Margaret Powell

En la primera casa en que entró a trabajar como pinche de cocina, a los quince años, Margaret Powell se quedó atónita cuando le dijeron que, entre sus tareas, figuraba la de planchar los cordones de los zapatos. La señora de la casa le prohibio, ademas, entregarle en mano cualquier cosa: siempre tenia que ser en bandeja de plata. Era la Inglaterra de los años 20, y en ella una chica empleada en el servicio domestico tenia que mentir a los chicos si queria encontrar novio: ellos las llamaban esclavas. En el piso de abajo son las memorias de una mujer sedienta de educacion que no comprende que, cuando pedia un libro de la biblioteca de sus señores, estos la miraran incredulos y espantados. Con el tiempo, aprendio por su cuenta y en 1968 publico este libro, que ha sido la fuente reconocida de inspiracion de series como Arriba y abajo y Downton Abbey, pero mucho mas incisiva e intencionada que ellas. En el sotano, a ellos (como llamaban a los señores), se les hacia una especie de psicoanalisis de cocina, sin cabida para Freud. Creo que nosotros sabiamos de la vida sexual ajena mucho mas de lo que el llego a saber nunca. Penetrante en su observacion de las relaciones entre clases, libre y deslenguada en la expresion de sus deseos, Margaret Powell nos cuenta que significaba para los de abajo preparar las cenas de seis platos de los de arriba. Un documento excepcional.

From the grand houses of Brighton to imposing London mansions, life as a kitchen maid could be exhausting and demoralising. Its not just being at the beck and call of the people upstairs, when even the children of the family can treat you like dirt, but having to deal with temperamental cooks, starchy butlers and chauffeurs with a roving eye. Marriage is the only escape, but with one evening off a week Margaret has no time to lose. Between Perce the bus conductor (who brings his mother on dates) and Mr Hailsham the fishmonger (who looks and smells a bit like his wares), her initial prospects are hardly the stuff of dreams. But then she meets Albert; a butcher boy-turned-milkman. Could he be the perfect husband? And can she make the perfect wife when, as she soon discovers, years spent serving others dont prepare you for managing your own life? Soon Margaret begins to wonder how can someone like her ever improve their station? Told with her trademark wit and warmth, Climbing the Stairs is a unique, sharp-eyed tale of a time when the idea of masters and servants began to lose its sway, and of a remarkable woman who grasped the opportunities of this brave new world with both hands.Margaret Powell was the first person outside my family to introduce me to that world, so near and yet seemingly so far away, where servants and their employers would live their vividly different lives under one roof. Her memories, funny and poignant, angry and charming, haunted me until, many years later, I made my own attempts to capture those people for the camera. I certainly owe her a great debt Julian Fellowes

Arriving at the great houses of 1920s London, fifteen-year-old Margarets life in service was about to begin As a kitchen maid the lowest of the low she entered an entirely new world; one of stoves to be blacked, vegetables to be scrubbed, mistresses to be appeased, and even bootlaces to be ironed. Work started at 5.30am and went on until after dark. It was a far cry from her childhood on the beaches of Hove, where money and food were scarce, but warmth and laughter never were. Yet from the gentleman with a penchant for stroking the housemaids curlers, to raucous tea-dances with errand boys, to the heartbreaking story of Agnes the pregnant under-parlourmaid, fired for being seduced by her mistresss nephew, Margarets tales of her time in service are told with wit, warmth, and a sharp eye for the prejudices of her situation. Brilliantly evoking the long-vanished world of masters and servants, Below Stairs is the remarkable true story of an indomitable woman, who, though her position was lowly, never stopped aiming high.Enormous gusto, salty humour, wisdomEvening StandardShrewd, unabashed, wickedly funny, a unique front-line report of her lifes experiences Jack De Manio, BBC

The Downstairs Cookbook offers genuine 1920s recipes from bestselling author Margaret Powell, the house maid and cook who shared tales from her years of service in Below Stairs and inspired the original Upstairs Downstairs TV series. Now in this cookery book she offers a collection of sweet and savoury courses that the servants regularly prepared for their masters upstairs, accompanied throughout by her heartwarming anecdotes from life in service. The recipes include retro classics such as kedgeree, jugged hare and angels on horseback as well as more adventurous offerings such as lobster souffle and veal quenelles. With separate chapters on pastry and preserves, this is Margaret Powells complete cooks manual for a 1920s household.

«Estas memorias, divertidas y conmovedoras, airadas y llenas de encanto, me obsesionaron hasta que, muchos años después de leerlas, intenté captar a la gente que describe delante de una cámara. Lo ci