The grandma who has become an accidental fashion icon

Luxury Media Zambia

A grandmother in rural Zambia has become an accidental style icon and internet sensation - after agreeing to play dress-up and swapping outfits with her fashionista granddaughter. Margret Chola, who is in her mid-80s, is known to the world as "Legendary Glamma" - and adored by 225,000 Instagram followers for her striking and playful fashion photographs. "I feel different, I feel new and alive in these clothes, in a way that I’ve never felt before," Ms Chola tells the BBC. "I feel like I can conquer the world!" The fortnightly Granny Series was created in 2023 by her granddaughter Diana Kaumba, a stylist who is based in New York City.

Luxury Media Zambia "Legendary Glamma" in Zambia's national colours

She came up with the idea when she was visiting Zambia to mark the second anniversary of the death of her father - the person she says inspired her passion for fashion because he always dressed well. During that visit Ms Kaumba had not worn all her carefully curated outfits, so she asked her grandmother - or "Mbuya" in the Bemba language - if she wanted to try them on. "I wasn’t doing anything at the time, so I just said: 'OK. If that’s what you want to do let’s do it - why not?'" Ms Chola said. "You will miss me when I die and at least this way you will be remembering me."

Luxury Media Zambia Fashion has created a bond between grandmother and granddaughter

Ms Kaumba wore Mbuya’s top and "chitenge" - a piece of patterned cloth wrapped around the waist. And Mbuya’s first outfit was a silver pantsuit. "I thought it would be nice to dress up Mbuya in high fashion and then take photographs of her in her natural habitat," Ms Kaumba tells the BBC. That natural habitat is a farm in the village of 10 Miles, just north of the Zambian capital, Lusaka. Most often Ms Chola is photographed in all her glamour outside - often sitting on an elegant wooden chair or lounging on a leather sofa.

Luxury Media Zambia Could sofa surfing get more glamourous?

In the background are exposed brick buildings with corrugated iron roofs, ploughed fields, mango trees and maize crops. "I was so nervous when I posted that first photo. I left my phone for 10 minutes and in those 10 minutes there were 1,000 likes," Ms Kaumba says. "My mind was blown. The comments were flying in and people were asking for more." It was in April 2024 that the Granny Series really took off - after Ms Kaumba posted a series of photos of her grandmother in a red Adidas dress, several chunky, golden necklaces and a glittering jewelled crown. "It surprised me to hear that so many people around the world love me," Ms Chola says - who does not know her exact age because she does not have a birth certificate.

Luxury Media Zambia Margret Chola, who is not entirely sure of her age, is happy to try funky styles

"I didn’t know I could make such an impact at this age." Ms Chola poses in clothes that are a mix of vibrant colours, textures and styles. From a green American football jersey, combined with a layered frilly red dress styled as a skirt - in the colours of the Zambian flag to pay homage to 60 years of independence. To a blue, black and green sequined top, complete with a golden snake necklace and bracelet.

And Mbuya’s personal favourite - jeans, a graphic T-shirt with her image on the front and a blonde wig. "I had never worn jeans or a wig before - so I was happy, and I was dancing." Ms Kaumba, who has been a stylist since 2012, says that her grandma has "courage, grace - and nails every look". All the looks reflect her maximalist-chic aesthetic - which celebrates the joy of excess, eclectic combinations, the big and the bold, and clashing patterns and colours. At the heart of it all are eye-catching accessories - bold sunglasses, oversized hats, necklaces, bracelets, pendants, rings, gloves, bags, blonde wigs, crowns. That influence has come directly from her grandmother, who has "always been a lover of pearls and bangles". In one particularly playful scene called GOAT - short for greatest of all time - Ms Chola appears with a goat - that is decked out in Mbuya’s beloved pearls.

Luxury Media Zambia A nanny nod to Margret Chola's love of pearls

Other accessories also reflect Chola’s personality and story. In some shots Mbuya is holding the beloved radio that she carries around all day and takes to bed with her. Or she’s clutching an "ibende" - a long wooden stick that over the years she has used to pound millet or cassava or maize. She is smoking a pipe or holding a metal cup full of tea, and hanging off the edge of the chair arm is an "mbaula" or charcoal brazier that Zambians often use for cooking - especially now that the country is plagued by severe power cuts.

Kooma Jnr The "ibende" represents the hard labour of life in rural Zambia

Ms Kaumba hopes that the Granny Series will highlight that older people still have a lot to offer - and making memories together is an important way to "leave footprints for the next generation". "Do not write them off, love them just the same till the end because remember we will be just like them one day." As a result of Mbuya’s photo shoots, Ms Kaumba’s been hired by four granddaughters to style their grandmothers - aged between 70 and 96.

Luxury Media Zambia The more pearl bling the better

Ms Chola hopes that the Granny Series will inspire people "to live their lives and not worry about being judged by society". She urges people to "always forgive yourself for whatever mistakes you made. You can never change your past - but you can change your future". The photo shoots have brought granddaughter and grandmother closer - and through their special bond Ms Kaumba has learnt so much more about her Mbuya’s often difficult life.

Luxury Media Zambia Margret Chola had to leave school at the age of 12 or 12

Ms Chola was raised by her grandparents, went to school until she was 12 or 13 and then, because of economic reasons, was forced to marry a man in his 30s. She had three children, ended up drinking heavily and eventually escaped the marriage.

Luxury Media Zambia The charcoal brazier is something all Zambians will recognise these days because of the power cuts plaguing the country at the moment

That trauma still haunts her - but her unexpected global fame has given her a new lease on life. "I’m now able to wake up with a purpose knowing that people around the world love to see me," Chola says. Penny Dale is a freelance journalist, podcast and documentary-maker based in London.

Kooma Jnr "Legendary Glamma" has found that age is no barrier to style or garnering Instagram likes

More BBC stories on Zambia:

Getty Images/BBC

Amsterdam violence exposes tensions in Dutch society: 'We cannot be made into enemies'

EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock Tensions remain high in Amsterdam after last week's violence

A fragile calm hangs over the Dutch capital, still reeling from the unrest that erupted a week ago when Israeli football fans came under attack in the centre of Amsterdam. City officials described the violence as a "toxic combination of antisemitism, hooliganism, and anger” over the war in Gaza, Israel and elsewhere in the Middle East. As the streets are cleared of Maccabi Ultras stickers and tensions linger, there is concern about the damage done to relations between Amsterdam’s Jewish and Muslim communities. The tensions have spilled over into Dutch politics too. The Netherlands' coalition government has been left hanging by a thread after a Moroccan-born junior minister resigned because of language used by coalition colleagues. Amsterdam had already seen protests and tensions because of the war in the Middle East, and local Rabbi Lody van de Kamp believes it was like a tinderbox: "If you put 2,000 [Israeli] football supporters on to the streets, you know you are in trouble.”

VLN Nieuws/ANP/AFP Police were out in force on 8 November but were unable to prevent a series of violent attacks

Maccabi Tel Aviv fans had arrived in the city for a Europa League match against Ajax and footage was widely shared the night before showing a group of fans climbing up a wall to tear down and burn a Palestinian flag. An Amsterdam council report said taxis were also attacked and vandalised. Emine Uğur, a well-known columnist in the Muslim community, says underlying tensions surrounding the war in Gaza meant that the ensuing violence was "a long time coming". She speaks of a lack of acknowledgement of the pain felt by communities affected by a conflict that had left many without an outlet for their grief and frustration. The flag-burning incident as well as anti-Arab chants were seen as a deliberate provocation. But then messages calling for retaliation appeared on social media, some using chilling terms such as "Jew hunt". On the evening of the match, a pro-Palestinian protest was moved away from the Johan Cruyff arena, but it was in the hours afterwards that the violence erupted. The 12-page report by Amsterdam’s authorities describes some Maccabi supporters “committing acts of vandalism” in the centre. Then it highlights “small groups of rioters… engaged in violent hit-and-run actions targeting Israeli supporters and nightlife crowd” in locations across the city centre. They moved “on foot, by scooter, or car… committing severe assaults”. The mayor of Amsterdam, Femke Halsema, described the incidents as deeply alarming, and noted for some they were a reminder of historical pogroms against Jews. For a few hours, swathes of the Jewish community in a European capital felt as though they were under siege. These events coincided with the anniversary of the Nazi pogroms on Jews in 1938, also known as Kristallnacht. That only intensified the fears of Amsterdam's Jewish community, although local imams and other members of the Muslim community took part in the commemorations. Senior members, including Esther Voet, editor of the Dutch Jewish Weekly, organised emergency shelters and coordinated rescue efforts for those fearing for their lives.

Esther Voet Esther Voet welcomed fans into her home to protect them from attack. Their faces are blurred to hide their identities

The Dutch government has responded by allocating €4.5m (£3.6m) to combat antisemitism and support victims. Justice Minister David van Weel emphasised that Jewish people must feel safe in their own country and promised to deal severely with perpetrators. However, the chairman of the Central Jewish Committee, Chanan Hertzberger, warned that these measures alone might not suffice. He blamed in part an atmosphere where “antisemitic rhetoric has gone unchecked since 7 October", adding: "Our history teaches us that when people say they want to kill you, they mean it, and they will try." The violence and its aftermath have also exposed political rifts, and some of the language from politicians has shocked the Netherlands’ Moroccan community. Geert Wilders, whose far-right Freedom Party is the biggest of the four parties that make up the Dutch coalition government, has called for the deportation of dual nationals guilty of antisemitism. Both he and coalition partner Caroline van der Plas, among others, have pointed the finger at young people of Moroccan or North African descent.

One Dutch-Moroccan commentator, Hassnae Bouazza, complained that her community had for years been accused of not being integrated, and was now being threatened with having their Dutch nationality taken away. Nadia Bouras, a Dutch historian of Moroccan descent, told Amsterdam’s Het Parool newspaper that using the term “integration” for people who had already lived in the Netherlands for four generations was like “holding them hostage”. “You are holding them in a constant state of being foreign, even though they are not.” The junior minister for benefits, Nora Achahbar, who was born in Morocco but grew up in the Netherlands, said on Friday she was standing down from the government because of racist language she had heard during a cabinet meeting on Monday, three days after the violence in Amsterdam. She may not be the last.

REMKO DE WAAL/EPA-EFE Junior minister Nora Achahbar decided to resign after she was alarmed by what she called racist language by coalition colleagues

Rabbi van de Kamp has told the BBC he is concerned that antisemitism is being politicised to further Islamophobic agendas. He warns against repeating the exclusionary attitudes reminiscent of the 1930s, cautioning that such rhetoric not only endangers Jewish communities but deepens suspicions within society: "We must show that we cannot be made into enemies.” The impact on Amsterdam's Muslim and Jewish residents is profound. Many Jews have removed mezuzahs - the small Torah scrolls - from their doorposts, or they have covered them with duct tape out of fear of reprisal. Esther Voet sees the emotional toll on her community: "It’s an exaggeration to say that the Netherlands now is like the 1930s, but we must pay attention and speak out when we see something that’s not right." Muslims, meanwhile, argue they are being blamed for the actions of a small minority, before the perpetrators have even been identified. Columnist Emine Uğur has herself faced increased threats as a vocal Muslim woman: "People feel emboldened." She fears for her son's future in a polarised society where the lines of division seem to be hardening.

ROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN/EPA-EFE Pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered in Amsterdam in the days after the violence, despite a ban on protests

War on all sides: Inside the only Lebanese border town where residents have stayed

AFP

Since the start of the Israel-Hezbollah war, hundreds of thousands of Lebanese have fled their homes because of the fighting. But the residents of one town right in the combat zone have decided to stay. Rmeish, just 2km (1.2 miles) from the border, is home to 7,000 Maronite Christians - and surrounded by firing on all sides. “There’s lots of damage. Maybe 90% of houses have damage of some kind, glass smashed and cracks in the walls. I don’t know what’s going to happen when winter comes,” says Jiries al-Alam, a farmer who also works as an undertaker with the town’s church. “We are determined to stay but hardly anyone sleeps at night because of the air strikes. Thankfully, there’s been no deaths among the residents so far, but 200 of my cattle died from the military flares,” he adds.

George al-Ameel Rmeish is the only Lebanese border town that has not been directly ordered to evacuate by the Israeli military

A day after Hamas launched its unprecedented attack on southern Israel from Gaza on 7 October 2023, its Lebanese ally Hezbollah began launching rockets into northern Israel, which in turn, started to strike Lebanon. The residents of Rmeish began seeing rockets flying in both directions above them. “Lots of families raised white flags on their homes and cars to say that they are peaceful and have no link to what is happening,” says Father George al-Ameel, 44, a priest and teacher in the town. “We want to stay in our homes and don’t want any war in our town.”

George al-Ameel Father George al-Ameel says the town is peaceful and that residents want to stay

After Israel began its ground invasion of Lebanon on 1 October this year, the war drew closer to Rmeish, with heavy fighting taking place in two villages both less than 1.6km away. “We were staying in our house for months, then the air strikes started getting very close and suddenly our house was hit, we were forced to leave in the middle of the night,” says Rasha Makhbour, 38. “People’s work has stopped and no-one goes out, our children’s school is shut, everything has changed.” Rasha’s family of six moved to another house in the centre of town after theirs became uninhabitable. “We believe the rockets that hit our home came from the south, not from our country,” she says. The Israel Defense Forces told the BBC that there were “no known IDF strikes” on Rmeish during the dates Rasha Makhbour’s house was damaged, claiming it was a “failed launch by Hezbollah”.

Rasha Makhbour The roof of Rasha Makhbour's home was hit and damaged

Israel has issued a general evacuation order for the south of Lebanon since its ground invasion began. The UN says over 640,000 people have been displaced from there as they flee the fighting. The Israeli government says that its military goals in southern Lebanon are to push back Hezbollah and return 60,000 Israelis displaced from its northern border towns to their homes.

On the border with Israel, Rmeish is the only Lebanese town that has not been directly ordered to leave. While neither side has directly threatened the residents of Rmeish during the conflict, they have had their loyalty to Lebanon questioned. “There’s been voices under the table spreading rumours that our presence here is evidence of our collaboration with Israel, the enemy. We completely reject this,” says Father al-Ameel. It is a message reiterated by Rmeish’s mayor, Milad al-Alam. “We’ve had no guarantees of safety from any side,” he says. “Our town is peaceful, and our only cause is to stay for our identity and our country.”

Jiries al-Alam Jiries al-Alam says essential supplies are running out in Rmeish

'We've had more visitors in two days than 30 years'

BBC Birdwatchers from the UK descended on the quiet cull-de-sac in Shelf keen to catch a glimpse of the scarlet tanager

When news a rare American songbird had been spotted in a sleepy West Yorkshire cul-de-sac eager ornithologists converged on the quiet street faster than a falcon in free fall. But for the long term residents of Shelf - previously only known as the home of Blue Peter presenter John Noakes and interior designer Linda Barker - the arrival of a scarlet tanager brought a spotlight on the village and a "crazy" influx of visitors. While some complained about the parking and disruption to the bin round, others said they were excited to see the village put on the map.

Peter Flesher, who lives on Bridle Dene, is yet to see the winged visitor

“There’s been more strange people on this road in two days than in the whole of the 30 years, Peter Flesher tells me. The 82-year-old, who has lived on Bridle Dene for three decades, said most of the visitors had been respectful, though he described the excitement as “a pain in the whatsit”. “To be fair, they’ve been nice people and they’ve not caused us any trouble," he said. “We have two granddaughters who live over there and they were a bit perturbed by having 200 people staring at their house. But no, they were very good.” News of the arrival of the scarlet tanager - more usually found in the forests of North America - broke last weekend, sending birdwatchers into a state of excitement. According to some reports the sighting in West Yorkshire is the first in the UK in 10 years and only the eighth recorded in this country. Mr Flesher said he had been out to speak to some of the bird watchers and had met people from as far away as Glasgow. “I can’t believe these people. They have come up from Kent, Cornwall and one chap said he had come from Cambridge. “The whole road was full.”

Residents created homemade signs to direct visiting birdwatchers

Another long-term resident, Tony Gregson, 90, has lived on the road for 40 years. He said he first spotted the bird in his garden way back in September. “It’s been here weeks,” he says. “It was on the bird feeder and I said to my sister 'what’s that bird?’ - it must have been five or six weeks since and everybody turned up." Mr Gregson says he had had people knocking on his door and asking to try to catch a glimpse from his garden, but felt that was a step too far. “They wanted to come into the back garden and I said ‘no’ because you don’t know what they’re doing. But they’ve been alright. “They were very friendly really. Very nice people."

Stewart Short came to Shelf from Cambridgeshire twice to see the bird

Among those to make the pilgrimage to West Yorkshire was Stewart Short from Cambridgeshire. He said his visit to Shelf on Thursday was his second trip up and a second attempt to see one of his bucket-list birds. “I heard about it last weekend,” he said “I was here on Tuesday but I’ve not seen the bird, that’s why I’m back.” But great adventures come with their own challenges – where does a twitcher go to the toilet for instance? “Going to the toilet is sometimes difficult,” said Mr Short. “It’s a question of finding the right tree.” Pauline, a birdwatcher from Gargrave, said it was more difficult for women. “I watch out for places before we get anywhere – Tesco is good,” she told me. Despite only travelling 25 miles for today's outing, Pauline has been as far as Devon for her birdwatching trips. “We were looking for a Merlin. We didn’t see it though,” she said.

Julie King has lived in Shelf for 19 years, her daughter lives near where the bird was first spotted

The Morrissance: Morris dancing's inclusive revival

Rachel Beckwith In 2023, more women participated in Morris than men for the first time in the UK

When you think of the English tradition of Morris dancing, you might not picture a group of young, gender non-conforming, drag kings who dress like "chimney sweeps" - but that will be because you've not seen Molly No-Mates. The Bristol team - or side - represents the changing face of Morris, a tradition in which men no longer make up the majority of participants for the first time in UK history. For co-founder Scarlett Hutchin, it was a counter protest outside a drag queen story time in Bristol that sparked the idea of a queer-friendly Morris side. The events see a drag queen reading a book to children with the goal of promoting reading and diversity, but some have seen backlash from the public. "I was texting with my friend from my Morris team and I was just like, 'what would really improve the situation? Morris dancing'," says Scarlett. "One of the traditions of Molly [a type of Morris], is to dance to just singing and that's what we do. And we can have these dances that we can take to the protests that don't require instruments and don't require things that are offensive weapons. "It gives us scope to make our values and our point of view very visible, because when you have songs, you have words. "Pretty much all of our songs are in some way feminist or queer or leftist." Morris dancing is a form of traditional English folk dance that takes a variety of styles depending on where the group has come from.

For example, Border Morris, originating in the Welsh border counties of Shropshire, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire, features performers who wear tatter coats and often paint their faces or use other forms of disguise. By contrast, Clog Step is a dance style with percussive footwork and fine timing. Scarlett feels Molly No-Mates is part of the "cultural moment" Morris is experiencing, and points to last year's Brit Awards where Stroud-based group Boss Morris danced on stage with Wet Leg, who won Best New Artist and Group of the Year. "One of the things that's bringing a lot of people kind of back to folk... is people want to have some kind of culture," Scarlett says. "And there's this idea that England doesn't have any culture which is just not true. It's just that it's really neglected."

Jack Witek Molly No-Mates' dancers are around "80% non binary or other", co-founder Scarlett says

According to the 2023 Morris Census, the proportion of female members in Morris in the UK had risen from 46% in 2014 to 50.6% in 2023. In 2020, its questions were tweaked to include the number of "non-binary/other" members. An estimated 0.8% of UK sides’ members were reported in this category in 2023, up from 0.5% in 2020. Molly No-Mates, which formed in May 2023 in north Bristol, had just two members when it started - hence the "no-mates". Now they number ten and are around "80% non binary or other". "It feels like we're kind of bringing visible queerness into spaces that don't always have it that much," Scarlett says. She describes their outfits as looking like "19th century chimney sweeps", donning black shorts or trousers, a white top, braces, and a flat cap.

EPA Stroud-based team Boss Morris danced on stage with Wet Leg at last year's Brit Awards

Colin Andrews is an administrator at the Morris Dances & Teams Database and started teaching Morris dancing in 1990. The site, which started in early 2018, provides an easily searchable database of all Morris teams worldwide. "From about the mid 20s right the way through to the early 70s, Morris was regarded as being exclusively male," he says. "The [incoming] Squire Elect [leader] for the Morris Ring is a woman... it's moving away from being gender specific. "I would say probably over the past five years many of the male-only Cotswold Morris sides have gone mixed, and that basically was it's either a case of going mixed or folding... [they] just weren't getting enough new new members in." Morris is an "evolving tradition", Colin says, and he thinks it's interesting to see teams develop their own interpretations of the dance. "I think the question is whether these innovations will continue or whether they will just last as long as that particular team lasts," he says. "But I think it's a good thing that people try experimenting with different things."

Soft Butch/Sophia Stefellé One of the most distinct elements of Molly dancing is the use of cross-dressing, according to the English Folk Dance and Song Society

Since Molly No-Mates started, Scarlett says the side has received a "really positive response" from a lot of traditional teams. "In August we were dancing at Northgate Folk Festival in Chester... and there was a lovely traditional old, white men's team and they said they'd arrived several hours early to see us." One of the most distinct elements of traditional Molly dancing is the use of cross-dressing, according to the English Folk Dance and Song Society. At least one - but sometimes several - of the team members dress in women’s clothing. They say 19th Century Molly groups took pride in the appearance of their crossdressing "Moll", competing amongst themselves to see who could produce the best dressed - and this is probably where the name Molly comes from. In the past the term molly was an offensive word aimed at gay men, or men who carried out tasks considered to be women’s work, such as cooking or clothes washing. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, molly houses were locations where "mollies", or queer men, met for companionship and sex. They could be in pubs, taverns, inns or coffee houses.

Akhilesh Mistry To take part in Morris you need to enjoy "moving around and looking a bit funny", says Squire Sam Murphy

Sam Murphy, who identifies as gender fluid, is Squire of Bristol-based Border Morris team, Kittiwake. They took up Morris dancing despite having no family background in it. "The key things that you'd need to enjoy are moving around a lot and looking a bit funny," Sam advises aspiring beginners. "The people I've met from it have been just the most lovely people. "There's no gatekeeping, [there's no] 'You're not committed enough, so you can't do this'. It's very supportive. "And certainly in the circles that I've been in... there is more acceptance and openness, and people are more comfortable expressing themselves in things outside the gender binary."

Rachel Beckwith Kittiwake performed at Sidmouth Folk Festival this year for the first time