A century of London Ladies

As the Olympics begins, these dazzling pictures, published in a new Taschen book, reveal how women have made London the most colourful city on Earth

It was Samuel Johnson who said that: ‘When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life.’

Out of the punk rock era fl ounced the New Romantics (1981), creating their own subculture on the music and fashion scene

Well, the same could be said of women. Indeed, as these vivid pictures from a fabulous new TASCHEN book reveal, it is the capital’s ladies that have given the city so much of its style, substance and strength.

From left to right: The original Apple Boutique, on the corner of Paddington Street and Baker Street, W1, was decorated by groovy Dutch design group The Fool (1967). But, Westminster Council thought it should be outta sight, and ordered that the psychedelic mural be covered up; In 1929 these elegantly dressed ladies paying the taxi fare epitomise chic in their cloche hats and fur-edged coats; Models in Paco Rabanne minidresses (late 1960s), on a fashion shoot in front of a Routemaster bus

From the roaring 1920s, through the dark days of the Blitz to the Swinging Sixties and beyond, London has been shaped by the women who live there.

The public’s idea of ‘Swinging London’ was often based on Patrick Macnee’s role as Steed in The Avengers (1960s). The horse looks more interested in the naked lady than its rider

So in this year of the Olympics, let’s celebrate their unique role in making London the greatest city on Earth. 

London: Portrait Of A City (TASCHEN, £44.99).