Lady Penelope Creighton Ward

Background

The character was both voiced by and modelled on Sylvia Anderson, the series co-creator. After several of her test sculptures were rejected, AP Films puppet designer Mary Turner used Anderson as the template (a decision of which Anderson was not immediately apprised). Interviewed by the Daily Mirror in 1968, Turner commented: "we wanted a glamorous blonde and [Anderson] was the obvious choice." Turner's original inspiration had been the appearance of a model discovered in the pages of Vogue.

Lady Penelope's attire was inspired by contemporary Carnaby Street and Parisian fashions, with Vogue and Harper's magazines used frequently as points of reference. Silks, leathers and furs were supplied by London department stores such as Liberty and Dickins & Jones.

Character biography

Born on 24 December 2039, Lady Penelope is the 26-year-old daughter of aristocrat Lord Hugh Creighton-Ward and his wife, Amelia. The early years of her life were spent at Creighton-Ward Mansion. Later, her father was requested by the government to travel to India to organise a tea-growing community. The Indian climate did not agree with Penelope, so she returned without her parents to England, where she was put into the care of a governess, Miss Pemberton, with whom she quickly bonded. At the age of eleven, Penelope was sent to the prestigious Roedean School. She excelled in many subjects and became very popular among her peers; she was later elected head girl. Upon leaving Roedean, Penelope attended a finishing school in Switzerland. Here, she became a skilled skier and linguist, being able to speak fluent French, German and Italian.

On the outside, Lady Penelope is just another member of the British high society, as well as a fashion icon. However, after completing her education in Buckinghamshire, she rejected the aristocracy's endless round of social engagements and became a secret agent. It was while working as the chief operative of the Federal Agents Bureau (FAB) that Penelope first met Jeff Tracy, the founder of International Rescue, and immediately accepted his invitation to become IR's field agent in London. In the episode "Vault of Death" it is shown she is not a very good driver.

Penelope is stylish and fashionable in every aspect of her life. She is a world-renowned supermodel and celebrity and has appeared on the cover of Chic magazine. Her clothes are specially created for her by top fashion designers such as Elaine Wickfern and François Lemaire, who named a revolutionary new fabric "Penelon" after her. She wears an exclusive perfume called "Soupçon de Péril", mixed for her by Jacques Verre. Whenever Penelope is in Paris, she always drinks Pernod. She takes tea almost religiously and can communicate with International Rescue via her Regency teapot.

Retinue

Lady Penelope's butler and chauffeur is Aloysius "Nosey" Parker. Born on 30 May 2013, he is descended from a long line of Cockney retainers who have served the British aristocracy for centuries. However, finding it difficult to obtain a stable job, Parker fell in with the criminals of the London underworld. He secured a reputation as the world's foremost safe-cracker and cat-burglar, which resulted in his serving a sentence at Parkmoor Scrubs Prison. Following his release, he quickly returned to his criminal ways, and was discovered by Penelope while attempting to crack the safe of an oil tycoon. Penelope had learned of Parker's talents and offered him a partnership in her spy work for International Rescue. He is now a loyal and indispensable assistant to Penelope and IR. "Give or Take a Million" is the only episode of the series in which Penelope appears without Parker.

Lilian (or Lil, as she is known by Parker) is Penelope's cook. She has a sizeable repertoire of dishes, much to Parker's disgust. Perce is the gardener for the 2,000-acre (8.1 km²) Creighton-Ward estate and a friend of Parker.

Vehicles and property

Lady Penelope owns a six-wheeled Rolls-Royce called FAB 1, painted in her trademark shade of pink. The vehicle is driven by Parker. FAB 1 is equipped with various features to assist Penelope's field operative work, such as machine guns, bulletproof glass, water skis for sea excursions and radar-assisted steering. Penelope also owns a private yacht named FAB 2, a champion racehorse named FAB 3, and Seabird, a 40-foot (12 m) cruise ship. Several Seabirds have been constructed, since they are frequently destroyed in use.

The seat of the Creighton-Ward dynasty is Creighton-Ward Mansion, an 18th-century stately home in Foxleyheath, Kent. The first mansion was built on the site of a Norman castle by the first Lord Creighton-Ward after he was knighted by Elizabeth I, who was a regular visitor. The current mansion was built by Lord Cuthbert Creighton-Ward in 1730 after he burned down the previous house during a gunpowder experiment. Lord Cuthbert asked architect Colen Campbell to design the iconic Palladian edifice, which has been designated a Grade I listed building by the World Heritage Organisation. When Penelope became a secret agent, she renovated the historic building to better suit her double lifestyle by installing a satellite antenna, a number of two-way video communication consoles for contacting International Rescue, and a safe with state-of-the-art alarm system and CCTV. A forensic laboratory was built on the site of old servants' quarters. An underground river with a boat runs beneath the estate, and if Penelope thinks that Creighton-Ward Mansion is under surveillance or that she is in danger, she can meet Parker at a nearby village without anyone knowing.

Penelope also owns Bonga Bonga, a sheep station in the Australian outback housing 200,007 sheep. The property was acquired by Bertie "Buster" Creighton-Ward. The open-plan lounge, with its modern fabrics and simple geometric designs, is in sharp contrast to the detail of Creighton-Ward Mansion.

Penelon

"Penelon" was created by fashion designer François Lemaire, who named it in honour of his favourite model, Lady Penelope. This fabric has extraordinary properties: Penelon can be converted into any costume design, squeezed into a space the size of a match box and be fashioned to resemble any other material. The fabric is sought after by Lemaire's rivals, and after Penelope discovers that they have bugged his office, she suggests that the unveiling of Lemaire's new all-Penelon collection be held on board the aircraft Skythrust, designed by International Rescue's engineer, Brains.

Reception

Sylvia Anderson argues that the character quickly rose in prominence following her early supporting roles: "All the heroines in our previous series had been perfect foils to the action-man heroes, but now, with Lady Penelope, we had an action girl who was a personality in her own right." She remembers writing Penelope so as to convey "not only the daring and panache of a secret agent, but also the poise of a cool and beautiful aristocrat".

When Thunderbirds was repeated on British television in the early 2000s, the character of Penelope was criticised for smoking, wearing furs and neglecting to wear a seat belt while being driven in FAB 1. Anderson comments that the smoking habit and fur-wearing especially are likely to be viewed by modern audiences as politically incorrect, stating that they are two of several "stereotyped prejudices" in Thunderbirds. She adds: "We were limited by the age in which we lived, and although we prided ourselves on setting new boundaries, I suppose we were too obsessed with the Space Age, nuclear power and their consequences to be more aware of green and other, more down-to-earth issues."

Among the puppet cast of Thunderbirds, John Peel, writer of Thunderbirds, Stingray, Captain Scarlet: The Authorised Programme Guide, singles out Penelope for particular praise. He refers to her as the "one character in the show who positively shone". Peel approves the conception of the character as a secret agent who is obliged to play the role of a "bored aristocrat", identifying parallels with male literary characters such as James Bond, Zorro and the Scarlet Pimpernel.

Other appearances

Lady Penelope, again voiced by Sylvia Anderson, appeared to the character of Edina Monsoon in a dream sequence in "Hospital", a 1994 episode of the sitcom Absolutely Fabulous.

Also in 1994, Virgin Atlantic Airways named their first Boeing 747-400 after Lady Penelope; the aircraft's registration, inspired by FAB 1, was G-VFAB. The aircraft was retired in September 2015. In 2005, Virgin Trains named locomotive 57307 of their Class 57 fleet after Lady Penelope.