am 69 years old. I have had close friends who were Holocaust survivors, and several who suffered under the Communist regimes in central Europe. At 69, I am still waiting for someone to explain to me how it is that the monstrosities of the Nazis are today seen for what they were, but the fully comparable sins and crimes of Marxism-Leninism are still -- STILL! -- minimized, or even made out to be some sort of faintly endearing ideological eccentricity, like the Flat Earth Society. That bedroom of Unity's and Jessica's, with the swastika facing the hammer and sickle, was a case of Evil greeting Evil; and all of Miss Mitford's undeniable charm and intelligence doesn't alter or mitigate that fact.
I'm Catholic, and agree with you. How could these sisters speak so lightly, and laugh, about being a part, and agreeing with the Nazi, and Marxist systems? This lady stricks me as someone who was aware of 'some' of the horrors of both systems, but continued to be an unashamed, unrepentant Marxist, despite the understatement, giggling, and stiff upper lip nonsensical acting.
Yes yes yes. I’m so glad someone said this. Communism is EVERY bit as evil as fascism, if not far worse.
Yawn. You're 69, you sound either 14 years old or 94.
amazing ... so much more to offer than her sisters
Ridiculous.
It is funny how one listens to this lady differently because of her accent. Imagine her saying the same thing with, say, a scouse accent and how she'd come across then.
No one would take any notice of her I imagine
Sad but true observation
She asked you to be her COOK? Ohmygoodness I do hope you tell that to everyone you meet. There couldn't be a higher honor.
With that dialect, you'd HAVE TO BE very wealthy....or all the other children would beat you up.
(a little light humor, no harm ment)
I imagine with a dialect such as hers, one moves among others who share it 😉
A remarkable lady😊
Great video.
"Bore him _unstiff."_
Them sisters were real ladies. They believed what they believed and refused to sell their principles. Good for them.
Does anyone know when this interview took place
Wonderful lady. Not a 'spoiled brat' at all.
Decca always comes across as enormously self-satisfied in contrast with her sisters, even Debo, who was Duchess of Devonshire, seemed much more humble and more interested in others rather than herself. Decca speaks as if she's the heroine of her own story.
Debo is my favourite of the sisters, she's was a duchess that raised chickens and became a successful chatelaine. Nancy was witty but her wit had a mean-spiritedness to it. Diana is beautiful but at the same time, she is hard to read and her political leanings are hard to stomach. Pamela seemed like a static character amongst some very colourful sisters. Unity, well, she seemed to like to shock people and her attempted suicide was pitiable but really? The callousness she exhibited over getting her apartment in Germany when the tenants were forced to move out is just horrible. They were Jewish and all she said was, "I need to change these curtains. They are terrible." Then there is Decca who is witty but also very very caustic. She in many ways is the heroine of her own story but at the cost of warping her family into caricatures of themselves. The appeasement policy tore her family apart. Her parents separated and she never saw her father again despite him wanting to see her. When her sister Unity died, he hoped that he would see Decca come through the doors. How sad is that for a father?
@@absolutelyalice1754 I had no idea you knew the Mitford sisters so well. You were with Unity in Germany? You should write a book about it. Do add the part about )ews being moved out of Germany due to their being Communists who were, at the time, the enemy of Germany. Read rabble-rousers, too, but of course, you were there, so you know this. It's terribly important people learn what was really going on in Germany at that time, and telling the story through the eyes of your good friends, the Mitfords, would make for an amusing point of view.
@@rubynibs
I've enjoyed your pithy rejoinders throughout the comment section.
All of us are the heroes/heroines in our own story. ??
That's John Pilger. He used to have a reputation as a great journalist; his book HEROES is a great read.
Sadly these days he spouts all kind of tosh. See his wiki for the details.
looks like good journalism to the very end
"Coffee with The Donald."
Its the same today as it was then but just different faces !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Decca once asked me to be hr cook--she was very drunk :)
...but did you become her cook
Of course , a servant. Despite her leftism , she still kept her aristocratic attitudes
@@briandelaney9710I’m not a leftist, but I don’t see what’s wrong with hiring a cook if you are.
Please tell me when this was recorded. Was it in 1979 or in 1983?
I am not sure, but I think 1983 is the more likely answer. Don't ask me why. :-)
Brilliant, Ive just bought a book of her letters,its huge!
Whole family were bonkers except Debo.
Pamela was very grounded
Extraordinary
These sisters were the posh wags of there time. They wormed there way into every different upper echelons of society
They didn't have to work their way in, they were already there.
John Pilger 🙌
1983?
Fascinating lady with horrible views.
And the campaign to keep her sister Diana imprisoned is unforgivable.
It was Nancy who tried to keep Diana imprisoned, but I understand Jessica had the most spite for the rest of the family, particularly Diana.
Absolutely remarkable.
I wish I could speak such RP
Yes, cultured, well spoken, but a communist! Rich kids playing Nazi, Commie, etc. Titles, mansions, millions, huge estates....!
A very classy lady :)
A bit fat in the face
My type of woman. 👍💪😊
Brezhnev Fanboy meets Last Surviving Stalinist. And Pilger is like a 1970s laugh track: Open-neck shirt with giant collar, helmet hair, pea-soup jacket. Where are the aviator glasses?
Good one!
she was a hero to many of us young ones bak then....
blesss u lady
she's myleast favourite mitford sister, very bitter about her family
Flipswop I agree. But keep in mind her bitterness towards her family had everything to do with WWII. Her family largely supported Hitler for a long time, and the war took brother Tom, her husband Edmond Romilly (leaving her a widow with an infant), and caused her sister Unity (the closest to her growing up, they spoke a secret twin like language) to shoot herself in the head at the outset of war leaving her mentally challenged for life. Jessica had a hard time accepting her family’s role in defending the enemy and cause of so much loss. Her opposite political reaction was a response. Her parents separated over it all too- her father couldn’t stomach the pro-Germany stuff after losing his son and daughter.
Cheryl Lynne: Jessica Mitford was British - hence a British communist. The British Communist Party did not "mass murder" anyone. Nor did it advocate such a thing. Also, the mass murder by communists in other countries was only realised long after it happened. You may have had advanced notice of it, but few others did.
Jessica mitford comes over as anything but a hypocrite.
Flipswop
Can you blame her?? Two of her sisters were Nazi sympathizers.
@@roberthutchins4297The Moscow Show Trials were occurring in the late-30s, but it is true none of the Mitfords had read Eli Wiesel or Solzhenitsyn when they formed their convictions.
7:16 to these days??
I am not particularly technically minded. Are you referring to the aspect ratio? I put the video up the way I found it, and it is old. Even if I could, I would not have changed it. Content over format, my friend!
@@hoonnu54 Sorry my english may not be very good. I just wanted anybody who read my comment and lives/lived in England to answer me this, because I am curious (although I don't even live in Europe):
Jessica says "...there's a huge strain of anti-semitism that runs through that class in England..." I wanted to know if that is still accurate nowdays in England.
Because by the way she says it, I understand there was anti-semitism on the Brittish aristocracy before and during WW2 but also during the time this interview was made.
I really hope I made myself clear here :(
@@Vicentemetalero she’s implying that the sentiments were still very much prevalent
I’m interested in Jessica Mitford, but I can’t stand John Pilger.
.she went to nazi germany also, but neglects to mention that.....
Weird, I thought she mentioned going there with the family. Tea with the Fuhrer. Perhaps I misheard.
She read that from her mother's diary.
She didn't. She moved to the US
Does anyone know what year this was filmed? Late 70s?
1983
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I think what she really regrets was not killing Hitler when she had the chance. She's still a hero though!
I thought she might say she regretted her time living in the east end of London and losing her daughter to measles. I thought that was exactly what Pilger was alluding to when he asked that question!
@Cheryl Lynne
Norman Bethune was.
She is a great writer!
Wes Anderson style!!!!