• Flight attendants have revealed why they hate storing wheelchairs in cabins
• It comes after an unnamed person questioned why she was striking a pose
• Cabin crew said it was ‘annoying’

By Kelsi Karruli for Dailymail.Com

Published: 07:00 EST, March 7, 2024 | Updated: 07:02 EST, March 7, 2024

Kensington Palace has announced an exhibition designed to reveal the untold lives of the staff who worked in the royal palaces more than 300 years ago.

The London-based exhibition will uncover the ‘forgotten stories’ of those who often go unrecognised, despite their tireless work for the Royal Family.

Untold Lives: A Palace at Work opens March 14 and honors contributions from a wide range of people across sexual orientation, gender and ethnicity.

For the first time, the spotlight will also shine on a wide range of roles that were central to royal life, from female rat killers, a job complete with a rat-embroidered uniform, to the ‘Groom of the Stool’, who was responsible for the care of the frost in the toilet.

‘Untold Lives: A Palace at Work will shine a spotlight on the overlooked people from all walks of life who have worked tirelessly – often behind the scenes – to preserve, protect and promote the monarch and the royal palaces,’ reads Historic Royal Palaces. page.

“Now, for the first time, the lives and contributions of these forgotten figures will be explored in a new exhibition created by the independent charity Historic Royal Palaces,” the website said.

One of those ‘forgotten’ roles is the ‘Keeper of Ice and Snow’ – a physically exhausting task of cutting ice so that royals can enjoy cold drinks, icy deserts and refreshments all year round.

In particular, the work of Frances Talbot will be examined – a woman responsible for managing the royal icehouse at Hampton Court Palace in the 1770s.

Her contribution to the palace and its guests will be remembered with the first exhibition of an ice saw.

Visitors will also be informed about the invaluable contributions of employees from around the world.

The contribution of black and Asian royal servants who arrived at the palaces for reasons including colonization and religious wars will also be explored through portraits and historical artefacts.

For example, there will be portraits of Abdullah, a wild cat keeper from India, and Mehmet von Könsigstreu, keeper of King George I’s secret wallet.

Mehmet, who was of Turkish descent, and his wife Marie Hedwig are considered one of the first interracial married couples at the Hanoverian court.

A valued servant of King Goerge I, Mehmet was an influential figure with personal access to the monarch.

While his portrait can be seen on the King’s steps, Untold Lives will further highlight his contribution.

Turkish servant Ernst August Mustapha von Misitri, better known as Mustapha, in a portrait by Godfrey Kneller – on loan from the Ömer Koç collection, will also be exhibited in Britain for the first time.

It comes after documents from the National Archives revealed that advisers banned “coloured immigrants or foreigners” from working as anything other than domestic servants in the royal family in the late 1960s.

The headlines uncovered by the Guardian also showed how Buckingham Palace negotiated controversial clauses that exempted the Queen and her household from laws preventing racial and gender discrimination.

These exceptions came into effect in the mid-1970s, when the Labor government introduced sweeping racial and sexual equality laws to eradicate discrimination in post-imperial Britain.

In the late 1960s, the Labor government attempted to eradicate racism by expanding racial discrimination laws, which prohibited racism only in public places, to also prohibit discrimination in employment or in services such as housing.

But the Queen and her household were excluded from those laws, making it impossible for women and ethnic minorities who work for Buckingham Palace to complain to the courts if they believe they have been discriminated against.

Any complaints would have been referred to the Home Secretary instead of the court. It is understood that these clauses remain in force to this day.

Dozens of flight attendants have revealed the rudest things they’ve ever experienced from airline passengers.

US-based travel experts Rich Henderson and Andrew Kothlow often ask cabin crew members questions on their blog, titled Two guys in a planewhere they also regularly make recommendations.

Most recently, the duo offered employees the chance to share industry anecdotes by asking flight attendants, “What’s the rudest thing a passenger has ever said/done to you!?”

And they were soon inundated with disturbing stories from staff on board, who detailed incidents ranging from passengers throwing sandwiches at them to pulling their ponytails to attract attention.

On their blog, Rich and Andrew wrote: ‘Passengers have been caught doing some pretty loud things: punching flight attendants in the face, opening emergency exits and even storming the cockpit.

“But you’re probably thinking, “Okay, but how often does that kind of thing REALLY happen?”

“The answer is: this happens A LOT.”

The travel pros then shared a series of screenshots detailing “some of the rudest things passengers have said and done,” as told by cabin crew members themselves.

One revealed that she “had a grown man pull my ponytail to get my attention for snacks.”

Another explained that a passenger threw “a sandwich” at their face before telling her to “fuck off.”

Similarly, despite a staff member offering to check a customer’s bag for free, the disgruntled passenger threw his luggage at the worker after becoming frustrated because there was ‘no luggage space above him’.

Insults hurled included customers who labeled the clerks as “overpaid automatons,” “damn incompetent” and “traveling bums.”

In other shocking anecdotes, it was revealed that an angry customer even ‘spitted’ an airline employee and was eventually arrested.

Bizarrely, another revealed that someone “hissed” at them while “squeezing their love handle at the same time.”

And the shocking stories didn’t stop there.

One passenger allegedly ‘urined in the aft galley because the toilets were occupied’, while another passenger urinated ‘in the middle of the aisle’ while the toilets were locked during refuelling.

Others shamelessly handed over their used chewing gum and a ‘water bottle full of urine’ to the flight attendants, while another threw popcorn on the floor in protest as alcohol was no longer being served.

One cabin crew member was told the airline was ‘scraping the bottom of the barrel’ by employing them with a separate employee from Vietnam, who was urged to ‘improve’ their accent.

Another employee revealed that they were told: ‘You’re a beautiful woman but that won’t be the case in 10 years’, adding that the comment was ‘completely unprovoked’.

One worker was told to “get a real job,” while another was berated as the crew had to “leave the plane for a mechanical day.”

In one particularly shocking encounter, a passenger became very aggressive and said, “I hope your next plane crashes.”

But it’s not all doom and gloom for the cabin crew.

Elsewhere, other flight attendants have lightheartedly shared the worst pick-up lines they’ve received on board, such as: “Want to join the Mile High Club?”

When a new play called Backstairs Billy premieres at the Duke of York’s Theater in the West End, we can expect a wry look at the relationship between the Queen Mother and her faithful Page of the Backstairs, William Tallon.

The comedy, starring Dame Penelope Wilton and Luke Evans, is set at one point in the tumultuous year of 1979: Britain is in political turmoil, raging across the country, but at Clarence House the champagne flows unabated .

However, the play also evokes memories of a completely different world – an Edwardian world now lost in the mists of time.

Although the Queen Mother died less than 25 years ago, the style in which she presided seems as distant as the Victorian era into which she was born in 1900.

These days, King Charles won’t grab a quick sandwich at his desk, if he eats at all, but the Queen Mother maintained, until almost the end, a way of life that had been the norm when Queen Victoria was still around. the throne.

Every day was punctuated by meals, and not just simple meals, but full-fledged affairs.

Drinks would be served before lunch and there would be at least three courses, with wines and coffee to follow.

Butlers circled the table and glasses were regularly charged. Billy Tallon was a magician with a drink and clearly seemed to hate an empty glass.

The Queen Mother joked about him: “There’s no point in putting your hand over the glass, he’ll pour it through the fingers.”

Tallon saw it as his role to keep her laughing. He also took it upon himself to be master of ceremonies.

He made sure the Queen Mother’s guests were relaxed and happy before she arrived in the drawing room. Once he had them arranged the way he wanted, he would go find her.

Her arrival would be announced by a pair of Corgis entering the salon. She would come in, and at that point he faded into the background and she took over.

The guests were often fascinating figures from art, music or museums – John Betjeman, Frederick Ashton, Roy Strong, Ted Hughes.

The Queen Mother found them, plucked them from their world and entertained them royally. Her philosophy was that if you came into contact with her, you should be sent away feeling happy.

In the afternoon a hearty tea was served. The household was given tea and scones, but the female clerks, for a reason of etiquette imposed by Tallon, were refused the scones.

The dinner was also a splendid affair, with the Queen Mother having changed into evening dress.

When she went out to eat, she wore a hat; when she went out to dinner, she wore diamonds or pearl necklaces and a host of other jewelry.

If it were a beautiful summer day at Clarence House, the Queen Mother would suggest that the dining table be brought out into the garden and set up as if it were indoors.

When she made her annual visit to Walmer Castle, where she was Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, the silver was brought from London and in later years the dining table too – for a formal lunch and dinner.

Clarence House was just one of her homes. When she moved to Royal Lodge, you could see a procession of cars heading towards the gates of Windsor Great Park. A similar form of entertainment took place here.

Croquet was played on the lawn, and sometimes there was evening entertainment, with Edward Fox performing, Noël Coward at the piano, or John Betjeman reading poetry. For Royal Ascot week, the Queen Mother moved to Windsor Castle. A surprised guest saw rows of outfits brought in, and plentiful hat boxes, as the Queen Mother hadn’t quite decided what she would actually wear.

And then there was Scotland – Birkhall, with its fishing on the Dee, and the Castle of Mey, in Thurso, saved by her in 1952, right on the northernmost coast of Scotland, Orkney in the distance across a wild sea .

She was truly the last of the great Edwardian ladies.

And yet the Queen Mother was not as extravagant as she is portrayed. Aware that people liked a bit of pomp and circumstance, she preferred to arrive in a large car and wear her best clothes.

Yet she did not replace worn carpets, and her decorator, Oliver Ford, once saw her twisting a finger in a hole in the fabric of her chair, but she refused to replace it. When she died, the wiring at Royal Lodge had to be completely overhauled. Her answer was often, “I won’t be here much longer,” and yet of course she was.

Anyone who goes to the play gets a glimpse of this rarefied life. It’s entirely possible that they consider Billy Tallon to be her boyfriend.

No, he had known her for half a century. He could enter her rooms unannounced, she trusted him. But he never sat down in her presence.

• Backstairs Billy starring Dame Penelope Wilton and Luke Evans opens at the Duke of York’s Theater on October 27. The exhibition runs until January 27, 2024.

The 1950s and 1960s are often seen as the golden age of air travel. But is the reputation deserved?

Here, two former flight attendants who worked in the air in the mid-20th century reveal what they do and don’t miss in this chapter of aviation, as well as outlining where they feel today’s airlines go wrong.

Kathy Kompare and Stephanie Johnson each worked for more than two decades as cabin crew for US airline Trans World Airlines (TWA), which they say was known as the “epitome of sophistication” in the airline industry in its heyday.

In conversation with MailOnline Travel, they reveal that ‘service with a smile’ is one of the hallmarks of these so-called ‘glamor years’ that they miss in today’s air travel.

They also look back with pleasure on the ‘delicious food, full of caviar and all the trimmings’ and ‘Chateaubriand [a beef dish] and rack of lamb cooked to order’.

Kompare and Johnson similarly reminisce about how the crew were able to take advantage of limo transfers to the plane, were accommodated in five-star hotels with room service and “nice swimming pools” during layovers – and had their hair cut at the luxury Harrods department store while they in London.

There are plenty of vintage features airlines should bring back for contemporary cabin crew, they say, such as “quality” uniforms; ‘nice’ food services; ‘friendliness of service’; ‘smiling flight attendants’; more legroom (‘more comfort for passengers would calm everyone down’) and bigger seats.

Another habit they think should be revived? ‘Knowing and using names in first grade’, they reveal.

Describing where they think modern airlines are going wrong, they say one of the points is “not stressing to their frontline workers that they are still providing customer service in a professional and pleasant manner.”

The pair – who recently published a book about their time on the air, True stories of TWA flight attendants – explain: ‘Small acts of kindness are remembered by customers. And your passengers are your customers!’

When asked what modern-day flight attendants could learn from TWA flight attendants of yesteryear, Kompare and Johnson say, “Professional demeanor, manners, and basically how to have fun with your passengers.”

However, there are also certain traits in 21st century flight attendants that the authors admire. They say, ‘Southwest Airlines in the United States has a lot of comedians! Their PA announcements are smart.”

Which airlines are doing well? According to the authors, Singapore Airlines, Japan Airlines and Qatar Airways are at the top of the podium thanks to the quality of their customer service.

But when it comes to glamour, Kompare and Johnson believe Emirates trumps its rival airlines in this day and age.

Nostalgia aside, there’s plenty from the “glamor” years of aviation that Kompare and Johnson are happy about.

A major drawback was the “grooming rules” that flight attendants had to adhere to, including wearing a seatbelt, wearing only a certain shade of lipstick, and making sure fingernails were polished.

There were also strict rules that they had to adhere to when it came to the length and color of their hair.

Undergoing weight checks was another factor – Kompare and Johnson reveal they were expected to be ‘fit, not fat’, with this attitude leading to three flight attendants being sent home from TWA training for losing a quarter pound were heavier than the weight limit.

When it came to jewelry, there was an unbending limit on the number of rings flight attendants could wear and they were only allowed to wear one necklace.

And something they look back on with disbelief? It’s the fact that flight attendants were required to clean up passenger waste on silver trays, they reveal.

True Stories of TWA Flight Attendants: Memoirs and Memories from the Golden Age of Flight by Kathy Kompare and Stephanie Johnson and published by Telemachus Press is on sale now for £13.

While they may all be smiling in the sky, two flight attendants have revealed that there are many downsides to their jobs.

Aja Bailey, who spent more than eight years as a cabin crew for both commercial airlines and private jets, says some of the more difficult aspects of her job include missing every social event and altitude-induced health issues.

Meanwhile, Caroline Kneitz, who spent six years as an Emirates flight attendant, says difficult passengers were a constant stress.

Some of her least pleasant memories include seeing a drunk man beat his wife and a man she told to quit smoking blowing e-cigarette smoke in her face.

Take a flight down to learn more of their insights into what goes on behind the scenes as a flight attendant.

Health issues

Aja says constant exposure to high altitudes can lead to a variety of health issues, such as dehydration and exhaustion, so it’s “important to prioritize your health in this industry.”

She once had to get an IV because she was “super dehydrated.” The globetrotter explained: ‘Sometimes you’re so busy at work that you forget to drink water and eat. It’s not like a nine to five job where you get a lunch break.

“When you’re on back-to-back trips, sometimes there’s no break in between. Now I have to tell myself to stop, have a granola bar, have a protein bar… I’ll bring a protein shake and just something to nibble on on my travels.”

Difficult passengers

Caroline says that during her time as a flight attendant, she had some troublesome passengers, which made the job very stressful at times.

Some of her least pleasant experiences included a passenger blowing an e-cigarette in her face after being asked to stop smoking and once witnessing a drunk man beat his wife on a crowded flight.

Then she remembers many passengers complaining about the food, either “expecting restaurant quality meals or recipes that don’t even exist.”

She adds, “Once a boy came up to me and demanded a burger!”

The seatbelt sign was “another classic,” says Caroline, and “by far the highest bone of contention between the crew and their passengers.”

She explains: ‘A crew will have an argument with a passenger about this at least once per flight. For us, that very often meant a trip to the manager’s office, reports and possible implications for your file.’

Even families can be difficult in certain situations, says Caroline.

She told of one particular incident: “One family insisted on a stroller service that is only available at our home base.

“So after the plane landed and people disembarked, they were so insistent that they refused to get off the plane. In the end, security had to be called to remove the family.”

Dealing with people’s mess

Many passengers leave a lot of rubbish, the ladies say, but Caroline says the worst she had to deal with was human excrement.

Recalling the unpleasant incident, she said: “Our flight from Dhaka, Bangladesh, was delayed once because certain seats were soiled with feces and we didn’t have enough spare covers.

“It was like the whole interior needed a facelift after a four-hour flight.

“Because people leave a lot of mess on their seats, especially crumbs and leftover food, it’s very common to request a change of cover once passengers have disembarked. It can get pretty dirty.”

Heavy workload and multitasking

To be a flight attendant, both women say you have to be like a “Swiss army knife” because so many different jobs are expected of you.

Caroline added: “There’s a term we used as a nickname for air hostesses, ‘octo stew’, because of the idea that we would need octopus arms to get things done.”

Aja says that on private jets you have even more responsibilities because you often work alone.

She explains, “Private jet flight attendants are responsible for a wide variety of tasks, including cleaning, stocking and preparing meals, which can be very physically demanding.”

Medical emergencies

Another role that both women unexpectedly had to play during their time on the air was “medician.”

Both say they have witnessed many medical emergencies. Aja said the most stressful situation she encountered was when a passenger passed out and she had to perform CPR.

Meanwhile, Caroline said she witnessed many old people having heart attacks, but two of the most traumatic incidents she had to deal with were the death of a four-year-old on her way from Dubai to Munich due to a high fever and a woman who had a miscarried. from Australia to Dubai.

“She was in terrible pain for about 14 hours and was bleeding like crazy,” said Caroline.

One of the more bizarre medical emergencies she encountered was a woman who couldn’t get a ring off her finger because it was so swollen. As a result, they had to make an emergency landing to save her finger.

Missing major life events

Both women say their jobs have caused them to miss many social events, from birthdays to weddings to family gatherings.

Aja says this is something she has accepted, but it can be difficult at times.

She mused, “I’ve missed every major event throughout my career.

“I’ve missed weddings, I’ve missed thanksgivings, Christmas, lots and lots of birthdays. It just comes with the job and the territory.

“People usually fly on vacation and want to see their family. So flight attendants and pilots are typically at work during those big, special days.’

Low and irregular wages

As for pay, both Aja and Caroline say salaries can vary wildly.

According to jobside Indeed.com, the average base salary for a flight attendant in the US is $39,448.

When she started in the industry, Aja said her salary was “not livable for the year” and her training – which lasted two months – was unpaid.

Now, on private jets, the benefits are much better, but the services can be erratic, so she must have saved money in case no jobs come in.

Meanwhile, Caroline said her salary was much better because she worked for an airline in the Middle East.

She revealed: “Paying for Middle East airlines is good because it is tax free and the cost of living is fully covered. So you make about $3,000 a month, which isn’t bad.”

What do inflatable slides, fire extinguishers and heavy doors have in common?

They are all hallmarks of the flight attendant training school, as highlighted by a fleet of TikTokers.

Cabin crew from around the world have shared behind-the-scenes clips of their grueling training camps, with some aviation courses lasting as long as six weeks.

Toronto’s Kirsten Carriere took to social media to share one of the most difficult parts of her session, which was closing the very heavy cabin door.

In her video – which has been viewed over 7.5 million times – she can use all her body weight to pull the door shut. But her efforts have little impact.

In an effort to address any concerns viewers may have, she emphasizes in an accompanying caption that this is “not something I struggle with anymore if you’re wondering.”

The now-licensed Sunwing Airlines flight attendant goes on to explain in the comments section that the ‘flush lock was on… this was our first time trying the doors and we weren’t told anything about it, hence the struggle!

“Anyway, these doors are not easy to open, especially for the first time. They are heavy and there is a technique. You have to learn!’

In another clip, a montage records some of the other tasks she had to perform, including giving a safety briefing, whizzing down an emergency inflatable slide, and operating a fire extinguisher.

Many viewers asked her if flight attendant training was tough, to which she replied, “It was!” It was hard but it was doable.

“You get out what you put in and you really have to go for it to get it all. But worth it!’

Like Kirsten, TikToker @gracebaeb said closing the main cabin door was the hardest part of her training with American Airlines.

She also shared a video of her struggling to pull it forward and into place.

In a caption, Grace revealed that she finally managed to complete the task about five minutes later.

Many fellow flight attendants sympathized with her struggle.

One commenter wrote: ‘I’ve also struggled a lot with that door on the B737, but we’ll get through it. You got this!’

Another added, “They’re actually so much harder than they look!” The first time I opened one I was shocked!’

TikToker @millathengelwho also trained as a flight attendant for American Airlines, shared a video montage showing what her training entailed.

She revealed in an overlay that the training lasted a total of six weeks.

Some of the more intense moments shown in her clip see her with fellow interns in a life raft during a pool drill and later putting out a fire armed with a fire extinguisher and wearing a protective piece of headgear.

Milla captioned her video – which has been viewed more than 620,000 times – ‘best decision of my life!’ in an effort to encourage others to chase their “wings.”

Provide further insight into what cabin crew training entails, @Nicks.Travels reveals what he had to pack for his four-week course at an unnamed Florida airline.

He tells viewers, “We have to be in business casual wear… we can wear some kind of khaki chinos and black or khaki colors for our pants, not jeans… and then for our shirts we can wear anything that is like a full button -down in black or white or two-button polos.

“Because I train in Florida, I usually wear short sleeves.”

As for shoes, he invested in a pair of comfortable, plain black dress shoes.

Then Nick explains before daily practice that “it’s like class, like we’re going back to school and I have to have a binder and a notebook and a bunch of new pens and stuff.”

In a follow-up video, he explains that the flight attendant program involves a rigorous testing process that many people are unaware of.

He says, “It’s so stressful, but so rewarding at the same time.”

The avid traveler is still waiting for his results and will update his followers on TikTok in due course.