None of our Royals’ chaotic personal arrangements have been so constitutionally cataclysmic as Edward VIII’s passion for Wallis Simpson. Britain’s flag-waving fervour during the Royal Wedding, the Jubilee and the birth of Prince George has provoked Josh Spear to respond with his account of this most dramatic (and messy) of Royal love stories. It is certainly a rich and edifying subject, though Spear’s treatment should more properly be termed theatre than opera. That Woman is cool, experimental, original and innovative – but the profusion of technological toys soon become the tail firmly wagging the dog, and, if you’ll forgive the extended metaphor, then biting the dog repeatedly.

Click here to read my full review on Bachtrack.

Wallis Simpson and Edward, Duke of Windsor, by Richard Avedon