ALEXANDRA SHULMAN’S NOTEBOOK: Is there a single thing Gen Z aren’t scared of?

I despair of the younger generation who are hesitant to shake hands, look someone in the eye, answer the doorbell or answer a call on a cell phone when they don’t know the number, according to a study published last week. This is so crazy!

No wonder young people find life so difficult. Gen Z teens and twenty-somethings may view the physical contact of a handshake as intrusive, but it’s much easier than other ways to greet people. And it is quite impossible to be wrong.

My long career as a Vogue editor has taught me how valuable a handshake is. When a stranger came into my office for a meeting, I would always shake hands before seating us. If I were standing in line at a glitzy gala, I would hold the hand of everyone presented to me, relieved that I didn’t have to decide whether that person deserved a kiss.

When I recently met a young woman for the first time to take her on a personal shopping trip, the handshake was a friendly but not-so-intimate icebreaker. After a successful afternoon together, we hugged and said goodbye.

Unlike Meghan, I’m not a hugger by nature, and I pull back slightly when someone I don’t know well puts their arms around me. When it comes to kisses, single or double and how do you avoid bumping noses? Is it really appropriate to say hello?

The handshake offers the right degree of distanced intimacy. And that’s a good measure of a person’s character. A limp handshake is probably one of the most unattractive gestures imaginable and is indicative of a complete lack of interest or actual dislike of contact. At the other end of the spectrum, a bone-crunching jam always strikes me as a signal of some kind of weird power grab. There’s not much you can do about it right now, but it definitely affects my opinion of that person when it comes to future relationships.

Perhaps we should include social interactions in secondary school PSHE lessons. They can learn to shake hands, answer the phone, and perhaps offer someone a drink while doing so.

I found Congo’s lost masterpiece

In the late 1950s, my father, Milton Shulman, then a famous critic for The London Evening Standard, produced an important program for Granada Television.

It was about drawings of a chimpanzee named Kongo. (Be careful, this wasn’t some random quirk!)

My father’s collaborator was Desmond Morris, the famous zoologist and author of The Naked Ape, who died last week at the age of 98. Morris had encouraged Congo to draw and paint during the years when he presented a children’s show at London Zoo. Chimpanzee completed approximately 300 to 400 paintings and even had his own exhibition at the ICA.

The Granada program set out to examine the quality of artwork in the Congo and compare it to human abstract art. Some of Kongo’s works have found their way into the collections of those who know his work, including Picasso and Miro, and were even included in an auction at Bonhams in 2005.

While going through the closets at our parents’ house the other day, we came across a folder containing original Congo drawings that we suspected were long lost. We now wonder optimistically whether we are sitting on a treasure trove of chimpanzee work.

Dame with a deadly cat move

Dame Emily Thornberry’s performance last week when questioning sacked civil servant Sir Olly Robbins about Mandelson was a great example of revenge served cold.

As chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, here was his opportunity to drip venom with a sweet voice that mixed exaggerated concern with sharp disgust. His target was Sir Keir, who despite being Shadow Attorney-General for three years, surprisingly removed him from his ministerial team when Labor came to power.

Dame Emily Thornberry’s (pictured) performance last week when questioning sacked civil servant Sir Olly Robbins about Mandelson was a great example of revenge served cold

I have plenty of time for Dame Emily, who is generally very sensible, but now I’ve seen her in action.

I also couldn’t help but notice her perfect eye makeup, complete with a cat flick worthy of former Vogue writer-turned-makeup mogul Charlotte Tilbury.

Go girl! Raunchy Madge still has it

Dame Emily, 65, is two years younger than Madonna, who is also adept at eyeliner but has a very different look. Depending on where we are in the calendar, my attitude towards the Queen of Pop, who is the same age as me, changes.

I often grumble about why she can’t just let it age naturally, but when I watched her perform Like A Prayer on stage with Sabrina Carpenter at the Coachella festival last week, I literally said, ‘C’mon girl!’ I said. admiration.

There she was, wearing knee-high boots, pink stockings and a lilac satin corset she had first worn 20 years ago, dancing next to a singer half her age. It didn’t look too ridiculous, but it was utterly gorgeous and inspiring.

Madonna with Sabrina Carpenter at Coachella. The Queen of Pop prancing around next to a singer less than half her age didn’t look ridiculous at all, but she looked utterly gorgeous and inspiring

Who wants the perfect big day?

I do It’s the beginning of the wedding season. Comedian Jack Whitehall and his bride Roxy Horner went wild in the Cotswolds last weekend, singer Dua Lipa is said to be planning a huge bash in Sicily… and I married my long-term boyfriend David last Tuesday.

Compared to others, and frankly most marriage ceremonies, ours was as simple as a wedding. We had the smallest room (only 12 seats) at the Chelsea Register Office in London, no rings and a 24 hour honeymoon. It was perfect.

Probably one of the best elements was keeping it so small. The 12 guest limit allowed for our closest family and a few friends to attend. Anything bigger would cause arguments over who to invite and who to leave out; Decisions I knew would make me regret saying yes in the first place.

By eliminating the stress of the guest list, we were able to immerse ourselves in the meeting and enjoy every second of the day.