January

Mary Poppins

“I’ll stay till the wind changes” – Author P.L. Travers 

“I’m practically perfect in every way” -1964 film Mary Poppins.

“We’re on the brink of adventure, children. Don’t spoil it with too many questions.”  –2018 film Mary Poppins Returns.

Starting out the year on a foggy London night we have Mary Poppins, the inimitable flying nanny that P.L.Travers brought to life in 1934. Twice made into feature films, the character was at once sweet and sharp-tongued (the latter even more so in the books).  Travers described her as a woman who “never wastes time being nice”, a far cry from the spoonful-of-sugar image that has become synonymous with her name. While the original Poppins arrived by being hurled against a gate by the wind, the Disney film created the magic umbrella that allowed her to drift down from the sky in the cinematic flourish that remains her signature entrance.

Pinion gear umbrella