Nangle Natters: High ‘brow

Dennis Healey. My grandpa. Father Christmas. When I was a kid a common thread for all of these men was the copious and creative hair that called itself ‘eyebrows’. Spitting Image ran with this and the curls were bountiful – of Healey, they didn’t know my grandad. Then there began a trend for trimming back a bit and the eyebrows that ran free in my youth appear to be disappearing fast.

Watching Billy Crystal in a film the other day his almost total absence of eyebrows reminded me of when I’d noticed a similar vacancy on the face of James Woods a few years back. And I’d been concerned as to how it might affect the way his face acted.

In Postcards From The Edge Meryl Streep draws Shirley MacLaine’s eyebrows on again after she’s been in a car accident. “The studio made me shave them off and they never grew back properly”, the older actress mutters quietly. And perhaps the tradition of over grooming has simply continued.

Semi permanently tattooed like a proud stroke of calligraphy

I’ve seen them pencil-thin and semi permanently tattooed like a proud stroke of calligraphy. My grandmother used to express admiration for my straight brows, whereas I’d wish for arched ones to appear overnight so I’d look like Marilyn Monroe. I genuinely didn’t understand what an eyebrow pencil was for until I was in my mid twenties and asked a pal I was on holiday with, as we got ready for a night out.

The thing is, even the absence of eyebrows is expressive. Eyebrows dress the face so well, they’re easily overlooked until their farewell makes a bigger statement than their gradual departure.

High brows in Hollywood used to imply a familiarity with the old scalpel and a telltale sign of a facelift. It moved from the classic Katherine Hepburn knowing arch, to a surprised cat-lady.

These days the trend seems to be for strong thick brows – with none of the telltale straggly characters I am so fond of, making them untidy. But like every fashion, I’m sure this too will change. Maybe in ten years time we’ll all have them drawn on our foreheads like Divine. Which sounds like fun too. And will leave Billy Crystal and James Woods already one step ahead of the rest of us.