Obesity might be the scourge of the modern age. But I 
wonder if anyone in the UK today can beat the record of Daniel Lambert who, in the 18th century, tipped the scales at a staggering 52 stone 11lbs! His waist measured an awesome 9ft 4 in.
Daniel maximised on his obesity by becoming a freak show and charging people to peek at his huge bodily discomfort.
I came across his story at the George Hotel in Stamford where I took my mother for lunch at the weekend (we both ate a healthy portion of sea bass).
Daniel’s larger than life portrait adorns the hallway with the story of his life. One wonders what happiness he had, and what understanding there was of obesity a couple of centuries ago, could he not have been helped at all?
I remember reading about him in the ‘Guiness Book Of Records’
He looks as if he enjoyed those hearty breakfasts of sides of mutton, kippers, sausages, bacon, sardines etc that Dr Johnson referred to.
Looks amazingly like Mr Creosote
A couple of centuries ago obesity was more a disease of the well to do, or at least the better off … who could afford ‘meat’
though I dare say even among those with smaller food budgets there would have been some with larger appetites who indulged in bread, beer and (thick) pastry pies – or whatever else they could lay their hands on
This post highlights the obsession the media, and thus the government, has with telling us how to be ‘acceptable to society’. The media rage on about how dreadful things are, how much better things were only X years ago, when X+1 years ago they were either worse or just the same and the only difference is that things were viewed differently. The sinister side-effect of this are incidents like that of the plump couple having their children threatened to be taken away from them if they don’t lose weight.
A totalitarian state based on FATuous moralising.
Pip, I agree with your sentiments. You only have to remember Hogarth’s Britian, the drunkenness and promiscuity that was rife then. Times haven’t changed, though we obviously try to live healthier lives today. I also think we analyse too much.
Yes, it just goes to show our changing perceptions. I agree with Philipa, too.