ALEXANDRA SHULMAN’S NOTEBOOK: The Devil Wears Prada 2 paints a picture of evil fashion magazine bosses… but as a former Vogue editor, I don’t recognise the portrait

The Devil Wears Prada 2 created a tsunami of journalists eager to share the horrors of their days as assistants to female magazine bosses.

Give me a break, I find myself saying, as I read about another person being threatened with being locked in a closet all weekend or undermined by a series of personal comments. Was it really like this?

Judging by numerous articles, female bosses were complete geeks: bullying was rampant and derogatory comments were part of everyday life.

I can’t say I recognized this from the lofty height of the editor’s chair, but perhaps there is some truth to it.

As a former Vogue boss, I admit to raising my hand and asking my assistants to go out and buy me a coffee or a couple of coffees. leggings From John Lewis.

And yes, I could even ask them to help organize my son’s birthday party. But I do not see these as attacks on human rights.

I could definitely be grumpy and reluctant to chat, and I undoubtedly made them feel unappreciated at times – which went with the territory.

However, in defense of the boss, I doubt many juniors starting out have any idea what this senior role is like.

Meryl Streep (pictured) stars as Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada; this character is often compared to former Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour.

The world of brightness is a fiery environment. Magazines are, to some extent, an act of alchemy; They turn the basic business of selling items into interesting visuals and stories.

It’s not exactly front-line work, but the pressure to be competitive and successful is huge.

Sometimes you have to be tough. You need things done efficiently and quickly, without taking the time to get started, and for a newbie trying to find their feet in the office, this can seem downright pointless.

However, it is noteworthy that none of these articles are about men’s magazine bosses, who can be equally autocratic.

Or actually about the men at the top of the tree, who run magazine companies, who are often condescending and harsh towards their young female employees.

Yobs exposing Keir’s empty vows

Last Sunday I was about to turn off the lights when I heard a major accident. It looked like a large painting had fallen off the wall, and I ran downstairs to check, a little worried that it might have been my husband David.

Luckily it wasn’t like that and after a quick look around we entered the street where we found our neighbor. He told us he saw a group of teenagers trying to kick in both his and our front doors.

We called the police, were given crime numbers and told the neighborhood support team would contact you (which has not happened yet).

This is just one of many troubling crimes on the rise in London, and it’s exactly the sort of thing William Bratton was talking about last month.

A former US police commissioner, he observed a huge drop in crime in New York in the 1990s by implementing ‘broken windows’ policing; This theory is that if you reduce petty crimes like vandalism, you reduce serious crimes.

Last year, Sir Keir Starmer announced a multimillion-pound initiative to tackle anti-social behavior, with the ‘recruitment’ of 3,000 more neighborhood police officers by this March. They would actively police the streets rather than get bogged down in office bureaucracy.

There’s little evidence of that on the streets around here, where a patrolling cop is as rare as a red squirrel.

No matter what time it is, I need wine to fly!

Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary’s proposal to ban alcohol from airports in the early hours of the morning is a terrible idea. As a terrified flyer,

I think it is important to have a glass of wine before boarding the plane, no matter what time it is. It takes away the fear and gets me on that plane.

Michael O’Leary (pictured) suggests early morning alcohol could be banned in airports

A customer needing shelf assistance

Recently I heard a young woman in a bookstore asking the man at the register if she could bring her green smoothie. Then he came up to me and asked if I was in a store or a library. Was he allowed to buy it off the shelves?

‘As you’ve probably noticed, I’ve never been to a bookstore,’ he said. I was stunned. I couldn’t imagine being such a person. But of course he’s one of the many people who, when they buy books, do so online.

How sad. Browsing through bookstores is one of life’s great pleasures. I hope he goes again.

Even Alexa needs all this to appear on the A-list

Model Alexa Chung, who looks great without any makeup, shared the details of getting ready for the Met Gala on Instagram.

The list of 17 different Dior products used on the face was a joyful read for those of us who wondered why we didn’t look red carpet ready when we only wore foundation, blush, eyeliner and lipstick.

That doesn’t even scratch the surface of the mountain of cosmetics required to achieve today’s A-list glow, even for Alexa.

Model Alexa Chung (pictured) shared a behind-the-scenes look while getting ready for the Met Gala on Instagram

It’s time to quit this extravagant habit

Marks & Spencer introduced its summer holiday collection with a catwalk show in Ibiza.

For years I have been railing against the environmental impact of this ridiculously extravagant habit of major fashion houses flying their editors to fashion shows around the world.

So I’m disappointed that M&S, which I see as the brand of common sense, is foolish enough to follow suit. And I have little doubt she’ll sell an extra leopard print one-piece as a result.

Happiness is a good cheese sandwich

Following a moving tribute to journalist Dominic Prince, his widow, food writer Rose Prince, served wine and the most delicious thick cheese and pickle sandwiches.

Being Rose, there was particularly good bread and cheddar – none of that supermarket nonsense – but still,

This confirmed my opinion that all you need is a sandwich. Much better than fussy couches.