'Outrageous' Will Be a Summer Shock to the System

The interwar period was a time of massive social change in England, as the Great War swept through with technological marvels and a greater chance at equality than ever before, even as the aristocratic families that once ruled the social world went bankrupt. It was also the dawn of celebrity culture, as the antics of those who belonged to the upper classes and were raised with more money than sense became fodder for newspaper sales. However, there was one wealthy, privileged family that stood head and shoulders above the rest: the Mitfords, who are the subject of BritBox's next limited series, Outrageous.

The Mitfords boasted a pedigree that ran directly back to the Norman Conquests, and the family's residences have names like Mitford Castle, Mitford Old Manor House, and Mitford Hall, all located in (you guessed it) Mitford, Northumberland. But though the lineage was certainly helpful in confirming their bona fides, the real reason the Mitfords were celebrities is that David Freeman-Mitford, 2nd Baron Redesdale, and his wife, Sydney Bowles, had seven children, six of whom were girls, and all of whom ran wild. At one time, their names were as well-known as the Kardashian-Jenner clan. A century later, only the eldest, author Nancy Mitford, is remembered for semi-autobiographical works, like The Pursuit of Love.

However, in their prime, all the Mitford siblings were recognized figures, and each had a nickname given to them by the press: