Memoir by former friend threatens to 'take down' Anna Wintour

The book is now set to be released on May 19. Photo / Getty Images

Every other year, Anna Wintour presides over the star-studded Met Gala on the first Monday in May.

The 2020 event would have been especially meaningful, marking the Metropolitan Museum of Art's 150th anniversary with the theme "About Time: Fashion and Duration", writes the New York Post.

But this year Wintour, Vogue editor-in-chief and Condé Nast artistic director, is making headlines for less celebratory reasons.

Last week, former Vogue editor André Leon Talley's memoir revealed that his long-time friendship with Wintour has left him with "huge emotional and psychological scars".

Talley, 70, said she helped his career grow, but is "not capable of human kindness".

"I wonder, when she goes home alone at night, is she miserable? Does she feel alone?"

But insiders say the feud is "vindicating" the countless people in the fashion industry who have felt snubbed by Wintour over the years.

Talley's book was originally meant to drop in May the same week as the Met Gala, but the pandemic pushed it to September. But with the excerpts creating so much interest, the book is set to be released on May 19 - terrible timing for Wintour.

"She can't be out and about to defend herself publicly. She loses a big platform (with the Met cancellation). It's her signature event and a major windfall for the magazine," the book's editor says.

Talley told Womenswear Daily that he sent Wintour a draft of his book, making a few changes which she then requested. But sources told the New York Post Wintour was extremely hurt by his personal attacks on her.

A Condé Nast insider says [she] "thinks he's lost his marbles and doesn't understand why he would do this".

A source close to Wintour said she was the only person capable to steer the fashion world through a crisis such as the one it faces with Covid-19.

"No one has rallied the fashion community as consistently as she has to create efforts to benefit our industry in times of need.

"She continues to be a force for good. More than ever in this moment, she is the person you want in charge."