In my last post, I casually mentioned a rather striking woman who used to walk around the streets of Richmond wearing a leopardskin coat, bright red lipstick and a bushy black beard. Thanks to Mrs Jones, I now know that this is Brenda, the Bearded Lady of Guildford.Apparently she is something of a celebrity in the local area.
There is a MySpace tribute page, but far more fascinating is this blog which includes an interview with the enigmatic Brenda.
The more po-faced amongst us might question the ethics of publishing material about people who have "issues", but Brenda is completely unaware of the blogosphere and doesn't seem fazed by the curiosity of others. Rather than view her as a victim, I regard Brenda as one of the great English eccentrics, blissfully indifferent to the social norms of 21st century Britain.
