A nippy was a waitress who worked in the J. Lyons & Co

tea shop A teahouse or tearoom (also tea room) is an establishment which primarily serves tea and other light refreshments. A tea room may be a room set aside in a hotel, especially for serving afternoon tea, or may be an establishment that only serve ...

s and cafés in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. Beginning in the late 19th century, a J. Lyons waitress was called a "Gladys". From 1926, because the waitresses nipped (moved quickly) around the tea shops, the term "Nippy" came into use. Nippies wore a distinctive maid-like uniform with a matching hat.

Image and reality

By the 1920s it was already long established in the advertising world that attractive female models could sell products, and the tea business of J. Lyons & Co was no exception. Nippies appeared in all manner of advertising, on product packages, and on promotional items. The Nippy soon became a national icon. Unlike other endorsements of the day, which often took the form of popular celebrities or cartoon characters, a Nippy was accessible and close to home. A Nippy was someone who could be seen and interacted with every day, and perhaps this was part of the appeal of the concept. J. Lyons was very careful to maintain the Nippy image as wholesome and proper — strict cleanliness standards applied for Nippy uniforms, and before World War II J. Lyons would not hire married women as Nippies. So popular was the image that miniature Nippy outfits were popular for children dressing up for special events such as

fetes ''Nocturnes'', L 98 (also known as ''Trois Nocturnes'' or Three Nocturnes) is an Impressionist orchestral composition in three movements by the French composer Claude Debussy, who wrote it between 1892 and 1899. It is based on poems from ''Poèm ...

Typical pay and conditions

In the mid-1930s, for example in

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

, a Nippy worked 54 hours per week (11.45 a.m. to 11.45 p.m.), for 26 shillings per week ( £1.30), with 2/6d (two shillings and sixpence, £0.125) extra for working at weekends. She had to pay for the laundering of her uniform, which was made of

bombazine Bombazine, or bombasine, is a fabric originally made of silk or silk and wool, and more recently also made of cotton and wool or of wool alone. Quality bombazine has a silk warp and a worsted weft. It is twilled or corded and used for dress ...

-type material with red buttons from the neck downwards.

In popular culture

In an episode of the sitcom ''

Are You Being Served? ''Are You Being Served?'' is a British television sitcom that was broadcast from 1972 to 1985. It was created and written by David Croft (TV producer), David Croft and Jeremy Lloyd. Croft also served as executive producer and television directo ...

'' entitled "The Junior", the character Mrs. Slocombe was embarrassed that she used to work as a Nippy. In

Dorothy Sayers Dorothy Leigh Sayers ( ; 13 June 1893 – 17 December 1957) was an English crime novelist, playwright, translator and critic. Born in Oxford, Sayers was brought up in rural East Anglia and educated at Godolphin School in Salisbury and Somervi ...

's 1927 mystery novel ''Unnatural Death'', when a young woman's body is found the ''Daily Yell'' newspaper prints the story under the headline "'Nippy' Found Dead in

Epping Forest Epping Forest is a area of ancient woodland, and other established habitats, which straddles the border between Greater London and Essex. The main body of the forest stretches from Epping in the north, to Chingford on the edge of the Lond ...

''Nippy'', the musical

In 1930, the Nippy concept was adapted into a hit musical comedy called ''Nippy'', produced at the

Golders Green Hippodrome The Golders Green Hippodrome was built in 1913 by Bertie Crewe as a 3,000-seat music hall, to serve North London and the new London Underground Northern line expansion into Golders Green in the London Borough of Barnet, London, England. Tak ...

. Popular actress

Binnie Hale Beatrice "Binnie" Mary Hale-Monro (22 May 1899 – 10 January 1984) was an English actress, singer and dancer. She was one of the most successful musical theatre stars in London in the 1920s and 1930s, able to sing leading roles in operetta ...

played the nippy in question. The book was written by

Arthur Wimperis Arthur Harold Wimperis (3 December 1874 – 14 October 1953) was an English playwright, lyricist and screenwriter, who contributed lyrics and libretti to popular Edwardian musical comedies written for the stage. But, with the advent of talking f ...

and Austin Melford,

Billy Mayerl William Joseph Mayerl (31 May 1902 – 25 March 1959) was an English pianist and composer who built a career in music hall and musical theatre and became an acknowledged master of light music. Best known for his syncopated novelty piano solos ...

wrote the music, and Wimperis and

Frank Eyton Frank Eyton (30 August 1894 – 11 November 1962) was an English popular music lyricist best known for co-writing the lyrics of Johnny Green's " Body and Soul" (1930) with Edward Heyman and Robert Sour. Frank Eyton biographyat Allmusic - retrieve ...

wrote the lyrics.ReadingProgrammes 1927-1933
/ref> Several records were released with songs from the musical, such as the title song and the lively "The Toy Town Party" sung in the show by Hale. Another of Mayerl's attractive melodies, but less known from the show was "It Must Be You".

References

Tea houses of the United Kingdom Food services occupations Gendered occupations